One of the three of my “must sees” on this trip was Leeds Castle, a well-known Tudor residence (reportedly a favorite of Henry VIII’s) as well as being on the Travel Channels top 10 list of castles in the UK. Since it was just a few miles from our hotel, our original plan was to go our first day, but since that didn’t happen, we decided to skip Ely Cathedral and see Leeds Castle instead.
Although situated right off of the M20 highway, Leeds Castle sits well back from the road and when we first pulled into the car park I thought we were lost – again. I didn’t see anything that looked remotely like a castle anywhere. Exiting the visitor center, we still didn’t see anything other than a pretty wooded area and a number of peacocks pecking around on the pavement for food. A small sign pointing to a path near the trees claimed to be the way to the castle. Uh-huh.
The path led us through a beautiful lightly wooded area winding along the River Len.
With natural looking landscaping and huge weeping willow trees, it is very peaceful. Still no sign of a castle though...
Finally, after about 15 minutes of walking we could see the castle but it took another 5 or 10 minutes walk to get there. If the grounds looked anything like this in the 1500’s , it’s easy to see why Henry VIII visited it so often! I"m sure it would have offered a wonderful, relaxing get-away from the city.
One of the most visited historic buildings in Britain, Leeds dates back more than 1100 years ago to 855 when the property was known as “Esledes” (derived from the old English word for slope or hillside). At some point it come into the possession of the Saxon royal family and in the years right before the Norman Conquest, King Edward the Confessor granted the estate to the powerful Godwin family – the family of Harold II (who was defeated at Hastings).
The first stone fortifications were built in 1119 by the de Crevecoeur family who had been given the land by William I. Work continued on the building over the next 150 years or so and in 1278 the castle was sold to pay the owners debts. It was bought by Queen Eleanor of Castile (wife of Edward I) and the castle became part of the queen’s “dower” (personal property to be kept after the king’s death). In that tradition, the castle was also owned by Queen Isabella (Edward II), Anne of Bohemia (Richard II), Joan of Navarre (Henry IV – she was imprisoned at Leeds for a period of time on charges of plotting her stepson’s death and witchcraft), and Catherine de Valois (Henry V).
door of the gatehouse
In the early 16th century, Henry VIII ordered major renovations to the castle and transformed it from a fortress to a royal palace. In 1552, after 300 years of royal ownership, the castle was granted to Sir Anthony St. Leger for a yearly rental of 10 pounds as a reward for putting down an uprising in Ireland.
Over the next couple of centuries the castle would change ownership numerous times and would even house prisoners of war during the 1660’s (who managed to set fire to their prison, causing major damage that would not be repaired for nearly 200 years). In 1822, Fiennes Wykeham Martin (who had inherited the castle) learned that the many parts of the castle were virtually in ruins and/or in danger of collapsing. So he decided to tear it down and replace it with the Tudor style structure that still exists. Known as the “New Castle’, it was completed in 1823.
One hundred years later, the family had to sell the castle in order to pay death taxes. It was bought by a wealthy Anglo-American heiress, later known as Lady Baillie. During the 1930s, Lady Baillie transformed a portion of the castle to a medieval style layout with the upper floor of the “new castle” decked out in an art-deco and later French style that remains today. The house became known for its lavish parties and during WWII, the “new castle” was used as a hospital and rehabilitation center. In 1974, the castle and park passed to a charitable trust.
The entrance to the castle is through a gatehouse that belonged to the original 12th century building and was enlarged by Edward I in the 1280s.
Edward I also created the Barbican (now in ruins) which provided protection for the castle mill and dam.
The Maiden’s Tower is a separate structure that was reconstructed during the work ordered by Henry VIII and was used to accommodate the queen’s ladies in waiting. Originally known as the Square Tower, it was renamed in the 19th century when the Martins learned that in the late 14th century a religious female recluse was kept prisoner there during the reign of Richard II. It is now used for conferences.
A portion of the castle known as the “Gloriette” (the smaller building in the back of the above picture) was built for Eleanor of Castile on the site of the original Norman keep. It is connected to the main castle by a bridge (at one time it was a drawbridge) and the corridor is a collection of weapons and amour. After being seriously damaged in the 17th century, it was renovated during the 1920’s and new floors, ceiling beams and doors were installed. Since then, the castle Foundation has worked to re-create a series of medieval rooms.
The Queen’s Room depicts a royal bedchamber from the early 15th century and was inspired by a French illuminated manuscript. The walls and bed hangings use an “HC” monogram which represents the marriage of Henry V and Catherine of Valois in 1420. We couldn't get a good picture of it without that silly sign in the way. I would have moved it, but I was afraid an alarm or something would go off!!
Next to the Queen’s Room is the Queen’s Bathroom, also reconstructed from manuscript illustrations.
16th century mable busts of the Tudor monarchs in the Queen’s Gallery.
Created for the visit of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon in May 1520, the Banqueting Hall is the largest room in the castle and contains a number of paintings, including:
Richard II
Henry VIII
Edward VI
and this very interesting collague of the Tudor/Stuart monarchs
We had a rather mixed reaction to Leeds – the grounds are certainly beautiful and the castle itself creates a pretty picture. But the inside was too “new” and modern looking, especially Lady Baillie’s rooms in the new castle. I know it was necessary in order to preserve the castle, but it felt a little contrived and it didn't really feel or look much like a castle. There were two rooms of Lady Bailiie's though that I particularly liked:
Lady Baillie’s Dressing Room and bathroom created in the late 1920’s. This is her shoe closet - I want a closet like this!
The library was created in 1938.
When we left Leeds, it was time to say goodbye to the beautiful Kent countryside and head north.
*all information from the guidebook
Cheers!
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