Hedingham castle when was it built

The interior of the keep is in an astonishing state of good repair. I could almost imagine the great hall filled with medieval revellers, while musicians played from the gallery.

And the gardens were an unexpected delight. Seeing the castle keep reflected in the lake is a marvellous sight. Just to be picky let me note that the castle is properly called Hedingham Castle, while the village has the words the other way around and calls itself Castle Hedingham! Most photos are available for licensing, please contact Britain Express image library. Well signposted, pleanty of on-site parking. Website: Hedingham Castle Email: mail hedinghamcastle.

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Georgian Medieval Tudor. Heritage Rated from 1- 5 low to exceptional on historic interest. Halstead, Holy Trinity Church - 3. Clare Priory - 5. Clare Castle - 5. Sudbury, All Saints Church - 5. Clare Ancient House Museum - 6 miles Museum. Clare, St Peter and St Paul - 6. Sudbury, St Gregory's Church - 6. Gainsborough's House - 6. More self catering near Hedingham Castle. More Hotels near Hedingham Castle. More bed and breakfasts near Hedingham Castle. Audley End House Historic House.

Hedingham Castle Castle. Ingatestone Hall Historic House. Saling Hall Garden. Royal Gunpowder Mills Historic Building. Copped Hall Historic House. Audley Chapel, Berechurch Historic Church. Toggle navigation. A notable feature of the original Hedingham Castle was a pyramid-shaped roof that topped it.

This roof was replaced in the 15th century with another floor added on top. It is believed that many features of the Rochester Castle was imitated in the construction of the Hedingham castle. The castle is also notable for having a keep which dates back to the medieval ages.

The original castle was constructed so that a large ditch helped create a space between the inner bailey and the outer ringwork. A keep was added later which exists today. It is square in shape and is constructed with lime-bound flint. Rather curiously, ashlar stone has been used in the construction of the castle. This is unusual especially because the stone had to be transported all the way from Northamptonshire to Essex before using it in the construction. The keep itself comprises of four floors.

The floors span over a number of halls, including the Great Hall which is fitted up with a sizable fireplace. A later addition to the overall structure was the construction of the Queen Anne mansion, sometime in the 18th century. The stone keep of the Hedingham castle is square, measuring 53 feet by 58 feet. The outer bailey of the castle extends as far as the valley towards the south of it. The castle had a number of defensive structures, although it did not hold up significantly in the different sieges it had to face.

Among the notable defenses of the castle was a ditch dug between the ringwork and the inner bailey. To augment the ditch is the keep itself, its walls 11 feet thick and rising to a lofty height of 70 feet. The original structure also featured a red-brick bridge connecting the outer bailey with the inner bailey and a drawbridge.

Of these, only the repaired red bridge survives. One of the most notable personalities associated with the Hedingham castle is Edward de Vere, who was the 17th Earl of Oxford and a courtier of Queen Elizabeth.

The keep sits atop a high earth ringwork, with an adjacent inner bailey now occupied by an 18th Century country mansion. An outer bailey extended well into the modern village, making the whole complex very large; presumably, this was abandoned as the castle's defensive value waned and the village expanded. The castle also constituted a complete infrastructure itself - the keep was but one element, and was complemented by stables, a granary, defensive walls and towers and residential accommodation for people of widely varying status.

The de Veres played a prominent part in the country's history, and fought in most of the important mediaeval battles, including Crecy, Poitiers, Agincourt and Bosworth. Robert de Vere, 3rd Earl of Oxford, was a signatory to the Magna Carta; tradition has it that this resulted in the only action the castle ever saw, when King John besieged it in The de Veres owned Hedingham until , when Edward de Vere - who some believe may have written the works of Shakespeare - sold the estate to Lord Burghley, his father in law, in an attempt to settle his debts.

For more information, take a look at Michael Cook's website on Hedingham Castle, which includes information about the de Veres, Earls of Oxford. Many beautiful buildings from the mediaeval and Tudor periods survive within the village. The link between these buildings and the castle is often apparent, with the de Vere's main emblem - a star, or mullet - being carved into several.

Nowhere is the link more obvious than in the C12th parish church of St. Despite the best efforts of assorted "restorers", a high proportion of the church has remained from the C12th - including, incredibly, three external Norman doors. Like many others in this area, the main south door is known as the "Skin Door", because the skin of a church robber is said to have been nailed to it as a warning.