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The Great Britain Guide

Castles · West Midlands

South Cerney Castle

♿ Wheelchair: limited

South Cerney Castle — castle in South Cerney, Cotswold, Gloucestershire, England, UK.

South Cerney, an ancient foundation - geograph.org.uk - 4096895

Basher Eyre — CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons licence

Plan your visit

Typical visit
1.5 h–3 h
Nearest railway station
Kemble · 6.2 km
  • Family-friendly
  • Limited wheelchair access

About

South Cerney Castle is a castle in the United Kingdom — fortified architecture from the medieval, Tudor, or Victorian-revival period. Heritage designation: scheduled monument. Wikidata describes it as: "castle in South Cerney, Cotswold, Gloucestershire, England, UK". Coordinates: 51.6778°, -1.9334°.

Photo gallery

Heritage listing

South Cerney Castle was an adulterine castle of Motte and bailey construction built in South Cerney, Gloucestershire in the mid-12th century. Today only slight earthwork remains and they are a scheduled monument.

From the Historic England List Entry under OGL v3.

Protected designations

  • Site of Special Scientific Interest: Cotswold Water Park SSSI
  • Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty: Cotswolds

Designations sourced from Natural England open data under OGL v3.

From the Wikipedia article

South Cerney Castle was an adulterine castle of Motte and bailey construction built in South Cerney, Gloucestershire in the mid-12th century. Today only slight earthwork remains and they are a scheduled monument.

Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.

Background

History

The small Norman castle, built to protect the strategically useful village of South Cerney along the river Churn, was identified by Bazeley and Kennen, and accepted by other historians as the one built by Miles of Gloucester during the Anarchy and captured by King Stephen's forces in 1139, but the record of this is uncertain and Renn suggested that Ashton Keynes Castle was the more likely site for these events, and King mentions that this castle is frequently confused with a castle in Cerne Abbas, Dorset and a lost castle in Calne, Wiltshire. The subsequent fate of the castle is unknown.

Description

Only slight earthwork remains exist today, although excavations in the middle 1930s revealed a square well and some datable material from the 16th and 17th centuries including farthings from the reign of Charles I. Later, twelfth-century pottery was found on the site.

Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Coordinates
51.6778, -1.9334
County
Gloucestershire
District
Cotswold
Parish
South Cerney
Postcode
GL7 5TR
Parliamentary constituency
South Cotswolds
Nearest railway station
Kemble6.2 km

Sources

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Frequently asked questions

Where is South Cerney Castle?
South Cerney Castle is in Gloucestershire, the West Midlands, United Kingdom (postcode GL7 5TR), in the parish of South Cerney.
Is South Cerney Castle a listed building?
South Cerney Castle is officially recognised as scheduled monument listed.
Is South Cerney Castle a protected site?
Yes — South Cerney Castle is part of the Cotswold Water Park SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest and the Cotswolds National Landscape (AONB).
Does South Cerney Castle charge admission?
South Cerney Castle typically charges admission. Check the official site for current ticket prices and opening hours.
How do I get to South Cerney Castle?
The nearest railway station is Kemble, about 6.2 km away. Drivers can navigate to postcode GL7 5TR.