Agricola Tower
AGRICOLA TOWER, INNER BAILEY
Listed on the National Heritage List for England. Search over 400,000 listed places
Overview
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- I
- List Entry Number:
- 1271825
- Date first listed:
- 26-Feb-1985
- List Entry Name:
- Agricola Tower
- Statutory Address:
- AGRICOLA TOWER, INNER BAILEY
Location
Location of this list entry and nearby places that are also listed. Use our map search to find more listed places.
Use of this mapping is subject to terms and conditions .
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale.
What is the National Heritage List for England?
The National Heritage List for England is a unique register of our country's most significant historic buildings and sites. The places on the list are protected by law and most are not open to the public.
The list includes:
 |
Buildings |
 |
Scheduled monuments |
 |
Parks and gardens |
 |
Battlefields |
 |
Shipwrecks |
Images of England Project
- Date:
- 2001-06-24
- Reference:
- IOE01/03254/07
- Rights:
- © Mr Michael J Tuck. Source: Historic England Archive
Local Heritage Hub
Unlock and explore hidden histories, aerial photography, and listed buildings and places for every county, district, city and major town across England.
Discover moreOfficial list entry
- Heritage Category:
- Listed Building
- Grade:
- I
- List Entry Number:
- 1271825
- Date first listed:
- 26-Feb-1985
- List Entry Name:
- Agricola Tower
- Statutory Address 1:
- AGRICOLA TOWER, INNER BAILEY
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
The scope of legal protection for listed buildings
This List entry helps identify the building designated at this address for its special architectural or historic interest.
Unless the List entry states otherwise, it includes both the structure itself and any object or structure fixed to it (whether inside or outside) as well as any object or structure within the curtilage of the building.
For these purposes, to be included within the curtilage of the building, the object or structure must have formed part of the land since before 1st July 1948.
Location
- Statutory Address:
- AGRICOLA TOWER, INNER BAILEY
The building or site itself may lie within the boundary of more than one authority.
- District:
- Cheshire West and Chester (Unitary Authority)
- Parish:
- Chester Castle
- National Grid Reference:
- SJ 40482 65740
Details
SJ 4065 NW
4/609
CHESTER CASTLE,
INNER BAILEY,
Agricola Tower
GV I
Castle gate-tower with chapel to first floor. Late C12/Early C13 with additions and alterations after 1302 and refacing by Thomas Harrison of 1818 with further repairs of 1923 and 1952. Bunter sandstone ashlar with metal roof. Three storeys. South-western front: Central pointed gate arch with stepped reveals and voussoirs now glazed. Slightly projecting turrets to right, clasping buttress at left, common to the other two corners. Both have some stonework of pre-1818 date. Signs of later gabled abutment to tower. Offset above lower stage. Pointed lancet to first floor with voussoirs and iron grille. Rectangular windows to right hand staircase turret. Battlemented parapet with chamfered coping. A C19 single storey provost block adjoins to the left (not included in this item). Right hand reveal: projecting staircase turret to left has one blocked light. Central second floor square window. Left reveal: blind and entirely refaced in 1818. Rear: projecting buttresses to left and right of centre. Blocked arch to recessed central wall. One rectangular ground floor window. First floor lancet to chapel and blocked window to second floor. Interior: Entrance ground floor passageway altered after fire of 1302. Sexpartite vault with chamfered ribs resting on chamfered attached pillars with simple chamfered abacus capitals and chamfered bases supported on raised plinth. Pointed arch to stair turret at south of south-eastern wall. First floor: (Chapel of St Mary de Castro). Three round wall pillars with moulded bases and water leaf capitals to south-eastern and north-western walls supporting two quadripartite vaults with keel-moulded ribs. Pointed altar recess to north-eastern wall. Aumbry with pointed arch to right of this. Pointed door arch to right of centre of south-eastern wall set in projecting portion of wall has keel moulded surround.
Sources:
Frank Simpson - "Chester Castle AD 907-1925". Journal of the Archaeological and Historic Society, Chester and North Wales. New Series, Vol.XXVI, Part II.
Nikolaus Pevsner and Edward Hubbard - The Buildings of England : Cheshire.
Listing NGR: SJ4043365749
Legacy
The contents of this record have been generated from a legacy data system.
- Legacy System number:
- 452908
- Legacy System:
- LBS
Sources
Books and journals
Pevsner, N, Hubbard, E, The Buildings of England: Cheshire, (1971)
Journal of the Architectural Archaeological and Historic Society Chester and NWA in The Architectural Archaeological and Historic Society , Vol. 26, ()
Legal
This building is listed under the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 as amended for its special architectural or historic interest.
Map
This map is for quick reference purposes only and may not be to scale. This copy shows the entry on 04-Jun-2026 at 13:32:13.
Download a full scale map (PDF)End of official list entry
All text content is available under the Open Government Licence v3.0 , except where otherwise stated. Any supplied maps are © Crown Copyright [and database rights] 2026 OS AC0000815036 and may not be reproduced without permission.