Fortifications, Castles & Palaces in England

The aristocrat William, Lord Hastings established Ashby de la Zouch Castle during the 1470s, amid the ongoing Wars of the Roses. Built on an earlier manor house, the castle was fortified with large stone walls and earthworks. It remained the seat of William’s family for several generations. Royalists controlled the castle during the English Civil War, resulting in its partial demolition following the parliamentarian victory. Walter Scott featured the building in his 1819 novel Ivanhoe, which brought it to wider attention and generated tourist interest.

Fans of the famous novelist Jane Austen may recognise Blaise Castle from its mention in her novel Northanger Abbey, published posthumously in 1817. Rather than being an original medieval fortification, Blaise Castle is a Gothic Revivalist folly built in 1766. The Scot architect Robert Mylne created it for the sugar merchant/Slave Trade investor Thomas Farr, a resident at the nearby Blaise Castle House. Restored in 1957, it is now a Grade II* listed building.

When Victoria ascended the throne in 1837 she became the first monarch to use Buckingham Palace as her primary residence. Originally built for the Duke of Buckingham in 1703, it was King George IV who had the townhouse converted into a palace in the early 19th century. Today the palace is not only the official residence of the British monarch, it is also used for royal ceremonies and investitures as well as national and state occasions. Parts of the palace are open to the public at certain times of the year.

Today a popular attraction on the Isle of Wight managed by English Heritage, Carisbrooke Castle has had many lives over its 1,000 year history. The earliest evidence is that of a Saxon fortress against Viking raids, then a Norman castle, an Elizabethan artillery fortress, a king’s prison during the Civil War and also a royal summer residence in the early 20th century. Since 1944 the hall range, originally renovated for Queen Victoria’s daughter Princess Beatrice, has housed the Isle of Wight Museum.

On a natural rocky hill in a loop of the Clun River is the strategically located Clun Castle. Built soon after the Norman Conquest, it remained steadfast until the 14th century despite numerous attacks from the Welsh. In the 14th century it became a hunting lodge and soon thereafter fell into disrepair. By the 16th century Clun Castle was in ruins, and the events of the English Civil War did not help its prospects either. Renovations at the end of the 19th century saved what remained, and ensured the ruins stand today.

Corfe Castle lies in the scenic village of Corfe. It’s 1000 years of turbulent history has seen kings, murders, and the English Civil War pass by. Now a site encompassing striking ruins and breath-taking views, the castle began as a Saxon stronghold before succumbing to the Norman invasion. It has since been a royal palace and family home. There is plenty to explore here including fallen stone walls, secret areas and the gruesome ‘murder holes’. Perfect for kids, families, and enthusiasts alike.

Dover Castle, the ‘gateway to the realm’, is one of Britain’s best-surviving Norman castles. Excavations suggest the site was in 800 BC an Iron Age hillfort. A Roman lighthouse was converted into a bell tower. Over the last 1,000 years it has been a royal palace, a Napoleonic fortress, a military base for ‘Operation Dynamo’ during the Battle of Dunkirk and a Cold War communications office. Walk the battlements to enjoy views over the White Cliffs, get lost in secret underground wartime passages and imagine life as the king from the palace in the Great Tower.

Located in southeast London, Eltham Palace started life as a medieval palace given to King Edward II in 1305; it remained in royal hands until the 16th century. The palace’s Great Hall was built in the 1470s, under the ownership of King Edward IV, although by the early modern period the building was in a dilapidated state. In the 1930s, Stephen Courtauld obtained the property and incorporated the Great Hall into a new mansion that reflected the art deco style popular at the time. Eltham Palace has London’s oldest working bridge.

One of England’s best preserved medieval castles, Goodrich overlooks the River Wye. The stone castle we see today was preceded by an earth and timber structure built for Godric of Mappestone shortly after the Norman Conquest of 1066. Expansion followed in the 12th century, when the castle played a role in English clashes with the Welsh. During the English Civil War, the castle shifted ownership between the parliamentarians and royalists. By the 18th century it was attracting tourists as a picturesque ruin.

Not to be confused with Hampton Court Palace in southwest London, Hampton Court Castle today survives in largely 19th century form. The country house was first built in the 15th century for Sir Rowland Lenthall. After being purchased by John Arkwright in the early 19th century, it was remodelled in the 1830s and 1840s. The house boasts an impressive set of gardens, which include a maze, Dutch garden, kitchen garden, and a secret tunnel. The house is privately owned although open to visitors.

Highclere Castle is widely known having featured in the period drama, Downton Abbey. The Castle was the ancestral home of the Earl and Countess of Carnarvon – it was the 5th Earl who funded Howard Carter’s excavation of Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1922. A few artefacts are now on display for visitors in the ‘Antiquities Room’, along with a near perfect replica of the mummy and sarcophagus of the boy king.

A fortified rectangular manor house, the building of Kirby Muxloe Castle began in 1480 but was never completed. The owner – William, Lord Hastings – was executed on the order of the new King Richard III several years later. The house exchanged hands several times over the following centuries, when parts of it remained inhabited. It was largely dilapidated by the 17^th century as locals robbed it for building material. Now a picturesque ruin surrounded by a moat, the west tower and parts of the gatehouse remain standing, displaying several original architectural features.

Originally built as a Tudor-era bishop’s palace, Knole House passed into the ownership of the Sackville family in the 17th century, with members of that family still living here to this day. Perhaps Knole’s most famous resident was the writer Vita Sackville-West, who was born here in 1892 and used it as the inspiration for her most famous novel, The Edwardians. One of the National Trust’s largest properties, Knole House spreads over an area of just under four acres in size, surrounded by an additional thousand acres of land.

Probably a Norman motte-and-bailey fort to begin with, Newark Castle underwent substantial expansion in the mid-12th century under its then owner, the Bishop of Lincoln. Amid his feud with the Pope, King John later confiscated the site, and later died during a visit to the castle in 1216. Additions were made throughout the later Middle Ages, and it was again confiscated by the crown following the dissolution of the monasteries. A royalist stronghold during the English Civil War, it was part demolished following the parliamentarian victory. Current appearance owes much to 19th century restoration.

The impressive moated Nunney Castle was built sometime around 1370 CE. Located in the historic town of Frome, the defences were built by a knight from the area called Sir John de la Mare. Now a ruin, the castle’s structural layout consisted of a tower with a conical-roofed turret at each of its four corners. There would also have been a courtyard originally. Nunney Castle was modernised in the 16th century but suffered significant damage during the English civil war. Remarkably, much of the main structure still survives.