Whittington Castle

By Whitchurch Herald on Feb 17, 09 08:26 AM in 2000 onwards

This extract is taken from Peter and Anne Duckers' book, Castles of Shropshire

Whittington Castle has a complex history, and its strategic function is obscure. It does not stand on a commanding height and has little to commend it defensively.

It is possible that Earl Roger, owner of the manor of Whittington from 1086, built it by the late 11th or early 12th Century. It comprised a large mound and three baileys, defended by earth banks and wet moats.

The first significant stone castle was built from 1215-35 by Fulke Fitz Warine, who may have built the rectangular stone keep whose footings survive on a large raised platform in the middle of the old inner bailey.

He was granted licence in 1221 by Henry III to fortify it to defend it against the Welsh. The stone curtain wall and towers of the inner bailey may be from this phase.

The raised stone keep was surrounded by a limestone curtain wall with a wall walk and five round towers.

Ruins of these walls and towers remain - two were paired to form an inner gateway and much of these remain. The remains of buildings within the walled compound were found during excavation and include a hall, an oven and a well.

It may have been captured in 1223 by Llewellyn ap Iorwerth - layers of charcoal found in the keep suggest it was destroyed by fire at about that date.

Part of the castle was enclosed by stone walls in the mid-13th Century and it survived as it remained in fairly continuous occupation as a house.

It was granted to the Welsh prince Llewellyn ap Gruffydd in 1265 and was restored to the Fitz Warins in 1282 following the defeat of the Welsh by Edward I. The castle saw action against the Welsh during the rebellion of Owain Glyndwr in 1405 but was not captured.

In about 1415 it passed to Sir William Bouchier, afterwards Earl of Bath, and was later granted by Henry VI to the Earl of Stafford. From then on it fell into ruin and by the 1540s it was empty and dilapidated.

It is not clear if it played a role in the Civil War and its history becomes obscure for some time. In about 1760 the south west tower fell into the moat and one of the northern towers and part of a wall were demolished to provide material for the Whittington- Halston road.

The grounds were laid out as a decorative rectory garden in the late 18th Century and as a public park in the late 19th century.

Now restored, the site is owned by the local community and cared for by the Whittington Castle Preservation Trust.

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