The medieval visitor would have walked across a timber drawbridge over the wide shallow moat and into the gatehouse, which was built when the curtain walls were heightened in the late 11th to early 12th centuries.
The ruins of the hall and its forebuilding are straight ahead of the main entrance. Eynsford Castle is unusual because it did not have a keep or great tower; the principal domestic apartments were therefore situated on the first floor of the hall building.
To the left of the main entrance there are ruins of both the well, which was the castle's main water supply, and the Great Kitchen. The kitchen was built between 1150 and 1175 and remained in use until the castle was abandoned in 1312.
There are three openings in the wall, the remains of garderobes or privies, which discharged into the moat below. There would have been timber outbuildings between the garderobes and the kitchen.
Eynsford Castle had an outer bailey to the south east which would have contained further buildings, but very little is known about them or the extent of the outer bailey.
Disclaimer
The text and pictures on this page are derived from the 'Heritage Unlocked' series of guidebooks published in 2004. We intend to review, update and enhance the content in the near future as part of the Portico project, whose objective is to provide information on the history, significance, research background and sources for all English Heritage properties.
