The Curtain Wall
Only parts of the south and east curtain wall survive above ground. From the South Postern the curtain runs west to the fragmentary remains of a tower behind the Bridge Hotel. The tower was partly destroyed when the High Level Bridge was built.
Sections of the east curtain wall can be seen at the top of the Dog Leap Stairs. Much of this wall, which may have been built by King John in the early 13th century, was buried until archaeological excavations in the 1980s. Severe cracks in the wall are evidence of how unstable the steep bank above the Side was before construction of the massive retaining wall (with safety rail) in the 19th century.