Hereford Castle is a castle that used to be in the

cathedral city Cathedral city is a city status in the United Kingdom. Cathedral city may also refer to: * Cathedral City, California, a city in Southern California, United States * Cathedral City Cheddar, a brand of Cheddar cheese * Cathedral City High Scho ...

of Hereford, the county town of

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 Monmouthsh ...

, England (). Founded sometime before 1052, it was one of the earliest castles in England. Hereford Castle was probably destroyed when the Welsh sacked Hereford in 1055, but seems to have been replaced by the following decade. During the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, when

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; ...

sought to usurp Queen Matilda, the castle was besieged three times; the garrison surrendered each time and control of Hereford Castle changed hands.

History

Early history

During the 11th century, the county of Herefordshire was subject to attacks from Wales. Rather than repairing the town defences of Hereford, the county town,

Ralph Ralph (pronounced ; or ,) is a male given name of English, Scottish and Irish origin, derived from the Old English ''Rædwulf'' and Radulf, cognate with the Old Norse ''Raðulfr'' (''rað'' "counsel" and ''ulfr'' "wolf"). The most common forms ...

(son of the

Count of Vexin The county of the Vexin was a medieval France, French county that was later partitioned between the ''Vexin Français'' (French Vexin) and the ''Vexin Normand'' (Norman Vexin). Carolingian counts * 753-764 Romuald, survivor of the Battle of Poiti ...

) chose to build a castle within the settlement's defences. Ralph was made

Earl of Hereford The title of Earl of Hereford was created six times in the Peerage of England. Dates indicate the years the person held the title for. Earls of Hereford, First Creation (1043) * Swegen Godwinson (1043–1051) ''earldom forfeit 1051–1052'' Earl ...

in about 1046; the date of the castle's foundation is uncertain, but it was present by 1052. This first castle is thought to have occupied the area of the later castle, in the east of the town. The areas to the north and west were densely occupied, and to the south was the River Wye. In 1055, the town and castle of Hereford were sacked by the Welsh. The '' Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' recorded the incident:

Harold Godwinson Harold Godwinson ( – 14 October 1066), also called Harold II, was the last crowned Anglo-Saxon English king. Harold reigned from 6 January 1066 until his death at the Battle of Hastings, fighting the Norman invaders led by William the ...

repaired the town's defences in 1056, but what happened to the castle is not mentioned. Shortly after 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 Con ...

in 1066,

William FitzOsbern William FitzOsbern, 1st Earl of Hereford, Lord of Breteuil ( 1011 – 22 February 1071), was a relative and close counsellor of William the Conqueror and one of the great magnates of early Norman England. FitzOsbern was created Earl of Hereford ...

was made Earl of Hereford. He may have rebuilt the castle as it was in use in 1067 when the ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' noted that

Eadric the Wild Eadric ''the Wild'' (or Eadric ''Silvaticus''), also known as Wild Edric, Eadric ''Cild'' (or ''Child'') and Edric ''the Forester'', was an Anglo-Saxon magnate of Shropshire and Herefordshire who led English resistance to the Norman Conquest, acti ...

harassed its garrison. In 1071 William FitzOsbern died and his son

Roger Roger is a given name, usually masculine, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") and ', ' ( ...

took over possession of the castle. He was involved in an unsuccessful attempt to depose King William and consequently forfeited the castle. In April 1138, Geoffrey Talbot captured Hereford Castle from supporters of King

. Later that year Stephen besieged the castle until it surrendered. In 1140 during the Anarchy Geoffrey Talbot and

Miles of Gloucester Miles FitzWalter of Gloucester, 1st Earl of Hereford (died 24 December 1143) (''alias'' Miles of GloucesterSanders, I.J. English Baronies: A Study of their Origin and Descent 1086-1327, Oxford, 1960, p.7) was a great magnate based in the west of ...

captured the castle from the garrison supporting King

. During the siege the cemetery of the Church of St Guthlac was desecrated. The ''

Gesta Stephani __NOTOC__ ''Deeds of King Stephen'' or ''Acts of Stephen'' or ''Gesta Regis Stephani'' is a mid-12th-century English history by an anonymous author about King Stephen of England and his struggles with his cousin, Empress Matilda, also known as the ...

'' recorded the event: Geoffrey Talbot and Miles of Gloucester set up siege engines so that the castle was attacked from two directions, and the garrison eventually surrendered. In 1154 Matilda's son Henry II granted the motte of Hereford to Roger of Gloucester but a rebellion followed and Henry retook possession and for the rest of its history the castle remained royal. In 1216

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Secon ...

made Walter de Lacy sheriff of the county of

and granted him the custody of the Royal castle at Hereford and the following year work was undertaken to strengthen the castle against the Welsh attacks. During the

Second Barons' War The Second Barons' War (1264–1267) was a civil war in England between the forces of a number of barons led by Simon de Montfort against the royalist forces of King Henry III, led initially by the king himself and later by his son, the fu ...

from 1264 and 1267 the castle came for a time the headquarters of the baronial party headed by

Simon de Montfort Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester ( – 4 August 1265), later sometimes referred to as Simon V de Montfort to distinguish him from his namesake relatives, was a nobleman of French origin and a member of the English peerage, who led the ...

and during the Owain Glyndŵr rebellion from 1400 to 1411 King Henry IV based himself at Hereford castle preparing sorties and campaigns into

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

Later history

During the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

Herefordshire was very much a

Royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of governm ...

stronghold but the castle does not appear to have played a significant part, although the city changed hands several times and was subjected to an unsuccessful Scottish siege in 1645. It was eventually sold to Sir Richard Harley and several of his friends but it then went into decline. Most of what remained of the castle seems to have been destroyed in the 1650s and the stone used for other buildings within the city. According to John Leland, the antiquary, in the early 16th century the castle at Hereford was once "nearly as large as that of

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

' and 'one of the fairest and strongest in all England". In 1752 the ruins were leased to the Society of Tempers and the site was transformed into what is today Castle Green and, in 1833, the Castle Green (which had been the bailey of the castle) was leased to the county council for a period of 200 years. The council is still responsible today for the maintenance and upkeep of the area in its present form of a recreation area. A monument to

Lord Nelson Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte (29 September 1758 – 21 October 1805) was a British flag officer in the Royal Navy. His inspirational leadership, grasp of strategy, and unconventional tactics brought a ...

standing on the site today was erected in the centre of the bailey in 1809.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * *Fry, Plantagenet Somerset, ''The David & Charles Book of Castles'', David & Charles, 1980. * *

External links

Hereford Castle on Herefordshire SMR
{{coord, 52.052414, N, 2.712169, W, region:GB_source:enwiki-osgb36(SO509395)_scale:2000, display=title Buildings and structures completed in the 11th century Castles in Herefordshire Castles in England built before 1066 Former castles in England Ruined castles in England