Deddington Castle represents an extensive earthwork in Oxfordshire, all that remains of an 11th-century motte-and-bailey fortress with only earth ramparts and mounds now visible. Originally built as the Oxfordshire base of Odo of Bayeux, half-brother to William the Conqueror, the site demonstrates the evolution from early Norman earthworks to stone structures. The castle featured a flat enclosed bailey created by bank and ditch in the late 11th century, with a timber building replaced by stone around 1160 and a curtain wall erected with towers and gatehouse by the 12th century. From the 13th century it fell into disrepair, with stone buildings eventually dismantled. The site possibly witnessed the capture of Piers Gaveston, favourite of King Edward II, in 1312. English Heritage now cares for the inner bailey.
