In Saxon times the "Lady of the Mercians", Ethelfleda, daughter of King Alfred the Great, fortified the small town of Warwick and others along the borders of the Kingdom of Mercia. In the Middle Ages the compacted earth wall encircling the town was partly rebuilt with stone with at least three gates from the North, West and East. There may have also been a gate south of the city over the Avon River, but there are no reliable records or remains. Southgate represents the only fortified gate in that vicinity and incorporates the Barbican, the GateHouse or Clock Tower, Caesar's Tower and the armory of Warwick Castle...