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Kilton Castle (SM 32744, Tees. Arch. HER No. 23) The extensive Grade I Listed ruins of Kilton Castle, last lived in during the mid-14th Century and totally abandoned by the 16th Century, occupies a rocky promontory with commanding views along the valley of Kilton Beck. Although almost totally enveloped within woodland, it lies only 130m east from the occupied Castle Cottages, and is within the present district of Redcar and Cleveland. The castle in its entirety is roughly rectangular stretching almost 100m from east to west and 30m from north to south, protected on its south side by a steep slope, gentler slopes on the north and east sides and a narrow causeway bounded by a moat on each side approximately 46m long and a maximum of 16m wide and a maximum of 3.5m deep, reaching from the north west tower to the south west surviving battlements. There must have been a gatehouse to the west entrance, though no remains of this are visible above ground level. The 13th Century great tower projecting from the north curtain survives to the extent of two storeys on the north and west faces, and divides the castle into two wards which was then surrounded in a curtain wall on every side. The north walls were defended by four towers, the remains of which are still visible. Of the south curtain wall, only foundations remain, with a small section of wall surviving to the east end. Much of the walls have been robbed of their ashlar facing, revealing their rubble centres, this is very noticeable, particularly on the west curtain wall, which would have traditionally been almost 2m thick and sitting on a neatly jointed deep tabled plinth. The site was partially excavated from 1961-1979 by Alan Aberg and remains unpublished. However, the excavations did show that the castle was definitely still used during the 15th Century, and that there was several phases of construction. It is thought that a timber castle was constructed at Kilton between AD 1135-40, but the stone built ruins that are visible today were constructed around AD 1190-1200 by the Kilton family, and by 1341, the castle was abandoned and described as small and worthless. In the early 1990s, plans for survey followed by conservation and repair work to the weaker sections of the castle, went under way. In 1992 a detailed photographic survey and plan and elevations were drawn up of the site. Unfortunately the extensive plans made for preservation of the castle were ultimately denied, and the castle remains in a deteriorating condition with the cleared undergrowth returning to obscure much of the ground plan. Besides this, continued tree growth bulging the walls, and movement of the north east tower is causing major cracks throughout the fabric of its remaining structure.
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