Tamworth Castle - Tamworth Staffordshire (Pvt)
Tamworth castle is of Norman motte & bailey design with a shell keep similar to Restormal and Launceston Castles in Cornwall. The present stone structure replaced the first timber tower surrounded by a palisade which was built shortly after the Norman Conquest in 1066. The land of the former Saxon burgh was given to Robert 'Dispensator' by William, and it subsequently passed through marriage into the Marmion family. Over the centuries, the castle passed through many families until it was finally purchased by Tamworth Corporation, who now care for the site.
On two occasions during its long history, the castle was threatened with destruction. In 1215, Sir Robert Marmion had sided with the Barons against King John, who ordered an armed force to level the castle in revenge. There is evidence of rebuilding to the walls around this time, but it is not known whether this was a result of an attack, or simply repairs. During the Civil War, Tamworth was in the hands of the Royalist family of Ferrers, and it was captured by the Parliamentarian army in 1643 after a two day siege. Again, the castle was to be destroyed, this time under Cromwell's order, but it is unclear if any of the building was really damaged.
The castle overlooks what are now the pleasure grounds, and the remaining buildings are the much modified Medieval Gatehouse, the base of a double towered late thirteenth century gatehouse and the shell keep itself. Inside the shell keep is a real mixture of styles and times of buildings. The oldest part is the Norman Tower and the first of several informative exhibitions start your visit. From there you enter the north wing, dating from the thirteenth century. This was once the Great Hall, where guests were entertained. Many of the features are from later alterations, as the room was divided up and used for different purposes through the centuries.There is a small bedroom said to be that used by James I on his visits to the castle in 1619, 1621 and 1624.On the second floor of the north wing is the Long Gallery, used for recreation and show. What is now romantically called the Haunted Bedroom would originally have been the Solar, or private apartment of the lord of the castle. As is common, the private chapel can be easily reached from the Solar.
There is a parapet walk over to the suite of rooms on the south of the castle which were reconstructed in 1990, to give an idea of how the castle may have looked while its final tenant, Thomas Cooke, lived here with his family in the late nineteenth century. Descending to ground level, you come to the second Great Hall, built in the fifteenth century by Thomas Ferrers. The magnificent oak timbers in the ceiling have been dated to around 1437, and the room rises through two stories. The east wall is almost filled by a huge seventeenth century window with small panes between oak mullions and transoms. The original stone floor was destroyed when the hall was used as a forge by the first Sir Robert Peel. He placed red bricks on the ground shortly after 1792, and they are still there under the present modern wood floor.
Tamworth has had many visitors over the years, from kings of England (Henry I, Henry II - with Thomas a Becket, Henry III, Edward II and James I), and in 1828 Sir Walter Scott visited before writing his poem Marmion, and Tamworth gets a mention. Now the castle is open to the public every day except at Christmas, and is an unusual and intriguing snapshot of the changing uses it has had over the centuries.