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at a distance from the castle and then, when the garrison attempted to take advantage of this by coming out to attack him, quickly attacked and burnt the main gates behind them, successfully taking the castle. The castle was also visited by
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in 1205. The castle was used by the de
Harptrees and de Gurney families for most of the rest of the medieval period, forming the administrative centre and law court for one of the four Mendip mineries in the region.
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The castle was ruined and abandoned by the 1540s, with the stone being reused to build local houses. The Newton family excavated the foundations to build a house nearby called "Eastwood", according to
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of
England in 1066. The name probably means either "rich mountain" or "strong mountain". The castle was located on a steep spur of ground, overlooking the
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attempted to establish control of
England. The castle was controlled by Sir William de Harptree, who supported Matilda. In 1138, after failing to take
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The first version of the castle appears to have been constructed using a single bailey on the south side, possibly making use of an existing
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250:, Stephen advanced on Richmont and, according to chroniclers, took the castle through subterfuge. Stephen set up his
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Richmont Castle, East
Harptree: An Analytical Earthwork Survey, English Heritage Research Department Report No. 73.
184:, England. Now totally ruined, it once included parkland, an artificial lake and served as the local minery court.
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called the Great Park; the keep may have overlooked an artificial lake across the valley floor to the west.
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220:. Later versions of the castle involved the creation of an inner bailey within the first, and a circular
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on the highest point on the spur. The castle became part of a managed landscape and was surrounded by a
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Richmont Castle was built near the village of East
Harptree, Somerset, probably soon after the
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During the 12th century, Richmont Castle was involved in the civil war known as
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The site was mined extensively between the 17th and 19th centuries for
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H. T. Ellacombe, 'Barre's Court and Hannam' (London, 1869), p. 34.
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The castle may have been founded by
William FitzJohn de Harptree.
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Gough, J. W. (1931) "Mendip Mining Law and Forest Bounds,"
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Buildings and structures completed in the 11th century
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Scheduled monuments in Bath and North East
Somerset
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554:, Gatehouse website, accessed 12 July 2011;
484:Gough, p.142, cited Brown, p.14; Brown, p.5.
204:, dropping away on either side of the spur.
216:fortification, similar to that at nearby
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493:Mackenzie, p.68; Dunning (1995), p.18.
439:. Bath and Avon Family History Society
565:Research records (formerly PastScape)
530:Research records (formerly PastScape)
324:Chichester, UK: Phillimore & Co.
160:Earthworks and limited masonry remain
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297:Castles in Great Britain and Ireland
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551:Richmont Castle, East Harptree
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339:Tiverton, UK: Somerset Books.
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1:
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561:"Richmont Castle (197292)"
526:"Richmont Castle (197292)"
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200:, with two valleys, called
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302:List of castles in England
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597:Former castles in England
317:London: English Heritage.
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335:Dunning, Robert. (1995)
320:Dunning, Robert. (1982)
357:Mackenzie, J.D. (1896)
352:Somerset Record Society
45:Site of Richmont Castle
322:A History of Somerset.
361:New York: Macmillan.
176:near the village of
169:was an 11th-century
592:Castles in Somerset
359:Castles of England.
99: /
475:Dunning (1983), p.
285:scheduled monument
103:51.2996°N 2.6296°W
607:Ruins in Somerset
426:Brown, pp.12, 15.
337:Somerset Castles.
313:Brown, G. (2008)
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238:, during which
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139:Keep and bailey
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568:. Retrieved
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308:Bibliography
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240:King Stephen
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399:Brown, p.1.
381:Brown, p.4.
270:John Leland
264:Abandonment
236:the Anarchy
198:Chew Valley
106: /
82:Coordinates
586:Categories
443:31 January
366:References
91:51°17′59″N
257:King John
218:Bincknoll
157:Condition
94:2°37′47″W
291:See also
281:calamine
242:and the
214:Iron Age
188:Location
182:Somerset
129:ST562558
32:Somerset
570:12 July
535:14 July
248:Bristol
208:History
202:coombes
152:Private
343:
328:
174:castle
149:Owner
572:2011
537:2011
445:2014
341:ISBN
326:ISBN
279:and
277:lead
226:park
222:keep
136:Type
354:45.
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374:^
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