Matters Of State
The remains of the state apartments and Leicester's Building at Kenilworth Castle.
Kenilworth Castle is one of Britain’s largest historical sites. Construction dates back to the 1120s and within its walls are contained hundreds of years of building work and history.
The Norman keep was built by Geoffrey de Clinton, Henry II’s treasurer, and soon after Kenilworth became a royal castle, a status it retained under numerous British monarchs.
The castle was strengthened over the next hundred years, with a large mere and lake expanded around the walls to provide protection.
The walls, built by the crowns, were needed most when rebellious barons held out against Henry III for six months in 1266.
The great hall and staterooms were built by John of Gaunt in the late 14th century and the castle began to turn into a palace, with the Lancastrian kings of the 15th century often using the buildings.
The period as a palace was exemplified under Queen Elizabeth, when the castle was in the hands of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester.
Dudley turned the castle into a great house, remodelling the structures already standing and building new ones that fitted in with the same style.
Elizabeth visited Kenilworth several times as Dudley tried to woo her and he also built a special garden for her final visit in 1579, a garden which has now been recreated by English Heritage using documentary evidence of the time. The garden includes a terrace, aviary and an 18-foot high marble fountain.
The castle’s fortifications were dismantled in 1650, after the English Civil War and have been looked after by English Heritage since 1984.
Matters Of State
The remains of the state apartments and Leicester's Building at Kenilworth Castle.
Kenilworth Castle is one of Britain’s largest historical sites. Construction dates back to the 1120s and within its walls are contained hundreds of years of building work and history.
The Norman keep was built by Geoffrey de Clinton, Henry II’s treasurer, and soon after Kenilworth became a royal castle, a status it retained under numerous British monarchs.
The castle was strengthened over the next hundred years, with a large mere and lake expanded around the walls to provide protection.
The walls, built by the crowns, were needed most when rebellious barons held out against Henry III for six months in 1266.
The great hall and staterooms were built by John of Gaunt in the late 14th century and the castle began to turn into a palace, with the Lancastrian kings of the 15th century often using the buildings.
The period as a palace was exemplified under Queen Elizabeth, when the castle was in the hands of Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester.
Dudley turned the castle into a great house, remodelling the structures already standing and building new ones that fitted in with the same style.
Elizabeth visited Kenilworth several times as Dudley tried to woo her and he also built a special garden for her final visit in 1579, a garden which has now been recreated by English Heritage using documentary evidence of the time. The garden includes a terrace, aviary and an 18-foot high marble fountain.
The castle’s fortifications were dismantled in 1650, after the English Civil War and have been looked after by English Heritage since 1984.