N. 



A 



ANCIENT EARTHWORKS 



must have fallen into disuse before the present ancient building was 

 erected.' ^ 



Clitheroe (9 J miles east-north-east of Blackburn).— The celebrated 



castle xs on the top of an isolated crag, rising in the middle of the vale down 



which the River Ribble winds its way from the heights of the Pennine chain 



in Yorkshire. This vale has long been a thoroughfare for traffic, both 



warlike and peaceful ; an old Roman road runs up it, and passes just south of 



the Castle Rock ; the r r j 



latter effectively bars 



the pass, and the out- 

 look from its summit 



is most commanding. 

 The castle is but 



small and is now a 



ruin ; it consists of a 

 , circular walled keep 



on the northern and 



highest point of the 



crag, within which 



stands a tall square 



tower ; to the south 



of this, and at a lower 



elevation on the slope 



caused by the dip of 



the strata, lies a more 



or less oblong court 



or bailey, also walled 



round ; this is now 



largely occupied by 



the outbuildings and 



gardens of the modern 



residence built for the 



steward of the ancient 

 honour of Clitheroe. 

 The plan of the fort- 

 ress is that of a mount 

 and court castle of the 

 class we are now con- 

 sidering. It is not an 



earthwork in the ordinary acceptation of the term, for the reason that no soil 

 was available upon the top of the limestone crag on which it is placed, while 

 stone was of course abundant. Nevertheless it is so similar in design, and 

 withal so rude and early in its workmanship, that it certainly belongs to the 

 same era as the many mount and court earthworks to be seen in the county. 



The mount itself (A) is apparently a natural semicircular rock, which has 

 probably also been scarped artificially in places ; it is precipitous in parts, 

 especially to the north and west, and rises to a height of about 1 30 ft. above 



' H. M. White in litt. ; Baines, Hist. Lanes, (ed. 1868), ii, 619; Watkins, Roman Lanes. 223; Ord. Surv. 

 l-in. 49 ; old 98 SE. ; 6-in. 25 NE. ; 25-in. 25, 4. 





•StALC OF FEET 

 100 ?0O 



SECT'iOn from D-ToE 



. S<3/7i& scale 

 A. 



Clitherob Castle 



