Presumed construction XIe - XIIe siècles (≈ 1250)
Estimated period of construction of both mounds.
18 mai 2005
Registration MH
Registration MH 18 mai 2005 (≈ 2005)
Official protection of the site and the Grand-Besle.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
The castral mot with its ditch and the ground of parcel AK 37 on which it is located: inscription by order of 18 May 2005
Key figures
Henri Ier Beauclerc - Duke of Normandy
Suspected commander of fortifications in front of the lords of Gournay.
Origin and history
The castral motte of Petit-Besle is a former motte castle located in the hamlet of Saint-Martin-du-Plessis, on the former commune of Estouteville-Écalles (Seine-Maritime, Normandy). This circular terre of about 10 meters in diameter, surrounded by a deep dry ditch of 10 meters, dates from the 11th or 12th centuries. It is separated by only 400 metres from the nearby Grand-Besle fortification, with which it shares an inscription to historical monuments since 18 May 2005.
The two sites could have been built under the impulse of Henri I Beauclerc, Duke of Normandy, to defend the duchy border against the lords of Gournay. The smaller Petit-Besle would have served as an advanced post at the Grand-Besle, a semicircular enclosure 50 metres in diameter. These fortifications illustrate the Norman military strategies of the time, combining castral mots and defensive ditches.
The moth of the Petit-Besle, now protected with its ditch and surrounding soil, preserves traces of a extinct wooden structure. Its present state allows to study medieval defensive architecture in Normandy, while its proximity to the Grand-Besle suggests a coordinated defence system. Both sites, though modest, bear witness to the territorial organization and border conflicts of the Middle Ages.
