Baile Hill

Baile Hill is a Norman castle mound rising about 40 feet (12 meters) high with a base roughly 180 feet (55 meters) across. Defensive ditches ring the earthwork, and it sits beside the River Ouse where it meets York's medieval city walls.

William the Conqueror ordered this fortress built in 1068 during his military campaign to control northern England. During the English Civil War in 1644, the mound became an artillery position with two large cannons defending the city.

The mound served as a gathering place where medieval York residents practiced archery and held Shrovetide celebrations together. This everyday use reveals how the site shaped community life beyond its role as a defensive stronghold.

The mound sits at the corner of Baile Hill Terrace and Cromwell Road where it connects with York's medieval city walls. From the top, you can see across the River Ouse and get views of the surrounding city.

The mound was built remarkably fast in the years following the Norman Conquest and remains one of few surviving examples of this early military design in England. Its riverside location meant it controlled both land routes and water access through York.

Location: City of York

Part of: City Walls, gates, posterns (not including the section from Bootham Bar to Monk Bar, N of the Minster, now part of National Monument No 13280), moats, mounds, Bayle (or Baile) Hill, St Leonard's Hospital and Merchant Taylor's Hall, Aldwark

GPS coordinates: 53.95390,-1.08291

Latest update: December 8, 2025 19:47