| Lydford Castle was probably
built around 1195 to serve as a prison. It took the form of a freestanding
tower of at least two stories. Sometime in the thirteenth century a through
rebuilding was undertaken. A ditch was dug around the tower and the soil
piled up against the ground floor. The upper stories were completely rebuilt
to form a small keep and the interior of the old prison filled in (this
filling has now been removed). At the same time an earthwork bailey to
the north west was constructed. |
