Bredwardine Castle was sited in the village of

Bredwardine Bredwardine is a village and civil parish in the west of Herefordshire, England. Significant parish landmarks include a brick bridge over the River Wye, the historic ''Red Lion'' late 17th-century coaching inn, St Andrew's Church, and the site ...

Herefordshire Herefordshire () is a county in the West Midlands of England, governed by Herefordshire Council. It is bordered by Shropshire to the north, Worcestershire to the east, Gloucestershire to the south-east, and the Welsh counties of Monmouthshire ...

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 ...

beside the

River Wye The River Wye (; cy, Afon Gwy ) is the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, fourth-longest river in the UK, stretching some from its source on Plynlimon in mid Wales to the Severn estuary. For much of its length the river forms part of Wal ...

. Thought to have been built in the second half of the 12th century. By the 15th century it had become a ruin.

History

Early Norman Manor

Following the time of the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops, all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conque ...

the manor was granted to John de Bredwardine.

12th Century Castle

It is thought that the castle was built in the second half of the 12th century. By 1227 the castle had become the property of the

Baskerville Baskerville is a serif typeface designed in the 1750s by John Baskerville (1706–1775) in Birmingham, England, and cut into metal by punchcutter John Handy. Baskerville is classified as a transitional typeface, intended as a refinement of what ...

family. In the following century it was held by Hugh

de Lacy de Lacy (Laci, Lacie, Lascy, Lacey, Lassey) is the surname of an old Norman family which originated from Lassy, Calvados. The family took part in the Norman Conquest of England and the later Norman invasion of Ireland. The name is first recorde ...

Refortification and dismantling

Bredwardine Castle was rebuilt as a fortress during the wars of

Stephen Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...

and Maud but then dismantled in the reign of Henry II or Henry III. In the middle of the 15th century the castle was described as being a "waste site with no annual value". The ruined castle and manor passed from the

family to the

Vaughan Vaughan () (2021 population 323,103) is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is located in the Regional Municipality of York, just north of Toronto. Vaughan was the fastest-growing municipality in Canada between 1996 and 2006 with its population increas ...

family.

Roger Vaughan Roger William Bede Vaughan (9 January 1834 – 18 August 1883) was an English Benedictine monk of Downside Abbey and the second Roman Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, Australia from 1877 to 1883. Biography Early life Vaughan was born near Ro ...

was the son in law of

Dafydd Gam Dafydd ap Llewelyn ap Hywel (c. 1380 – 25 October 1415), better known as Dafydd Gam, anglicized to David or Davy Gam, was a Welsh warrior, a prominent opponent of Owain Glyndŵr. He died at the Battle of Agincourt fighting for Henry V, King o ...

and converted the castle and manor into a multi-gabled house. Currently, only traces of the stone can be found on the walls of the tower.

References

Castles in Herefordshire Ruined castles in England {{England-castle-stub

History

Early Norman Manor

12th Century Castle

Refortification and dismantling

See also

References