Hall and Chambers: Oakham Castle Reconsidered

Abstract

The late twelfth-century aisled hall at Oakham Castle, Rutland, is well known as the earliest and most complete building of its type in England. This study, based on detailed fabric analysis and little-known excavations of the 1950s, puts forward a new theory for the building's development. It is proposed that the original hall had attached lean-to buildings at both gable ends, probably built of timber, housing services and other lesser rooms. Like other early halls, the principal chamber at Oakham took the form of a free-standing chamber block, some of whose features have been later incorporated in the surviving hall, including its great east window. Tree-ring dating has shown that, although the roof was rebuilt around 1737, many original timbers survive from the 1180s. A comparative study of other early halls is made, to set Oakham into its wider Anglo-Norman context.