St Briavels Castle
St Briavels Castle | |
---|---|
Bailey | |
Site information | |
Owner | English Heritage |
Controlled by | English Heritage |
Condition | Inhabited and used as a Youth Hostel |
Site history | |
Materials | Old Red Sandstone and Limestone |
St Briavels Castle is a moated Norman castle at St Briavels in the English county of Gloucestershire. The castle is noted for its huge Edwardian gatehouse that guards the entrance.
St Briavels Castle was originally built between 1075 and 1129 as a royal administrative centre for the
The castle was transferred many times between royal favourites in the 14th and 15th centuries and slowly declined in appearance and importance. St Briavels Castle became used primarily as a court and as a notorious debtors' prison, conditions being documented by the prison reformer John Howard in 1775. Following local riots and a parliamentary investigation in the 1830s, reforms in the 19th century brought an end to the castle's use as a prison.
Extensive renovation at the turn of the 20th century allowed St Briavels Castle to be taken over as a
Architecture
St Briavels Castle is located on a spur dominating a position above the River Wye, on the western edge of the Forest of Dean.[1] The castle is predominantly built of local old red sandstone and limestone.[2] The castle site is surrounded by an in-filled moat; now a garden, the moat was originally wet and fed by a spring underneath the moat itself.[3]
The castle
The keep was protected by the stone
The
The base of the gatehouse is defended from
History
11th and 12th centuries
St Briavels Castle appears to date from Norman times, although the village itself predates the Norman period.[1] The area was acquired by William FitzOsbern, the first Earl of Hereford in 1067, who built a number of castles across the region, including Chepstow, Monmouth, Clifford and Wigmore.[1] It does not appear that FitzOsbern built a castle on the St Briavels site, however, and the revolt of FitzOsbern's son, Roger de Breteuil resulted in the village being taken into the possession of the royal bailiffs of the Forest of Dean.[1]
St Briavels Castle was constructed sometime between 1075 and 1129 by royal mandate, although the precise date is uncertain.
Miles and his partner
Royal forests in the early medieval period were subject to special royal jurisdiction; forest law was "harsh and arbitrary, a matter purely for the King's will".
13th century
In 1217 the Charter of the Forest was passed, in part to mitigate the worst excesses of royal jurisdiction.[28] The forest laws, however, did allow for a very wide range of fines to be imposed on local peasants who broke the numerous edicts in place to protect both wildlife and the trees in the forest.[29] The courts held at St Briavels Castle imposed a relatively large number of fines, or amercements, for both illegal wood-cutting and the poaching of venison during the period.[30] The castle also began to be used a prison shortly afterwards, partially for forest trespassers and for those who could not pay the required fines.[31]
After King John's death, however, St Briavels Castle became the primary centre for English
In 1228 John Malemort, William the Smith and William the Fletcher arrived at the castle and began production operations at a forge built within the bailey.[34] A production level of 120,000 quarrels in a 120-day period was achieved by 1233, with men like Malemort being able to produce up to 100 quarrels a day.[35] Quarrels were then put into barrels and shipped across the kingdom in large quantities.[36] Other iron from the castle was sent to build siege engines in Hereford.[20] The manufacturing capability of St Briavels Castle gave the king a distinct advantage over potential baronial enemies, with the supply of arms from the castle to Marcher Lords threatened by the Welsh being one of the levers of royal power during the period.[37]
Now a centre for arms manufacture, the castle was made more secure, with a new defensive ditch, freshly repaired walls and a new chapel.
Under Edward I, the massive gatehouse was built to protect the castle entrance, including special protection against undermining.[40] There has been speculation that the royal architect James of Saint George may have been responsible for the building work, which occurred between 1292–3 at a cost of £477.[41] The reason for the king extending the castle at this time is unclear, as the castle was relatively far from the Welsh border and in no particular risk of attack.[42] One popular explanation is that given the quantities of weapons and money being stored at the property by this time, the gatehouse was designed to improve the internal security of the castle; the presence of the additional portcullises would also support this explanation.[42] In 1300, the old wooden chapel was rebuilt in stone and in 1310, an extension to the castle wall was constructed at a cost of £40; called 'the Peel', this followed the line of the old motte and gave additional protection to the keep.[43]
14th–17th centuries
St Briavels Castle remained an important location in the reign of Edward II, as the Welsh Marches were a key region in the wars between the king, his favourites and various noble factions during the period.[44] Roger d'Amory was the constable of the castle during the early years of Edward's reign. D'Amory was a royal favourite and Edward II visited the Castle several times, with an extensive renovation of the rooms and quarters occurring during this time.[18] Around £500 was spent on the work, a substantial sum.[18]
D'Amory was supplanted in the king's favour by
Towards the end of the 14th century, England saw increasing conflict between the rival
By this time, however, St Briavels Castle had been in a slow period of decline for many years, similar to that of several other royal castles in the region, including Bristol and Gloucester.[21] Minor improvements were made, including various light windows added to the internal buildings in the 15th century,[53] and extensive restyling of the chapel in the 17th century, but not to the extent of those castles successfully converted to more luxurious dwellings.[26]
Under
18th and 19th centuries
In the 18th century many of the buildings inside the bailey were knocked down and the more valuable materials, including the lead from the roof, recycled.[8] The keep partially collapsed in 1752, with the remainder falling down in 1777.[55] Victorian writers blamed both the progress of time and the theft of stones by local peasants for the collapse.[56] The famous "forester's horn" chimney was moved from its original location to the west side of the building between 1783 and 1824.[57] Whilst not achieving the picturesque status of other ruined castes in the area, Georgian visitors noted the "beautiful and romantic scenery that surrounds these ruins".[58]
The castle was now principally a prison and a court, still operating under the authority of the constable and the Forest Law originally established in 1217.
In 1831 there were extensive riots in the Forest of Dean, led by
The debtors' prison at the castle came in for particular scrutiny. It emerged that out of the 402 cases brought before the court at St Briavels' Castle, 397 of them were for extremely small sums of debt of £5 or less (£373 in 2009 prices), increasingly unacceptable in Victorian eyes.
The castle prison was found to still be in a very bad condition. The commissioners noted how the prison had "only one window, which is one foot wide and in a recess. It does not open.... There is a door at the outer end of the passage, and in it a hole which is considered necessary for air... The privy is a dark winding recess... It leads to a hole going down to the bottom of the building, which is always inaccessible for cleaning, but which until six years ago had a drain from it to the moat; the air draws up from it into the passage and the room. There is no water within for the prisoners' liberty, and they are obliged to get some person to fetch it."[67]
Prison reforms followed, including improving the conditions of the castle facilities, although visitors continued to note how the castle was "patched and cobbled like a worn-out shoe".[68] In 1838 the role of constable was transformed into the Chief Commissioner of Woods and Forests.[69] The court and jury rooms were turned into a local school,[70] although occasional Courts of Attachment were held in the chapel and the castle retained its function as a prison until 1842, when the remaining inmates were transferred to the prison at Littledean.[71]
Today
The gatehouse and the buildings inside the bailey were made habitable again in 1906 and became a
See also
- Castles in Great Britain and Ireland
- List of castles in England
- Lydford Castle, also used for forest courts
References
- ^ a b c d e Remfry, p. 1.
- ^ a b Curnow and Johnson, p. 91.
- ^ Urban, p. 503.
- ^ After Remfry, p.8.
- ^ a b c Verey, p. 333; Curnow and Johnson, p. 92.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, p. 93.
- ^ a b c Curnow and Johnson, p. 94.
- ^ a b c d e f Curnow and Johnson, p. 95.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, pp. 96, 98.
- ^ Urban, p. 503; Curnow and Johnson, p. 97.
- ^ Pettifer, p. 80; Verey, p. 333.
- ^ a b Verey, p. 332.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, p. 99; Verey, p. 332.
- ^ King, p. 119; Curnow and Johnson, p. 99; Verey, p. 332.
- ^ a b King, p. 119.
- ^ a b Curnow and Johnson, p. 100.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, p.99; Pettifer, pp. 96–7; Thompson, p. 114.
- ^ a b c Curnow and Johnson, p. 99.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Remfry, p. 2.
- ^ a b c d Curnow and Johnson, p. 92.
- ^ a b Emery, p. 15.
- ^ a b Huscroft, p.97.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, p.92; Pounds, p. 200.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, p. 91; Rudge, p. 22.
- ^ a b c Remfry, p. 3; Curnow and Johnson, p.96.
- ^ a b Curnow and Johnson, p. 98.
- ^ Nicholls 1858, p. 11; Remfry, p. 3.
- ^ Huscroft, p. 173.
- ^ Birrell, p. 149.
- ^ Birrell, p. 154.
- ^ Pugh, p. 79.
- ^ Pounds, p. 108.
- ^ Pounds, p. 110.
- ^ Remfry, p. 3; Curnow and Johnson, p. 95.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, p. 91; Pounds, p. 109; Remfry, p. 3.
- ^ Pounds, p. 109.
- ^ Pounds, p. 146.
- ^ Remfry, p. 4.
- ^ Pounds, p. 88.
- ^ Pettifer, p. 80.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, p. 99, 103.
- ^ a b Curnow and Johnson, p. 103.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, p. 94, 98.
- ^ Weir, p. 129.
- ^ MacKenzie, p. 323; Vickers, p. 117.
- ^ a b Fryde, p. 176.
- ^ Weir, p. 255.
- ^ Weir, p. 257.
- ^ Dunn, p. 59.
- ^ a b MacKenzie, p. 323.
- ^ Hicks, p. 31.
- ^ a b c Nicholls, 1863, p. 14.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, p. 96.
- ^ a b c Nicholls, 1863, p. 16.
- ^ Brayley and Tombleson, "St. Briavel's Castle"; Storer, p. 2; National Monuments Record, accessed 13 August 2010.
- ^ Thomas, p. 59.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, p.97.
- ^ Storer, p. 2.
- ^ King, p. 5; Curnow and Johnson, p. 95.
- ^ Brown, p. 182.
- ^ King, p. 5.
- ^ Nicholls 1858, p. 122.
- ^ a b Nicholls 1858, p. 112.
- ^ Fisher, 13.
- ^ a b Nicholls 1858, p. 113.
- ^ House of Lords, p. 40; Society for the Improvement of Prison Discipline, p. 175.
- ^ Nicholls 1858, pp. 113-4.
- ^ Nicholls 1858, p. 114; The Saturday Magazine, p. 218.
- ^ Nicholls 1858, p. 10.
- ^ Curnow and Johnson, p. 95; Thomas, p. 59.
- ^ Thomas, p. 59; Kettilby, p. 668.
- ^ National Monuments Record, accessed 13 August 2010..
- ^ National Monuments Record, accessed 12 August 2010.
Bibliography
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- Brayley, Edward William and William Tombleson. (1823) A Series of Views of the Most Interesting Remains of Ancient Castles of England and Wales. London: Longman.
- Brown, James Baldwin. (1823) Memoirs of the Public and Private Life of John Howard, the Philanthropist, 2nd edition. London: Thomas.
- Coss, Peter and S.D. Lloyd (eds). (1988) Thirteenth Century England II Proceedings of the Newcastle Upon Tyne Conference 1987. Woodbridge, UK: Boydell Press. ISBN 978-0-85115-513-5.
- Curnow, P.E. and E.A. Johnson. (1985) "St Briavels Castle," in Chateau Gaillard: études de castellologie médiévale. Caen: Centre de Recherches Archéologiques Médiévales. ISBN 978-2-902685-01-1.
- Dunn, Alaistair. (2003) The Politics of Magnate Power in England and Wales, 1389-1413. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-926310-3.
- Emery, Anthony. (2006) Greater Medieval Houses of England and Wales, 1300–1500: Southern England. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-58132-5.
- Fisher, Chris. (1981) Custom, Work and Market Capitalism: the Forest of Dean Colliers, 1788-1888. London: Croom Helm. ISBN 978-0-7099-1001-5.
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- Hicks, Michael. (2002) Warwick the Kingmaker. Oxford: Blackwell. ISBN 978-0-631-23593-4.
- House of Lords. (1838) The Sessional papers of the House of Lords: Volume XI, the Prisons of England; Prisons of Ireland. London: HM Stationery Office.
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- MacKenzie, James Dixon. (1896/2009) The Castles of England: Their Story and Structure. General Books LLC. ISBN 978-1-150-51044-1.
- Nicholls, Henry George. (1858) The Forest of Dean: an Historical and Descriptive Account. London: John Murray.
- Nicholls, Henry George. (1863/2009) The Personalities of the Forest of Dean. Fineleaf Editions. ISBN 978-0-9534437-2-7.
- Pettifer, Adrian. (1995) English Castles: A Guide by Counties. Woodbridge: Boydell Press. ISBN 978-0-85115-782-5.
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- Pugh, Ralph B. (1968) Imprisonment in Medieval England. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Remfry, P.M. (1995) Saint Briavels Castle, 1066 to 1331. Worcester, UK: SCS Publishing. ISBN 1-899376-05-4.
- Rickards, George Kettilby. (1842) The Statutes of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Volume 82. London: Her Majesty's Printers.
- Rudge, Thomas. (1803) The history of the county of Gloucester brought down to the year 1803. Gloucester, UK: Harris.
- The Saturday Magazine. (1838). No. 413, December 1838. London: Parker.
- Society for the Improvement of Prison Discipline and for the Reformation of Juvenile Offenders. (1827) The Seventh Committee Report. London: Cornhill.
- Storer, James. (1808) Antiquarian and Topographical Cabinet, Containing a Series of Elegant Views of the Most Interesting Objects of Curiosity in Great Britain. London: Clarke.
- Thomas, William Heard. (1839) Tinterne and its Vicinity. Bristol: Hamilton and Adams.
- Thompson, M. W. (1991) The Rise of the Castle. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-08853-4.
- Urban, Sylvanus. (ed). (1832) The Gentleman's Magazine, and Historical Chronicle. London: Nicholls.
- Verey, David. (1970/1992) The Buildings of England: Gloucestershire: the Vale and the Forest of Dean. London: Penguin Books. ISBN 0-14-071041-8
- Vicker, Kenneth H. (1961) England in the Later Middle Ages. London: Methuen.
- ISBN 978-0-7126-4194-4.
External links