The Bourne Archive Gallery

Figure 12. Bourne Castle. The north-western corner of the middle bailey. The bank across the right background is probably the spread fill of a pisé curtain wall which was smaller than that around the inner bailey. In October 1645, the castle was partially re-fortified but the threat passed and the work was not finished. To the left is the end of a gun platform. Others project from the bank visible across the left background. They are partially buried in spoil from the nineteenth century leat leading to the West Street mill. In the middle ground are two discrete puddles. Two more depressions lie in a merged puddle. These four depressions are the remains of small pits, one at each of the corners of an intended gun platform to mark its position so that other men could do the bulk of the labour. But the king went off to Welbeck and Newark so Bourne was not troubled and the work was abandoned.

(Picture date late 2002)