Pevensey Castle - Medieval Castle

Medieval Castle

Robert, Count of Mortain (half-brother to William the Conqueror) was granted Pevensey shortly after the Norman Conquest. Mortain used the existing fort as the basis for building a castle around 1100, carrying out only minor repairs to the walls to form an outer bailey, and building a new wooden palisaded irregular rectangular-shaped inner bailey against the Roman wall. Shortly afterwards, a rectangular stone keep was erected, incorporating part of the east curtain wall and a Roman bastion. The original main entrance to the south-west and the east gateway were both repaired.

The castle was besieged by William Rufus in the Rebellion of 1088 and during a period of civil war by the forces loyal to King Stephen (1135–1141). Around 1190-1220 the present twin-towered gateway was constructed, making it one of the earliest known examples of this type. A stone circuit wall was erected around the inner bailey by Peter of Savoy around 1250, with three D-shaped towers. A third siege occurred in 1264, when Henry III's supporters took refuge at the castle following the Battle of Lewes and were besieged by Simon de Montfort.

The castle remained in use throughout the Late Middle Ages. In 1415, king Henry V sent his hostage king James I of Scotland to the castle.