Archaeological findings lead to redesign of Sheffield’s Castlegate
The regeneration of the area includes the creation of a park, the opening up of the River Sheaf, and displaying previously hidden parts of the 11th century Sheffield Castle.
Following a dig at the site by Wessex Archaeology, the council is reviewing the design and amending it to ensure the long-term preservation of the remains.
At tomorrow’s Transport, Regeneration, and Climate committee meeting, the council will be asked to extend the proposed work, which includes plans to showcase parts of the castle for the first time in centuries, an events space reminiscent of the 17th century bowling green believed to have been on site, and opening up the River Sheaf so that it is visible and not just underground.
With a budget of £21m, the ‘Castle Project’ will now need an estimated £5m extra to account for the redesign and is not expected to complete until late 2026.
The Council is working with heritage consultants South Yorkshire Archaeology Service, Historic England, and Friends of Sheffield Castle on the scheme.
Discoveries on site have included:
- Previously unknown stone structures on the south side of the motte. These were probably built during or after the reconstruction of around 1270 following the Second Baron’s War
- The remains of the east and west towers of the gatehouse of the castle (probably constructed starting in 1270), with the drawbridge abutments
- The moat of the stone castle exposed
- A 12.5m-deep well, probably Medieval (with water at the bottom)
- 18th/19th Century slaughterhouses
- Wooden Civil War stakes
- Remains of two cementation steelmaking furnaces, unusual as they shared a single chimney and were built into material surviving from the castle
Ashley Tuck, lead archaeologist at Wessex Archaeology, said: “Uncovering the remains of this remarkable site has been an honour and I, like many other Sheffielders, am excited that elements of the castle’s remains will be displayed in the park in due course.
“We look forward to continuing to support the council to realise its vision, which places the heritage of our great city at the heart of regeneration plans for Castlegate.
Cllr Ben Miskell, chair of the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Committee at Sheffield City Council, said: “It has been amazing to see more and more artefacts from the birthplace of Sheffield being uncovered.
“We congratulate Wessex Archaeology on all their hard work to discover all that they have found so far.
“The Castlegate regeneration project has always been about bringing some of that history to life, putting it on display for people to see and enjoy while using this brand new city centre park we are developing.
“We know how much the history of this site means to people and that is why we want to see this project to continue to bring fascinating and historically important results.”
This is absolutely fantastic. I’m delighted at the archaeological find.
I hope SCC will contine to appreciate and support this historical site.
I also hope it will, in the future turn into something that will be available for the public to see. It will be educational for everyone especially the children of Sheffield.
Fantastic.
By Dee Dawson
Hugely interesting.
England must be full of such sites and I’m all for exposing them for show.
By David
Fantastic and congratulations on a fascinating discovery. Good luck on achieving your vision.
By Jennifer Sutherland
That’s all great news and such an exciting project for our city, we all thought Sheffield castle was just a few paintings with nothing left so it’s great to read there have been some great discoveries which will be part of the scheme, and worth the wait.
By Lesley
Absolutely amazing
By Sue wragg
This sounds so interesting and inspirational Let’s hope funding is secured and the proposals come to fruition.
By Fiona
It’s incredibly exciting to see more of Sheffield’s history being uncovered at this historic site, especially from an era of which the city has very few tangible remains to help tell that part of our past. Given the significance of this project, I believe it’s essential to allow the archaeologists all the time they need for a thorough and complete excavation of the entire site. The area has been vacant for quite a while, so extending the timeline won’t make much difference. Moreover, given the current economic climate, I don’t foresee developers rushing to redevelop the surrounding area anytime soon with costs being so high. Therefore I can’t see how a delay would harm anybody. Instead, it would be an investment in preserving our history for generations to come. The centre has simply nothing of this kind so let’s embrace this unique opportunity.
By Eric