Survey Data

Reg No

30319015


Rating

Regional


Categories of Special Interest

Archaeological, Architectural, Social


Original Use

Castle/fortified house


Historical Use

Prison/jail


In Use As

Restaurant


Date

1450 - 1490


Coordinates

129692, 224985


Date Recorded

27/08/2008


Date Updated

--/--/--


Description

Three-storey medieval tower house, built c.1470, having single-bay ground and first floors and two-bay second floor. Recent commercial buildings flanking to each side are recessed slightly from tower house elevation. Flat roof with crenellated parapet, with projecting machicolation on supporting corbels to top floor above entrance. Coursed roughly dressed limestone rubble walls. Square-headed window openings to upper floors, double-lights to top floor and single-light to first floor, having recent chamfered limestone block-and-start surrounds. East corner of first floor has cusped trefoil-headed windows to two sides, with tooled stone surrounds. Three-centred doorway to ground floor having limestone surround, some stones being replacement, dressed lintel stones, and replacement double-leaf timber door.

Appraisal

Blake's Castle is a typical medieval, urban tower house. It preserves a number of key features, including the interesting and unusual trefoil-headed windows to one corner, and the restored machicolation to the roof level, formerly defending the doorway. During its history this building has functioned as a county jail, a store, as housing for an electrical transformer, and since the 1990s, a restaurant.