Out of the Darkness Can Come a Glimmer of Light
Owned by the Duchy of Cornwall since 1337, Trematon Castle is a miniature Norman motte-and-bailey castle and gatehouse, situated on the river Lynher.
Sitting on top of an ancient pagan site which settlers once saw as the gateway between Cornwall and England, the Castle was built in 1068 by Robert, Count of Mortain to strengthen the hold of William the Conqueror following his triumph in the Battle of Hastings.
In 1337, the Castle was bestowed on Edward the Black Prince (a former Prince of Wales), for whom the Grade I-listed gatehouse was built and who, legend has it, only stayed there once. Then, two hundred years later, Elizabeth I ordered Sir Francis Drake to stash looted treasure – a hoard of gold, silver and emeralds pirated from Spanish ships while voyaging the Pacific Ocean, to be stored in Trematon Castle before it was later shipped to the Tower of London.
The Castle then fell into neglect and ruin for centuries until, in 1807, the Duchy granted a 100-year lease to naval man Benjamin Tucker, alongside permission to construct a house within the castle courtyard. Yet more change came when part of the medieval castle wall was demolished to create a view from the house down to Plymouth Sound – and then again in 1812, when an ornate swimming pool was carved out in the lower reaches of the garden to commemorate a visit by the Prince Regent, who was later crowned George IV.
In 1961 the Duchy of Cornwall advertised the Castle to be let. It subsequently became the home in Cornwall of Hugh Foot, Lord Caradon. Queen Elizabeth II visited the Castle on 25 July 1962 before driving to Fowey to board the royal yacht Britannia
In 2012, garden designers Julian and Isabel Bannerman moved in and began to plant a garden which was intended to play to the romantic elements of the Castle’s history. The gardens were open to visitors in the spring and summer until 2018. The lease was then taken over by interior designers Frieda Gormely and husband Javvy M Royle who founded the House of Hackney, in 2011. Originally based in east London they became famous for riotous Victorian-tinged wallpapers and fabrics. The house is now open as an exclusive B&B.
Adapted from:
www.houseofhackney.com/pages/castle-of-trematon
saltash.org/saltash-history/trematon-castle.html
bannermandesign.com/Trematon-Castle-1
Out of the Darkness Can Come a Glimmer of Light
Owned by the Duchy of Cornwall since 1337, Trematon Castle is a miniature Norman motte-and-bailey castle and gatehouse, situated on the river Lynher.
Sitting on top of an ancient pagan site which settlers once saw as the gateway between Cornwall and England, the Castle was built in 1068 by Robert, Count of Mortain to strengthen the hold of William the Conqueror following his triumph in the Battle of Hastings.
In 1337, the Castle was bestowed on Edward the Black Prince (a former Prince of Wales), for whom the Grade I-listed gatehouse was built and who, legend has it, only stayed there once. Then, two hundred years later, Elizabeth I ordered Sir Francis Drake to stash looted treasure – a hoard of gold, silver and emeralds pirated from Spanish ships while voyaging the Pacific Ocean, to be stored in Trematon Castle before it was later shipped to the Tower of London.
The Castle then fell into neglect and ruin for centuries until, in 1807, the Duchy granted a 100-year lease to naval man Benjamin Tucker, alongside permission to construct a house within the castle courtyard. Yet more change came when part of the medieval castle wall was demolished to create a view from the house down to Plymouth Sound – and then again in 1812, when an ornate swimming pool was carved out in the lower reaches of the garden to commemorate a visit by the Prince Regent, who was later crowned George IV.
In 1961 the Duchy of Cornwall advertised the Castle to be let. It subsequently became the home in Cornwall of Hugh Foot, Lord Caradon. Queen Elizabeth II visited the Castle on 25 July 1962 before driving to Fowey to board the royal yacht Britannia
In 2012, garden designers Julian and Isabel Bannerman moved in and began to plant a garden which was intended to play to the romantic elements of the Castle’s history. The gardens were open to visitors in the spring and summer until 2018. The lease was then taken over by interior designers Frieda Gormely and husband Javvy M Royle who founded the House of Hackney, in 2011. Originally based in east London they became famous for riotous Victorian-tinged wallpapers and fabrics. The house is now open as an exclusive B&B.
Adapted from:
www.houseofhackney.com/pages/castle-of-trematon
saltash.org/saltash-history/trematon-castle.html
bannermandesign.com/Trematon-Castle-1