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Beverston Castle, also known as Beverstone Castle or Tetbury Castle, was constructed as a
medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...
stone
fortress A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
in the village of
Beverston Beverston is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 132, decreasing to 129 at the 2011 census. The village is about two miles west of Tetbury. Beverst ...
,
Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...
,
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. The property is a mix of manor house, various small buildings, extensive gardens and the medieval ruins of the fortified building. The
castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
was founded in 1229 by
Maurice de Gaunt Maurice de Gaunt (before 1200 - 1230) was the founder of Beverston Castle in Gloucestershire, England. He began the construction c. 1225 without royal licence, and completed the project in 1229 with the granting of a licence for the final ...
. Much of the castle remained in a state of ruin according to a 2019 report, and had been uninhabitable since the 17th century. Several buildings on the 693-acre property, including five cottages and the 17th century house with seven bedrooms, were in use as residences, however.


Description

The original castle was laid out in pentagonal plan. In the early
14th century As a means of recording the passage of time, the 14th century was a century lasting from 1 January 1301 ( MCCCI), to 31 December 1400 ( MCD). It is estimated that the century witnessed the death of more than 45 million lives from political and n ...
, a small quadrangular stronghold was added, along with a twin-towered
gatehouse A gatehouse is a type of fortified gateway, an entry control point building, enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a town, religious house, castle, manor house, or other fortification building of importance. Gatehouses are typically the mos ...
. Beverston Castle is situated approximately three kilometres west of the town of
Tetbury Tetbury is a town and civil parish inside the Cotswold district in England. It lies on the site of an ancient hill fort, on which an Anglo-Saxon monastery was founded, probably by Ine of Wessex, in 681. The population of the parish was 5,250 in ...
and about two kilometres east of the medieval
abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conce ...
annex,
Calcot Manor Calcot Manor is a historic building in Calcot, three and a half miles west of Tetbury on A 4135 in Gloucestershire, England, near the junction of roads A46 and A4135 (National Grid Reference ST 841180 94891). The original building was establish ...
. The castle is in the
Cotswolds The Cotswolds (, ) is a region in central-southwest England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and Evesham Vale. The area is defined by the bedrock of Jur ...
, a designated AONB (
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is an area of countryside in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Areas are designated in recognition of thei ...
).


History

Early
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
remains have been found nearby, at
Calcot Manor Calcot Manor is a historic building in Calcot, three and a half miles west of Tetbury on A 4135 in Gloucestershire, England, near the junction of roads A46 and A4135 (National Grid Reference ST 841180 94891). The original building was establish ...
, indicating habitation of this area as early as the
5th century The 5th century is the time period from 401 ( CDI) through 500 ( D) ''Anno Domini'' (AD) or Common Era (CE) in the Julian calendar. The 5th century is noted for being a period of migration and political instability throughout Eurasia. It saw the ...
, although it is likely that earlier
Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...
peoples would have also been in this locale. In the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
it was called Beverstane, and in medieval times the site was known as Beverstone. Another early name for this site was Bureston, derived from the large number of blue stones found here. The site was the location of an important battle circa 1140 AD between the opposing English armies of King Stephen and
Empress Matilda Empress Matilda ( 7 February 110210 September 1167), also known as the Empress Maude, was one of the claimants to the English throne during the civil war known as the Anarchy. The daughter of King Henry I of England, she moved to Germany as ...
during
The Anarchy The Anarchy was a civil war in England and Normandy between 1138 and 1153, which resulted in a widespread breakdown in law and order. The conflict was a war of succession precipitated by the accidental death of William Adelin, the only legiti ...
. One source traced the history back to 1225 when Maurice de Gaunt built a fortified manor house without a royal licence, but was granted a
licence to crenellate In medieval England, Wales and the Channel Islands a licence to crenellate (or licence to fortify) granted the holder permission to fortify his property. Such licences were granted by the king, and by the rulers of the counties palatine within the ...
. On 29 July 1229,
Henry III of England Henry III (1 October 1207 – 16 November 1272), also known as Henry of Winchester, was King of England, Lord of Ireland, and Duke of Aquitaine from 1216 until his death in 1272. The son of King John and Isabella of Angoulême, Henry a ...
signed a document allowing the castle to stand and remain for ever.
Maurice de Gaunt Maurice de Gaunt (before 1200 - 1230) was the founder of Beverston Castle in Gloucestershire, England. He began the construction c. 1225 without royal licence, and completed the project in 1229 with the granting of a licence for the final ...
was also known as Maurice de Ghent or de Gant, and as Maurice Paynel; Beverston was called Beverestan in the July 1229 document which was written in Latin. A report from 1865 states that Maurice had inherited the property from his father
Robert Fitzharding Robert Fitzharding (c. 1095–1170) was an Anglo-Saxon nobleman from Bristol who was granted the feudal barony of Berkeley in Gloucestershire. He rebuilt Berkeley Castle, and founded the Berkeley family which still occupies it today. He was a wea ...
. This early castle was fortified by a T-shaped ditch, part of which is still intact in the survival of a partial
moat A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that is dug and surrounds a castle, fortification, building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive ...
on the south side of the castle. In 1530, the castle was extensively remodeled Thomas, Lord Berkeley (1293–1361), who erected a small quadrangular stronghold, with a twin-towered
gatehouse A gatehouse is a type of fortified gateway, an entry control point building, enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a town, religious house, castle, manor house, or other fortification building of importance. Gatehouses are typically the mos ...
. A smaller square tower was added in the late
15th century The 15th century was the century which spans the Julian dates from 1 January 1401 ( MCDI) to 31 December 1500 ( MD). In Europe, the 15th century includes parts of the Late Middle Ages, the Early Renaissance, and the early modern period. M ...
. At an unspecified later date, the adjoining house was added, using parts of the original manor. The woollen industry was central to the medieval economy of the Cotswolds, and in 1336, according to former
R A Lister and Company R A Lister & Company was founded in Dursley, Gloucestershire, England, in 1867 by Sir Robert Ashton Lister (1845–1929), to produce agricultural machinery. History 1867–1906: Foundation and growth The founder of R A Lister and Company w ...
employee A S Bullock, 5000 Cotswold sheep were shorn in the courtyard of Beverston Castle, which he thought might have been a record. The castle was remodelled in 1348–1349, the second phase of a renovation that began in the 1330s. Lady Frances (born Poyntz) and Sir John Berkeley were living here in 1555 when their daughter
Joanne Berkeley Joanne Berkeley (1555/6 – 2 August 1616) was an English abbess of the Convent of the Assumption of Our Blessed Lady, Brussels which was established by and for English Catholic women. Life Berkeley was born in Beverston Castle in Gloucestershire. ...
was born. Joanne would grow up to be Joanna the abbess of the Convent of the Assumption of Our Blessed Lady in Brussels. At the end of the
16th century The 16th century begins with the Julian year 1501 ( MDI) and ends with either the Julian or the Gregorian year 1600 ( MDC) (depending on the reckoning used; the Gregorian calendar introduced a lapse of 10 days in October 1582). The 16th cent ...
, Sir Michael Hicks (son of Robert Hicks, a merchant of London and Bristol, and Julia Arthur) bought Beverston Castle and passed the Beverston holding to his son
Sir William Hicks, 1st Baronet Sir William Hicks, 1st Baronet (1596 – 9 October 1680), of Beverston, in Gloucestershire, and of Ruckholt, at Leyton in Essex, was an English Member of Parliament. Early life William Hicks was born in 1596. He was the son of the wealthy court ...
. The estate remained in the Hicks family through to at least the early 19th century. As a result of the
English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...
(mid-seventeenth century), much of Beverston Castle was destroyed. Roundhead forces attacked the castle twice during the War, but the greatest damage was from an order from Parliament to slight its defensive works. The two major attacks occurred in 1644 and in 1691. The western and southern ranges along with the gatehouse with one of its original D-shaped towers have survived. The property has had continuous occupation since a new residence building was built after the previous house was damaged in a major fire in 1691. In 1842, the Hicks family sold Beverston Castle to R.S. Holford of Westonbirt. The property was purchased by the Hon Arthur and Mrs Strutt in 1939. In 1959 the Hon Arthur and Mrs Strutt sold Beverstone Castle to Jane Rook and her husband Laurence, adding further land from Park Farm in 1992. In 2019, after Jane Rook's death, Beverstone Castle was placed on the market.


Architecture

The massive extant west range of Beverston Castle is flanked on its angles with square towers, and it contains a solar above a vaulted
undercroft An undercroft is traditionally a cellar or storage room, often brick-lined and vaulted, and used for storage in buildings since medieval times. In modern usage, an undercroft is generally a ground (street-level) area which is relatively open ...
. The pentagon-shaped
masonry Masonry is the building of structures from individual units, which are often laid in and bound together by mortar; the term ''masonry'' can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are bricks, building ...
castle has two surviving, albeit ruined, round towers from the original 13th-century construction of de Gaunt. The dressed bluish
limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...
appears to be from the same
quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their envi ...
as the stonework of nearby
Calcot Manor Calcot Manor is a historic building in Calcot, three and a half miles west of Tetbury on A 4135 in Gloucestershire, England, near the junction of roads A46 and A4135 (National Grid Reference ST 841180 94891). The original building was establish ...
. The two-storey gatehouse, with one extant D-shaped tower, was added by Lord Berkeley in the 1350–1360 era. The gatehouse
arch An arch is a vertical curved structure that spans an elevated space and may or may not support the weight above it, or in case of a horizontal arch like an arch dam, the hydrostatic pressure against it. Arches may be synonymous with vaul ...
, totally intact as of 2006, would have originally been protected by an immense
portcullis A portcullis (from Old French ''porte coleice'', "sliding gate") is a heavy vertically-closing gate typically found in medieval fortifications, consisting of a latticed grille made of wood, metal, or a combination of the two, which slides down gr ...
. Above the archway was a sizable first-floor (US = second floor)
chamber Chamber or the chamber may refer to: In government and organizations * Chamber of commerce, an organization of business owners to promote commercial interests *Legislative chamber, in politics * Debate chamber, the space or room that houses delib ...
. The ruined northwest square tower dates to the 14th century (Lord Berkeley's work), further modified in the late 15th century. The southern domestic range, occupied as of 2006, was built by the Hicks family in the early 17th century, reflecting an age of growing security for large manor houses. This range was originally occupied by a medieval
great hall A great hall is the main room of a royal palace, castle or a large manor house or hall house in the Middle Ages, and continued to be built in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries, although by then the family used the great ...
from either the de Gaunt or Berkeley era.


Developments since 1950

In September 1954, "Beverston Castle, including gazebo and bridge" received Grade I listed status, List Entry Number:1304508. The Gatehouse, by then a free-standing structure, received Grade I listed status in March 1987, List Entry Number:1089720. The bridge, and possibly the gazebo, were built in the 18th century. The Quadrangular castle at Beverston, also built by Maurice de Gaunt, was first listed as a Scheduled Monument on 9 October 1981 (amended 8 August 1994), List Entry Number:1008620. A 1974 report provided this information about Beverstone Castle:
''The castle includes medieval, post-medieval and modern components and is partially occupied. Some areas of the castle survive largely in their original medieval form, while others are now occupied by more recent structures. Those parts of the castle which survive as upstanding masonry are Listed Grade I. The western wing, which remains unoccupied, constitutes the best surviving section of the original castle. This survives as a three storey building attached to a rectangular corner tower at each end. The southern range is now largely occupied by an 18th century house, built of rubble with a Cotswold stone roof, while in the east the only upstanding remains are those of the gatehouse. The former northern wing has been replaced by modern structures. The monument has a well recorded history of construction. The earliest surviving parts of the castle relate to the fortifications developed by Maurice de Gaunt ...''
A 2006 article indicated that Beverston Castle was in private ownership. The ancient moat had been incorporated into the expansive and well-cared-for garden. The gardens are considered a good site for viewing
orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of flowering ...
s. The southern entrance to the castle was by way of a bridge over the vestigial moat. Vehicle access to the north side of the castle was through the ancient gatehouse arch. A 2019 report provided more specifics. In 2018, the owner of the estate was Jane Rook (until her death in the spring), who with her husband Laurence, had purchased the property in 1959, from Vice-Admiral the Hon Arthur and Mrs Strutt; they acquired additional land from Park Farm in 1992.https://assets.savills.com/properties/GBLHRALAR190001/LAR190001_LAR19000036.PDF, beverston castle estate – Savills The Rooks were strong supporters of the Duke of Beaufort’s Hunt and welcomed many guests, especially during the
Badminton Horse Trials The Badminton Horse Trials is a eventing, five-day event, one of only six annual Concours Complet International, Concours Complet International (CCI) Five Star events as classified by the International Federation for Equestrian Sports, Fédér ...
week. While the property was occupied by the Rooks, the gardens were impressive, incorporating parts of the medieval moat, a paved terrace, herbaceous and shrub borders and a walled kitchen garden. They were open to visitors occasionally under the National Gardens Scheme. The castle (ruin) itself was not open to visitors. After Jane Rook's death, the property was listed for sale in 2019. In addition to the seven bedroom manor house, the 693 acre property included four estate cottages, a flat, an estate office, a large stableyard, a walled kitchen garden and lawns. Many of the contents (80 lots) were listed for sale by auction (Bonhams) in October 2018.


See also

*
Castles in Great Britain and Ireland Castles have played an important military, economic and social role in Great Britain and Ireland since their introduction following the Norman invasion of England in 1066. Although a small number of castles had been built in England in the 10 ...
*
List of castles in England This list of castles in England is not a list of every building and site that has "castle" as part of its name, nor does it list only buildings that conform to a strict definition of a castle as a medieval fortified residence. It is not a li ...
*
Calcot Manor Calcot Manor is a historic building in Calcot, three and a half miles west of Tetbury on A 4135 in Gloucestershire, England, near the junction of roads A46 and A4135 (National Grid Reference ST 841180 94891). The original building was establish ...


References


External links

{{Commons category, Beverston Castle
View of Tetbury area in the 18th century
Buildings and structures completed in 1229 Castles in Gloucestershire History of Gloucestershire Ruins in Gloucestershire Grade I listed buildings in Gloucestershire