| Carisbrooke Castle | |
|---|---|
| Carisbrooke, Isle of Wight, England | |
 The interior of Carisbrooke Castle | |
 <div style="position: absolute; top: Expression error: Missing operand for *.%; left: 287.5%; height: 0; width: 0; margin: 0; padding: 0;"> Carisbrooke Castle | |
| Coordinates | grid reference SZ486877 |
| Type | Castle |
| Site information | |
| Owner | Managed by English Heritage |
| Open to the public | Yes |
| Condition | Complete |
| Site history | |
| Built | Begun in 12th century |
| In use | Until 1944 |
| Garrison information | |
| Occupants | Isabella de Fortibus, Charles I of England (imprisoned), Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom |
Carisbrooke Castle is a historic motte-and-bailey castle located in the village of Carisbrooke, near Newport, Isle of Wight, England. Charles I was imprisoned at the castle in the months prior to his trial.[1]
Early history[]
The site of Carisbrooke Castle may have been occupied in pre-Roman times. The existence of a ruined wall suggests that there was a building there in late Roman times. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle mentions that Wihtgar, nephew of king Cynric, died in AD 544, and was buried there. The Jutes may have taken over the fort by the late 7th century. An Anglo-Saxon stronghold occupied the site during the 8th century. Around 1000, a wall was built around the hill as a defence against Viking raids.
Later history[]
A reconstruction of Carisbrooke Castle in England during the 14th century
From 1100 The castle remained in the possession of Richard de Redvers' family, and over the next two hundred years his descendants improved the castle with stone walls, towers and a keep. This was until 1293, when Countess Isabella de Fortibus, the last Redvers resident sold it to Edward I, after which the government was entrusted to wardens as representatives of the crown.[2]
In the reign of Richard II it was unsuccessfully attacked by the French (1377) The castle was reputedly saved by local hero Peter de Heyno who shot the French commander. Anthony Woodville, Lord Scales, later Earl Rivers, obtained a grant of the castle and rights of Lordship in 1467. He was responsible for the addition of the Woodville Gate, now known as the Entrance Gate.[3] Woodville was killed by Richard III in 1483, but his brother Edward Woodville was given control of the castle on the accession of Henry VII in 1485.[4]
The keep was added to the castle in the reign of Henry I, and in the reign of Elizabeth I; when the Spanish Armada was expected, it was surrounded by an elaborate pentagonal fortification by Sir George Carey.
Charles I was imprisoned here for fourteen months before his execution in 1649.[1] Afterwards his two youngest children were confined in the castle, and the Princess Elizabeth died there. Most recently it was the home of The Princess Beatrice, daughter of Queen Victoria, as Governor of the Isle of Wight, 1896–1944.[5] It is now under control of English Heritage.[6]
The castle is located above, and to the south of Carisbrooke village centre.
In 2007, English Heritage opened a holiday flat inside the castle, in converted former staff quarters. The Flat is situated above the museum near the room in which the king was kept captive. A balcony going across the Kings prison room is adjoined to the flat of which is currently long – term rented by English heritage staff.[7] According to figures released by the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions nearly 120,000 people visited Carisbrooke Castle in 2010.[8]
Description[]
Entrance to Carisbrooke Castle
Carisbrooke was the strongest castle on the Island; though it is visible from some distance, it does not dominate the countryside like many other castles.
There are traces of a Roman fort underneath the later buildings. Seventy-one steps lead up to the keep; the reward is a fine view. In the centre of the castle enclosure are the domestic buildings; these are mostly of the 13th century, with upper parts of the 16th century. Some are in ruins, but the main rooms were used as the official residence of the Governor of the Isle of Wight until the 1940s, and they remain in good repair.
The Great Hall, Great Chamber and several smaller rooms are open to the public, and an upper room houses the Isle of Wight Museum. Most rooms are partly furnished.
One of the main subjects of the museum is King Charles I. He tried to escape from the castle in 1648, but was unable to get through the bars of his window.
The name of the castle is echoed in a very different structure on the other side of the world. A visit to the castle by James Macandrew, one of the founders of the New Zealand city of Dunedin, led to him naming his estate "Carisbrook". The name of the estate was later used for Dunedin's main sporting venue.
The Main Gate[]
The gateway tower was erected by Lord Scales who was lord of the castle at the time in 1464.[3]
The Chapel[]
The chapel is located next to the main gate. In 1904 the chapel of St Nicholas in the castle was reopened and re-consecrated, having been rebuilt as a national memorial of Charles I. Within the walls is a well 200 feet deep and another in the centre of the keep is reputed to have been still deeper.
The Well-House[]
A donkey operating the well
Near the domestic buildings is the well-house with its working donkey wheel. As it is still operated by donkeys, the wheel is a great attraction and creates long queues. The well is also famous as the hiding place of the Mohune diamond, in the 1898 adventure novel Moonfleet, by J. Meade Falkner. Wyndham Lewis, who lived on the Isle of Wight as a child, cites the donkey wheel at Carisbrooke as an image for the way machines impose a way of life on human beings ('Inferior Religions', published 1917).
The Constable's Chamber[]
The Constable's Chamber is a large room located in the castle's medieval section. It was the bedroom of Charles I when he was imprisoned in the castle, and Princess Beatrice used it as a dining room. It is now home to Charles I bed as well as Princess Beatrice's large collection of stag and antelope heads. This room was used as the castle's education centre up until recently.
Earthworks[]
Surrounding the whole castle are large earthworks, designed by the Italian Federigo Gianibelli, and begun in the year before the Spanish Armada. They were finished in the 1590s. The outer gate has the date 1598 and the arms of Elizabeth I.
List of Constables of Carisbrooke Castle[]
The bowling green used by Charles I during his imprisonment
| Name | Dates in office | Source |
|---|---|---|
| William Briwere, jnr | 1217 | [9] |
| Waleran Tyes | 1224 | [9] |
| Savery de Mauleon | 1227 | [9] |
| Bishop of Winchester | 1233 | [9] |
| Benedict | 1269 | [9] |
| Hugh de Hanneby | 1270 | [9] |
| John Hardington | 1277 | [9] |
| Humphrey de Dunster | c.1294 | [10] |
| Sir William Russell | ?-1307 | [11] |
| Nicholas de Bois | 1307/1309? | [12] |
| John de Langford | 1334 | [9] |
| Sir Hugh Tyrrel | 1377 | [9] |
| William de Montagu, Earl of Salisbury | 1382–1397 | [13] |
| Anthony Woodville | 1467–1483 | [3] |
| Sir Edward Woodville | 1485–1488 | [14] |
| Sir Reginald Bray | ?-1509 | [9] |
| Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex | 1538 | [9] |
| Sir George Carey | 1583 | [9] |
See also[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "English Castles – Carisbrooke Castle". www.theheritagetrail.co.uk. http://www.theheritagetrail.co.uk/castles/carisbrooke%20castle.htm. Retrieved 2 January 2009.
- ↑ "CastleXplorer – Carisbrooke Castle". www.castlexplorer.co.uk. Archived from the original on 30 July 2012. http://web.archive.org/web/20120730012233/http://www.castlexplorer.co.uk/england/carisbrooke/carisbrooke.php. Retrieved 2 January 2009.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Fortified Places – Fortresses – Carisbrooke Castle". www.fortified-places.com. http://www.fortified-places.com/images2/carisbrooke.html. Retrieved 2 January 2009.
- ↑ Wilkins, Christopher, The Last Knight Errant: Edward Woodville and the Age of Chivalry, IB Tauris, 2009, p. 133
- ↑ "Tour UK – A tourist guide to Carisbrooke Castle". www.touruk.co.uk. http://www.touruk.co.uk/castles/castle_carisbrooke.htm. Retrieved 2 January 2009.
- ↑ "English Heritage – Carisbrooke Castle, Isle of Wight". www.englishheritage.org.uk. http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/nav.14466. Retrieved 2 January 2009.
- ↑ Rix, Juliet (14 July 2007). "Carisbrooke Castle is real thing – and now you can be part of its history". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/uk/carisbrooke-castle-is-real-thing--and-now-you-can-be-part-of-its-history-457110.html. Retrieved 13 June 2008.
- ↑ "Visits Made in 2010 to Visitor Attractions in Membership with ALVA". ALVA – Association of Leading Visitor Attractions. http://www.alva.org.uk/details.cfm?p=423. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
- ↑ 9.00 9.01 9.02 9.03 9.04 9.05 9.06 9.07 9.08 9.09 9.10 9.11 Victoria County History, Hampshire, 1912, vol.5, Parishes: Carisbrooke, pp. 221–235
- ↑ Worsley, Sir Richard, History of the Isle of Wight, London, 1781, p.86; Victoria County History, Hampshire, 1912, vol.5, Parishes: Carisbrooke, pp. 221–235
- ↑ Wiffen, Memorials of the House of Russell, pp.127–131
- ↑ Wiffen, Memorials of the House of Russell, pp.127–131; Victoria County History, Hampshire, 1912, vol.5, Parishes: Carisbrooke, pp. 221–235
- ↑ The dates appear in error, as quoted by Victoria County History, Hampshire, 1912, vol.5, Parishes: Carisbrooke, pp. 221–235
- ↑ Wilkins, Christopher, The Last Knight Errant: Edward Woodville and the Age of Chivalry, IB Tauris, 2009, pp. 162–3
External links[]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Carisbrooke Castle. |
- Carisbrooke Castle official English Heritage information
- Carisbrooke Castle Museum official site
- Carisbrooke Church from Blacks Guide to the Isle of Wight, 1870
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. Encyclopædia Britannica Cambridge University Press
The original article can be found at Carisbrooke Castle and the edit history here.