Richard's Castle (The Castle)

Ludlow SY8 4ET United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

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Richard's Castle (The Castle) Info

Ludlow SY8 4ET United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
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A village of 2 halves. The higher part with the Castle & St Bartholomew Church is in Shropshire. The lower part, with the newer church, is in Herefordshire.

A rare thing to find, a very early mott and bailey Castle, pre William. The castle is in the 3rd section of the graveyard, through a wooden gate. Very overgrown site with some information boards. Some walls remain, as well as the ditches. Well worth the climb to the top for the views.

The church has a detached belltower with 3 bells. Lots of box pews, remains of wall paintings, stone floor memorials, wooden roof trusses, painted coat of arms plaques. A tardis like building, huge on the inside. Very high up, stunning views. Bench outside is ideal for a picnic.

An ancient motte and bailey castle dating from before the Norman conquest. Very ruined, and defended by a formidable army of stinging nettles. Fortunately, I wasn't wearing shorts, otherwise it would have been entirely inaccessible. There is a precarious stone path up to the first floor level of the ruined keep. Being heavily overgrown, flanked by nettles, and obviously with a precipitous drop in places, it's not for the faint hearted. Other parts of the site are just too overgrown to get to.

A beautiful location, and wonderful tranquility and birdsong, but English Heritage need to occasionally visit with a strimmer to keep the site accessible.

I went back in May but this was a great free (almost forgotten) ruin to visit if you are in the area.

It is very overgrown. But that added to the experience.

The signage for it was not good (none until you are right at it).

To get to the ruin you have to walk down the hill in front of the church (through the grave yard) and then go back up the hill on the right.

Richard's Castle is situated about a mile to the

west of the village of the same name, high up on the valley side. Built by Richard Scrob, a Norman knight, invited to England by Edward the Confessor, this is one of only 4 castles built prior to the Conquest in 1066. The site is behind St.Bartholmews church, accessed through the graveyard. It's free to enter but is not suitable for wheelchairs.

There are a number of information boards about the site, which is well maintained and easy to explore.

There are a number of walls and an impressive motte still in place, so do take the opportunity to visit this very rare pre- Conquest site.

Thought it was going to be just a wall. There was much more of it left than I imagined and it was easy to see the original layout, especially from what is left of the keep. A few information panels to read explaining what the various parts of the ruins were.

How lucky we are to still have remains of one of the earliest castles in England established before the Norman Conquest. This castle is overshadowed by St. Bartholomew's church as trees cover this castle from the churchyard, but if you go further down the churchyard to discover more, you can finally see the castle in sight on the right. The remains here are reasonable, but the greatest sight to see here overall are the two local goats; they can act friendly although in Spring they do act different. Nevertheless, the area is well looked after and is not overgrown (especially in Winter). I visited here many times and each visit is really great.

Lots of the stoneworks are still visible and the signage gives a good picture of the history of the structure.

Unfortunately the tower was locked ????