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The Keep
The Keep is the oldest building at the Castle, it dates back to 1180 and was built under the instructions of Hamelin Plantagenet the 5th Earl Warenne.  It stands 27 metres (90 feet) high with walls of 4.6 metres thick and has 5 levels including the roof.  

The Keep was the last bastion of defence at the Castle; if the Castle came under attack and the walls were breached then the defenders would retreat to the Keep, pull in the wooden bridge at the top of the stairs and bolt the door making it almost impossible for the attackers to gain entry.

The Keep contains a number of interesting features including the largest hooded fire-place of its date, a very impressive private chapel and a fine processional staircase.

At the top of the Keep are two water storage tanks, a bread-oven, two observation turrets and a shelter.

The Keep was re-roofed and re-floored in 1994 for the first time since the 16th century making it one of the best Norman Keep towers in the country.

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The Inner Ward
The Inner Ward or Inner Bailey is the area within the walls of the Castle.  It is in this area that many of the out-door activities associated with the day-to-day running of the Castle would have taken place; wood would have been chopped for the cooking fires, small live-stock such as chickens may have been kept and the Castle's soldiers would have practiced the art of war.

The main function of the Inner Ward was as a staging area for the defence of the Castle.  Soldiers could use the area as a muster point before making their way out of the Castle to attack those outside.  If the defending garrison was forced to retreat into the Keep, the Inner Ward would have become a killing-ground which could be easily defended from the top of the Keep.

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The Curtain Walls
These walls would have formed one of the most important parts of the Castle defences.  Not only were they an impregnable barrier to anyone wishing to attack the Castle, but they also provided a vantage point for those defending the Castle.  The battlements (which are no longer visible) would have offered very good protection for the defending archers making it almost impossible for attacking archers to hit anyone on top of the walls.

It is thought that the walls were built after the Keep, possibly around 1210-1215 during the tenure of William the 6th Earl Warenne.  Physical evidence at the Castle suggests that the Keep was originally surrounded by a wooden palisade.  The stone walls were built inside the palisade thereby not exposing the Castle to attack.

Today, the remains of the walls offer us many clues as to the function and position of many of the buildings within the Castle's Inner Ward.  The walls also tell us something about the history of the Castle, as can be seen below.

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Fallen South Wall
The South Wall of the Castle is recorded to have fallen by 1539 during the reign of Henry VIII.  It is thought that the wall collapsed as the result of a land-slide.  It is worth noting that the South Wall was the only section of wall to stand on a man-made part of the motte (mound).  This can be seen from the relationship between the walls and the ditch that surrounds the Castle, the ditch is three times further away from the walls on the south side than it is anywhere else at the Castle.

The collapsed condition of the South Wall was recorded in Leyland's Survey 1537-1539, we believe that the Castle would have been decommissioned shortly thereafter during which, all the usable timber and all the lead from the roofs would have been removed from the site, making the Castle a ruin.  Although this sounds like a terrible thing to have happened to a once proud castle, it meant that by the time of the English Civil War of the 1640s, the Castle was in such a poor state of repair that it did not pose a threat to Cromwell's forces and therefore did not suffer the fate of many other English castles, thereby preserving the Keep for us today.

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The Barbican
The Barbican is thought to be a 13th century addition to the Castle.  The way that a barbican worked was quite simple.  There would have been a portcullis gate at either end of the passage. 

The first gate or entrance to the barbican would be opened so that attackers could easily gain access, once they were inside, the first portcullis would have been dropped close.  A second portcullis gate would have been at the top of the barbican passage way, this one would have been closed from the start.  The attacking force would have been trapped between the two gates and contained within the barbican. 

Archers and other defending soldiers could then drop missiles or shoot arrows at the attacking force which was contained within the natural killing field of the barbican passage.

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The Gatehouse
This Gatehouse was the original way into the Castle.  Like many of the castles of its date the gateway was a strong well defended part of the walls, it would have consisted of an arched gate passage flanked by two towers, above the passage would have been a room called the Gatehouse.  

Within the Gatehouse would have been the mechanism for raising and lowering a drawbridge and another mechanism for raising and lowering the portcullis gate.  Within the floor of the Gatehouse (or ceiling of the gate passage) would have been a number of holes called "Murder Holes" through which any number of unpleasant substances or missiles could have been dropped on attackers.

Close examination of the remains of the Gatehouse will revile a number of interesting "clues", these include a stone bench at ground level, the remains of a fireplace on the first floor level and if you examine the remains of the fallen wall at this point, part of the gate arch.

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The Chapel
In common with many castles of this date, Conisbrough has its Chapel next to the Gatehouse.  During the consolidation of the site in the 1960s, the remains of a stone alter were discovered here.

The Chapel was used each day by all the occupants of the castle for the daily religious observances.

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The Guardhouse and Prison
Located on the opposite side of the gate to the Chapel was the Guardhouse, again this was the usual location for the guardhouse at a castle of this date.  Armed guards would have been in attendance at all times to protect the gate.  

At Conisbrough Castle there is also a Prison Cell located below ground level just under the location of the guardhouse.  Today, the cell contains the best preserved medieval latrine on the Castle site, access to the cell would have been by means of a trap-door in the floor of the guardhouse.

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The Accommodation Range
The principal use for these buildings is thought to be as living quarters.  However, it is not certain whether they were for the castle staff or used as guest accommodation.  What is known is that this range was a two story building, this has been proposed as a result of the archaeological evidence visible along the curtain wall at this point; a number of flat stone pads were discovered, they would have supported timber beams which in turn would have supported a first floor which was also made from wood.

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The Latrine Pit
This pit utilises a natural fissure in the rock that the Castle is built upon.  Today the remains of only one latrine slide can be seen, however it has been suggested that as many as nine toilets could have emptied in to this hole.  The pit would have to have been emptied by hand on a regular basis, the produce of which would probably have been used to fertilise nearby farm land.

The close proximity of the latrine pit adds weight to the idea of the Accommodation Range, after all what is one of the last things we do at night before going to bed and the first thing we do in a morning when we get up?

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The Great Chamber
Evidence visible at the first floor level in the curtain walls at this point (a large fireplace) suggests that at some time in the Castle's history a grand apartment was located at this spot.  One of the only people to have visited the Castle on a regular enough basis to need such a grand room would have been the Earl Warenne.  The Keep would not have been favoured as accommodation because of the constant draughts that blow through the building, so a cosy apartment on the west side of the Castle to catch the setting sun would have been favoured.

There is some evidence for major building work having taken place in this area in the late fourteenth or fifteenth century, possibly the placing of a large window within the west wall.  Sadly all traces have been robbed from the site a long time ago.  It is worth noting that the last person who may have used this apartment was Maud, the Countess of Cambridge, she was the grandmother of Edward IV and the last person of note to have lived at the castle, she is recorded to has died in 1446 possible at the castle.

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The North-West Tower
Visitors to the Castle will note an opening high in the north-west corner of the curtain wall.  This was a doorway leading into a small room within a "D" shaped tower, this tower has long-since fallen into the ditch.  However, evidence can be seen from the outside that this tower once contained a latrine, possibly connected to the Great Chamber.

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The Great Hall
As with any community during the early middle ages most castles had some form of Great Hall.  Conisbrough's Great Hall was of the isled variety, a line of 3 large columns supported the high roof.  The original 13th century central hearth is still visible in the remains of the Hall, this fireplace would have had no chimney, smoke from the fire would have vented through holes in the roof of the hall.

Evidence suggests that in the 14th century however, the central hearth was covered over and a fireplace with a chimney was installed into the north wall of the Hall.  At about the same time the curved west end of the Hall had a dividing wall built across it producing a new room into which a fireplace was built. 

The Hall is the only part of the castle to show any sign of a mortar render which still adheres to a few of the stones on the north wall.  Incidentally, evidence of a similar rendering can be found on the walls of part of St. Peter's Church in the village of Conisbrough, the stone that this part of the church is built from is of a similar quality as that found in the Hall area of the Castle.

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The Services
Although no one can confirm exactly what this area is for, there are a number of diverse theories.  Within this "room" there is a finely crafted stone drainage trough with a semi-circular end, and evidence for a flag-stone floor all of which is assumed to be medieval.  

High in the north wall at this point are a number of socket holes thought to be for timber beams, the problem is that these sockets are not in a horizontal line and are unlikely to be of medieval origin.

There is evidence for a 14th century building alteration that placed a doorway through into this area from the great hall.  This "room" is thought most likely to be a scullery or pantry.

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The Buttery
Despite the name, this room has nothing to do with dairy products.  A butt was a wooden container for holding 108 gallons of ale or beer and the buttery was where they were stored.  At the Castle it was a room below ground.

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The Covered Passage
Leading from the kitchens to the Great Hall, this passageway was probably nothing more than a simple lean-to structure with a simple roof allowing food to be brought from the kitchen to Hall.

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The Bake-house
Situated next to the kitchens, the bake-house shared a nest of ovens the remains of which can still be seen.  This is where all the bread would have been baked that was used at the castle.

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The Kitchens
The remains seen today are probably of the kitchen that was modified in the 14th century.  It is laid out with two large fires that would have had their own chimneys.  There is also evidence for a small oven next to the eastern most fire, this fire also has a shallow trough in front of it, thought to be for collecting fat that dripped from meat being cooked in front of the fire.

The kitchen shares a nest of ovens with the bake-house next door, the complete remains of one of these ovens is still visible.  

Discolouration of the north wall stone work in this area points to a possibly destructive fire in the kitchen at some time in the Castle's history.

A complete 14th century kitchen of a similar layout to that at Conisbrough can be found at Haddon Hall near Bakewell in Derbyshire.

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The Guard's Latrines and Wall Walk Stairs
Situated at either side of the Keep are two openings into the Curtain Wall, the better preserved of these is the one next to the kitchen.  A short flight of steps lead into a latrine that would probably have been used by the guards who patrolled the Wall Walk that ran around the top of the Curtain Wall.  Also in this area are the remains of the stone stairs that allowed access to the top of the walls.

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