Walden CastleUttlesford • CB10 2BS • Historic Places
Walden Castle at Saffron Walden in Essex is a ruined twelfth-century Norman castle keep, one of the largest Norman shell keeps in Essex, built sometime between 1125 and 1143 by Geoffrey de Mandeville, one of the most powerful Anglo-Norman barons of the reign of King Stephen. The castle keep survives as a substantial ruin in the attractive market town of Saffron Walden, managed by Uttlesford District Council and freely accessible to visitors. The town of Saffron Walden is one of the finest historic market towns in Essex, with a beautiful medieval church, remarkable topiary maze on the common, and well-preserved Tudor and Georgian architecture making it one of the most rewarding small towns in East Anglia. The castle ruin provides a medieval foundation for a town whose heritage spans the Norman period to the present.