Historic Places in Shropshire

Shrewsbury Castle occupies a commanding position on a sandstone hill above a tight loop of the River Severn that encloses the historic town of Shrewsbury on three sides. The river's natural defensive moat and the castle's hilltop position made Shrewsbury one of the most strongly defended border towns in medieval England, an important outpost in the long centuries of conflict between the English crown and the Welsh princes who controlled the territory to the west. The castle was founded by Roger de Montgomery, one of William the Conqueror's most powerful followers, shortly after the conquest of England in 1066. The red sandstone from which it was built is the characteristic building material of the Welsh Marches region, and the colour gives Shrewsbury's medieval buildings a distinctive warm quality quite different from the limestone castles of southern England or the granite of the north. The original motte and bailey construction was gradually replaced with stone buildings over the following centuries. Henry II strengthened the castle substantially, and Edward I used it as a base for his campaigns to subdue Wales in the 1280s. The town was the scene of the Battle of Shrewsbury in 1403, one of the most significant engagements of the medieval period, at which Henry IV defeated and killed Henry Percy (Hotspur) and crushed the rebellion that had threatened to topple his throne. Shakespeare dramatised these events in Henry IV Part One with considerable theatrical licence. The castle was remodelled as a residential house in the late seventeenth century by Sir William Pulteney to designs associated with Thomas Telford, the great civil engineer who spent considerable time in Shrewsbury early in his career. This conversion gave the castle a more domestic character while preserving the historic outer walls and the distinctive Laura's Tower, an eighteenth-century summer house built within the castle grounds. Today the castle houses the Shropshire Regimental Museum, which tells the story of the county's military regiments from the late seventeenth century to the present day. The castle grounds are freely accessible during daylight hours and provide excellent views across the town and the River Severn below.

Acton Burnell Castle is located near the village of Acton Burnell, Shropshire, England. The castle is a 13th century fortified manor house - the oldest fortified manor house in England. The building is now in ruins, and all that remains is the outer shell of the manor house and the gable ends of the barn, where parliament once sat. It is a Grade I listed building and now maintained by English Heritage. The more recent Acton Burnell Hall is now a privately owned college. The manor house was built in 1284 by Robert Burnell, Bishop of Bath and Wells. Although the building was cranellated and fortified, it was never a military castle. The building was rectangular with a forty feet tall tower at each corner. It was three storeys high with hall, bedrooms, offices, chapel and kitchen. It is believed that the first Parliament of England where Commons were fully represented was held in 1283 in the great barn next to the manor. The castle was held by the Burnell family and passed to the Lovels of Titchmarsh through marriage. The property was confiscated by Henry VII after the Battle of Stoke Field in 1487 and given to Thomas Howard, 2nd Duke of Norfolk. The castle passed to the Smythe family in the mid 17th century. Acton Burnell Hall was built near to the castle in 1814 by the Smythe family.

The castle is situated in the small village of Stokesay, 7 miles from Ludlow in the Marches; the border area between England and Wales. Stokesay Castle is considered to be the best preserved and finest fortified medieval manor house in England. The site contains the castle with its rare medieval wall paintings, a church and a half timbered gatehouse all set in cottage gardens. The castle's two towers are joined by the Great Banqueting Hall with its huge fireplace and roof timbers made from whole trees. The north tower has the original medieval tiled floor and wall paintings as well as housing the 'solar' or private apartments on the upper floor. The south tower; the part of the house which most resembles a castle, is self contained. Facilities Stokesay Castle is open to the public daily between April and September 10am to 5pm, Wednesday to Sunday during October and March and from Thursday to Sunday from November to February. Visitors can take an audio tour of the site which brings to life the castle during the medieval times as well as visit the church and cottage style gardens. The tearoom and gift shop are also open daily in the main season. At the time of the Norman conquest the manor house on the site was granted to the Lucy family and it wasn't until 1281 when it was purchased by Lawrence of Ludlow; the areas richest wool merchant, that the main structure was constructed over a period of ten years. Edward I gave a license to crenellate, and during the 16th century the Elizabethan half timbered gatehouse was added, the castle was then developed throughout he next ten generations of the of Laurence's descendents. During the reign of Charles I and at the beginning of the Civil War, the castle was owned by the Craven family and it was used as a support base for the Kings troops who were stationed at nearby Ludlow Castle. The castle was surrendered to the parliamentarians without substantial damage following a short siege. By 1706 the castle had been abandoned and for the following 150 years was only used by local farmers as storage. It wasn't until 1850 when the Victorians became interested in gothic architecture that the castle became of interest again. In 1869 ownership passed to John Darby Allcroft who set about restoring and maintaining the castle, on the death of Lady Magnus Allcroft in 1992 the estate passed to English Heritage.

Ludlow Castle is situated in the centre of the market town of Ludlow, 28 miles south of Shrewsbury overlooking the Corve and Teme rivers. The well maintained rectangular castle ruins consist of an inner and outer bailey surrounded by a moat and curtain wall, a tower and keep. Built of grey stone the tower of the castle's keep is built over 4 floors and from the top visitors have long reaching views over the town and the surrounding countryside. Entry to the castle is via a bridge over the dry moat. The inner bailey contains the remains of residential buildings built in Tudor, Medieval and Norman styles, a chapel and a circular chancel. Facilities The castle has a shop and tearoom within the castle walls, there is also the recently converted Castle House; rooms built into the castles outer curtain wall, where holiday accommodation and civil marriages take place. There are three luxury self catering holiday accommodations within Castle House and the Beacon Room or the Library are where civil wedding ceremonies take place which are licensed for up to 60 guests. The original castle on the site was a much smaller building from the beginning of the 11th century. It was constructed as a border stronghold against the Welsh for Roger de Lacy. In the 14th century it was enlarged into a palace for 'the most powerful man in England' Roger Mortimer and in the 15th century was under the ownership of Richard, Duke of York when it played an important role in the Wars of the Roses. Although in England, the town of Ludlow effectively became the capital of Wales and its seat of Government when Edward IV sent his son Edward, Prince of Wales and his brother the Richard, Duke of York to live in the castle in 1472 The next royal occupants were Prince Arthur and his bride, Catherine of Aragon who lived there for a short time before Arthur's death in 1502. Catherine left Ludlow and became the first wife of Henry VIII; Arthur's brother, and their child, Mary Tudor, heir to the throne, spent the winters in the castle between 1525 and 1528. During the Civil War the castle escaped being slighted and in 1689 was where Lord Herbert of Chirbury founded the Royal Welch Fusiliers. In the following years the castle fell into disrepair until it was purchased in 1811 by the 2nd Earl of Powis whose family still own the castle today. The Arts Every year at the end of June the castle is the main venue for Ludlow Festival, a tradition which started in 1634 with the first performance of Comus by John Milton. The castle's inner bailey is the stage for a outdoor Shakespearean play along with music concerts in the outer bailey which in the past have included Jools Holland and Michael Ball.

Clun Castle is located in the town of Clun, Shropshire. The remains of the four storey rectangular great keep are still standing on the north side of the motte. The keep was built into the side of the motte with one wall rising from the ditch below the motte. Two baileys can be seen to the east. Other remains that can be seen are part of one wall of what may have been a small square keep on top of the motte. To the south is the site of the gatehouse, and the foundations of a great round tower can be seen to the south-west. Along the west front are the remains of two turrets. The castle is owned by the Duke of Norfolk and is managed by English Heritage. The castle was originally built by Robert Picot de Say between 1090 and 1110 as a Norman motte and bailey castle. It passed through marriage to the Fitz Alan family in 1199. During the second half of the 13th century the castle was rebuilt in stone with a four storey keep and curtain walls. In the 14th century the castle was transformed into a hunting lodge by the Fitz Alan family, who had taken up residence in Arundel Castle. Once Clun was no longer the primary residence of the family it started to fall into disrepair. The castle was in ruins by the time of the English Civil War of 1642. In 1894, the castle was purchased by the Duke of Norfolk, a descendant of the original FitzAlan family.