List of town walls in England and Wales

Model of Worcester city walls as they were in 1250, viewed from the north, based on archaeological and historical data available in 2000.

Model of Caernarfon showing the town walls and Caernarfon Castle (right) shortly after their completion in the 13th century, as viewed from the west

Model of Conwy showing the town walls and Conwy Castle (right) after completion in the 13th century

This list of town walls in England and Wales describes the fortified walls built and maintained around these towns and cities from the 1st century AD onwards. The first town walls were built by the Romans, following their conquest of Britain in 43 AD. The Romans typically initially built walled forts, some of which were later converted into rectangular towns, protected by either wooden or stone walls and ditches. Many of these defences survived the fall of the Roman Empire in the 4th and 5th centuries, and were used in the unstable post-Roman period. The Anglo-Saxon kings undertook significant planned urban expansion in the 8th and 9th centuries, creating burhs, often protected with earth and wood ramparts. These burh walls sometimes utilised older Roman fortifications, and themselves frequently survived into the early medieval period.

The Norman invaders of the 11th century initially focused on building castles to control their new territories, rather than town walls to defend the urban centres, but by the 12th century many new town walls were built across England and Wales, typically in stone. Edward I conquered North Wales in the late 13th century and built a number of walled towns as part of a programme of English colonisation. By the late medieval period, town walls were increasingly less military in character and more closely associated with civic pride and urban governance: many grand gatehouses were built in the 14th and 15th centuries. The English Civil War in 1640s saw many town walls pressed back into service, with older medieval structures frequently reinforced with more modern earthwork bastions and sconces. By the 18th century, however, most town walls were falling into disrepair: typically they were sold off and demolished, or hidden behind newer buildings as towns and cities expanded.

In the 20th century there was a resurgence in historical and cultural interest in these defences. Those towns and cities that still had intact walls renovated them to form tourist attractions. Some of Edward I's town walls in North Wales were declared part of the internationally recognised UNESCO World Heritage Site. Urban redevelopment has frequently uncovered new remnants of the medieval walls, with archaeological work generating new insights into the Roman and Anglo-Saxon defences.

List

Place	County	Date built	Condition	Image	Notes
Abergavenny	Monmouthshire		Masonry fragments		A small Norman wall was built around the town in the 11th century, linked to Abergavenny Castle. The Norman wall was demolished in the 12th century and a new stone wall was built in the late 13th century, approximately 350 by 215 metres (1,100 ft × 710 ft). This was destroyed by the modern period.
Aberystwyth	Ceredigion		Vestiges		A small section of the medieval walls still remain near the castle on the seafront.
Alnwick	Northumberland		Two gatehouses survive		The walls were built in the 15th century to protect Alnwick against border instability and raiding, and commemorated the powerful local Percy family, who controlled the local castle.
Bath	Somerset		Fragmentary remains		Bath's first walls were built by the Romans. The Anglo-Saxons established a fortified burh at Bath, utilising the existing walls, and they were further strengthened during the medieval period. Parts of one medieval gatehouse still survive.
Beaumaris	Anglesey		Vestiges		The town was captured by Owain Glyndŵr in 1400. Once recaptured by English forces, a stone wall with three gates was built around the town, and maintained until the late 17th century.
Berwick-upon-Tweed	Northumberland		Substantially intact		The first walls built in the early 14th century under Edward I were 2 mi (3.2 km) long. Replaced in 1560 by a set of Italian-inspired walls with 5 large stone bastions, the walls are today the best-preserved post-medieval town defences in England.
Beverley	East Riding of Yorkshire		One gatehouse survives		12th century Beverley was protected by a "great ditch" rather than a stone wall. In the early 15th century 3 brick gatehouses were built; more ditches and other fortifications were later added, but these failed to protect the town during the Civil War.
Bolsover	Derbyshire	Probably 11th or 12th century.	Vestiges		Bank and ditch rampart, approximately 8m in width at the base and varying between 3m and 2m in height.
Brecon	Powys		Vestiges		Originally constructed by Humphrey de Bohun after 1240, the walls were built of stone, with 4 gatehouses and 10 semi-circular bastions. They were largely destroyed during the Civil War.
Bridgnorth	Shropshire		Vestiges		Bridgnorth's town walls were initially constructed in timber between 1216 and 1223; murage grants allowed them to be upgraded to stone between the 13th and 15th centuries including 5 gates.
Bristol	Bristol		Fragmentary remains		The fine St John's Gate is built into the Church of St John the Baptist under its spire; the line of the walls is walkable.
Caerleon	Newport		Fragmentary remains
Caernarfon	Gwynedd	1283–92	Largely intact		Constructed by Edward I at a cost of £3,500, alongside the castle, the walls are 2,408 ft (734 m) long and include eight towers and two gatehouses. Today they form part of the UNESCO world heritage site administered by Cadw.
Caerwent	Monmouthshire		Substantial remains
Canterbury	Kent	3rd-16th centuries	Substantial remains		First built by the Romans in the 3rd century, retained by the Anglo-Saxons, the walls were rebuilt in the late 14th century owing to fears of a French invasion and feature early gunports. Over half of the original circuit, with 17 out of 24 towers, survives.
Cardiff	Cardiff	12th-15th centuries	Vestiges		First recorded in 1111, the walls were 1.28 mi (2.06 km) long and 10 ft (3.0 m) high with 5 town gates. Sections collapsed in the 18th century, many stones being reused as building material. The last large section was demolished in 1901. One of the town gates remains just west of the castle, the "West Gate".
Carlisle	Cumbria		Substantial remains
Castle Acre	Norfolk		Fragmentary remains
Chepstow	Monmouthshire		Substantial remains		A late thirteenth century stone wall constructed for the twin purposes of defence and tax collection.
Chester	Cheshire	70 AD–12th century	Largely intact		Chester's walls were originally built by the Romans between 70 and 80 AD and were used by the burh in 907. The Norman walls were extended to the west and the south to form a complete circuit, which now provides a walkway of about 2 mi (3.2 km).
Chichester	West Sussex		Substantial remains
Cirencester	Gloucestershire	3rd–4th century	Vestiges		Remnants of the stone walls of the Roman town of Corinium Dobunnorum are visible in the Abbey Grounds.
Colchester	Essex		Substantial remains		The walls were built between 65 and 80 AD after the destruction of the town by Boudicca, and they continued in use until after the Siege of Colchester in 1648. Two large stretches survive on the west and north sides and a number of fragments are visible along the rest of the circuit nearly 2 miles (3.2 kilometres). The Balkerne Gate is the most complete Roman gateway in the United Kingdom.
Conwy	Conwy		Largely intact		Constructed between 1283 and 1287 after the foundation of Conwy by Edward I, the walls are 0.8 mi (1.3 km) long, with 21 towers and 3 gatehouses, and formed an integrated system of defence alongside Conwy Castle.
Coventry	West Midlands	1350s–1534	Fragmentary remains		With its walls nearly 2.2 mi (3.5 km) around and 12 ft (3.7 m) high, with 32 towers and 12 gatehouses, repaired during the 1640s, Coventry was described as being the best-defended city in England outside London.
Cowbridge	Vale of Glamorgan		Substantial remains
Cricklade	Wiltshire		Fragmentary remains
Denbigh	Denbighshire		Substantial remains
Dover	Kent		Vestiges		Medieval town walls, probably 14th century in date. No structures survive above ground. Tablets mark the sites of Snar Gate, Cow Gate, and Biggin Gate. During building clearance in 1962, foundations of the town wall were encountered along the south side of Townwall Street.
Durham	County Durham		Fragmentary remains
Exeter	Devon		Substantial remains		Exeter's walls survive as a circuit approximately 2.35 km long, of which 72% (1,705m) is still visible, some parts up to 2.5m high. Originally built by the Romans in circa 200 AD, there were four gateways which were dismantled in the 18th and 19th centuries. The walls were repaired and rebuilt during the Anglo-Saxon, medieval and Civil War periods and the city was besieged at least twice. Several turrets and bastions in the wall are of uncertain date.
Frome	Somerset	Pre 1730	Substantial Remains		One of Frome's most ancient structures, the Old Town Wall, runs along from Bath Street through into upper Saxonvale below Lidl, whilst the Old Slaughterhouse facade with its blocked in coach arches and mixture of dressed and rubble stone sections is architecturally of significance in assessing the surviving fabric of previous barton buildings.
Gloucester	Gloucestershire	Roman and medieval	Vestiges		Foundations of 11th and 13th century East Gate visible through glass panels in Eastgate Street. Another fragment of Roman wall is visible in the City Museum.
Great Yarmouth	Norfolk		Substantial remains
Hartlepool	County Durham		Substantial remains
Hastings	East Sussex		Vestiges
Haverfordwest	Pembrokeshire		Vestiges
Hay-on-Wye	Powys		Vestiges
Hereford	Herefordshire		Fragmentary remains
Horncastle	Lincolnshire	Circa 300 AD	Fragmentary remains		Perhaps part of a 4th-century Roman coastal defence system. Remnants of all four walls and a circular bastion survive.
Ilchester	Somerset		Vestiges
Kidwelly	Carmarthenshire		Substantial remains
Kings Lynn	Norfolk		Fragmentary remains
Kingston upon Hull	East Riding of Yorkshire	14th century	Vestiges		Built of brick in the 14th century, with 4 main gates and up to 30 towers, the walls were maintained until the early 1700s. They were demolished during the building of the docks, beginning in the 1770s.
Langport	Somerset		Fragmentary remains
Launceston	Cornwall		Substantial remains
Lewes	East Sussex		Vestiges
Lincoln	Lincolnshire		Fragmentary remains
London	London		Fragmentary remains		Built by the Romans and maintained until the 18th century, nearly 3 mi (4.8 km) long, the wall defined the boundaries of the City of London with the Thames to the south. Short sections remain near the Tower of London and in the Barbican area.
Ludlow	Shropshire	1233–1317	Fragmentary remains		Built to defend this Welsh Marches market town, the walls remain in sections, as does the Broad Gate (shown in photo). The large Ludlow Castle is now a ruin but with substantial remains.
Malmesbury	Wiltshire		Vestiges
Monmouth	Monmouthshire	13th–15th century	Only the Monnow Bridge gate survives		Originally formed a circuit wall with four gatehouses, none of which survive. The fortified Monnow bridge still remains, the only surviving medieval bridge gate in the UK.
Newark-on-Trent	Nottinghamshire		Vestiges
Newcastle upon Tyne	Tyne and Wear		Substantial remains		Built during the 13th and 14th centuries the wall was about 2 mi (3.2 km) long, 6.5 ft (2.0 m) thick and 25 ft (7.6 m) high, with 6 main gates. The town was successfully defended twice; but during the Civil War the wall was breached using mines and artillery.
Northampton	Northamptonshire	11th–17th century			Destroyed by Royal order in 1662
Norwich	Norfolk		Fragmentary remains
Nottingham	Nottinghamshire	1267-1334	Vestiges		A fragment of the wall is visible in a hotel complex near Chapel Bar.
Oxford	Oxfordshire		Fragmentary remains
Pembroke	Pembrokeshire	11th - 13th century	Castle and town walls largely intact		A medieval town sitting atop a limestone peninsular linked to Pembroke Castle (1093). (Listed Ancient Monument).The walls are virtually intact on the north side along the River Pembroke together with the intact structure to the east that is Barnard's Tower (mini fortress). 75% of walls survive along the south side (The Commons) including a Lime-kiln, Gun Platform, two towers, the top of one surmounted by a Gazebo. All the walls are listed and many buildings on the wall and in the town are listed Ancient Monuments. The burgage plots within the town are divided by medieval stone walls and are of national importance.The mighty Pembroke Castle sits at the Western tip of the peninsular.The walk around the castle and town walls is some 1.5 miles.
Poole	Dorset		Vestiges
Portsmouth	Hampshire	14th–18th century	Fragmentary remains		First constructed of earth and timber, probably in the late 14th century, the walls were repeatedly repaired and rebuilt until the mid 18th century. They were largely removed in the 1870s and 80s.
Richmond	North Yorkshire		Fragmentary remains
Rochester	Kent		Fragmentary remains
Rye, East Sussex	East Sussex		Substantial remains
Salisbury	Wiltshire	14/15th century	Fragments and one gatehouse		North Gate. Two-storey building over and around north entrance to the Cathedral Close.
Sandwich	Kent		Fragmentary remains
Shrewsbury	Shropshire	13th–14th century	Fragmentary remains		Begun in the 13th century after attacks by the Welsh, adding to the natural defences of the Severn, the walls were strengthened by the Royalists during the Civil War. A medieval watch tower and short sections remain, notably along the street named Town Walls.
Silchester	Hampshire	3rd century	Substantial remains		The Roman town of Calleva Atrebatum was abandoned around the 5th or 6th century. Much of the walls survive, the area within them largely farmland.
Southampton	Hampshire		Half the medieval circuit survives		Built after French raids in 1338, the walls were 1.25 mi (2.01 km) long, with 29 towers and 8 gates. They were amongst the first in England to have new technology installed to existing fortifications, with new towers built specifically to house cannon.
Stafford	Staffordshire		Vestiges
Stamford	Lincolnshire		Fragmentary remains
Swansea	Swansea		Vestiges
Tenby	Pembrokeshire		Substantial remains
Totnes	Devon	14th century	Fragmentary remains		Remains include the Baste Walls, South Street and the Eastgate, which was greatly altered in the 19th century.
Verulamium	Hertfordshire	2nd-3rd century	Fragmentary remains		The site of the Roman town of Verulamium was abandoned when the later settlement of St. Albans was established nearby.
Warkworth	Northumberland		Fragmentary remains
Wareham	Dorset	9th-11th century	Substantial remains		Earthwork defences first mentioned in 876 surround the town on the north, east and west sides; the south side is bounded by the River Frome. The West Walls were scarped against attack by tanks in 1940.
Warwick	Warwickshire		Fragmentary remains
Winchelsea	East Sussex		Substantial remains
Winchester	Hampshire		Substantial remains
Worcester	Worcestershire	1st–12th century	Vestiges		First built by the Romans, the walls were extended by the Anglo-Saxons to create a walled burh. A longer circuit of stone walls was built in the late 12th century and further fortified during the Civil War.
York	North Yorkshire	3rd–14th century	Largely intact		2.5 mi (4.0 km) long, enclosing an area of 263 acres, the defences are the best preserved in England. On high ramparts, retaining all their main gateways, the walls incorporate Roman, Norman and medieval work with modern renovations.

See also

• List of town defences in Scotland
• List of cities with defensive walls

Bibliography

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