A Norman keep with two mottes instead of one, still looking out over the gap where the Ouse cuts through the Downs
Access unclearno public right of way confirmed — check locally before setting out
Substantial ruinsruined, but plenty survives above ground
William de Warenne, who got this corner of Sussex as a reward for backing William the Conqueror, built himself a castle here within a few years of 1066, and built it strangely. Most Norman castles went up on a single motte, one big mound with a keep on top. Lewes has two, one at each end of the walled bailey, which makes it, along with Lincoln Castle, one of only two in the country built with a spare. Only one ended up with a stone keep on it, rebuilt and heightened over the next two centuries, with the fortified barbican over the high street added last, in the fourteenth century.
That gatehouse is the one everyone stops to photograph, but the reason to climb up is the view. From the top you’re looking down over Lewes’ rooftops and out along the Ouse valley towards Mount Caburn, with the South Downs either side of the gap. Lewes Priory is a short walk south, and the site of the Battle of Lewes is up the valley to the northwest, so between the three you get a decent slice of the town’s medieval history without moving the car. Lewes station is a few minutes on foot, which makes the cluster easy to see in a day without a car.
More at the National Heritage List entry
