Castles of Lunesdale - Arkholme Traditional Cache
Castles of Lunesdale - Arkholme
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(micro)
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Micro cache at Arkholme Motte and Bailey
This is one of a short series of caches at Motte and Bailey castles in the Lune valley. Others in the series are at Whittington, Melling and Hornby/Gressingham (Castle Stede). Other prominent motte and bailey castles can been seen at Halton and Burton-in-Lonsdale.
These castles were probably built very quickly to provide security for the new Norman landowners in hostile territory. Although the South of England fell to the Normans in a very short time, there were 10 years of brutal fighting in the north and large areas were utterly laid waste by William I in revenge for the massacre of some of his henchmen.
At Arkholme, excavations in 1975 showed how the motte had been built. A line of stones was used to mark out the outline of the motte and then gangs of labourers - probably unwilling villagers - dumped baskets of soil and stones within the line until the heap was big enough. The top and sides were stiffened with river cobbles to stop the whole mass from slumping.
Arkholme Church is late Perpendicular (15th century) and it was restored in 1897.
The cache is not in a wall, nor within the churchyard. This cache meets the Urban Placement Guidelines.
Congratulations to lotusnutt for FTF!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Uvatr.
Treasures
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