Dunster Castle facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Dunster Castle |
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| Dunster, Somerset, England | |
Dunster Castle
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 Dunster Castle
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| Coordinates | 51°10′51″N 3°26′42″W / 51.1809°N 3.4449°W |
| Grid reference | grid reference SS991434 |
| Type | Motte and bailey castle, later fortified manor house and country house |
| Site information | |
| Owner | The National Trust |
| Open to the public |
Yes |
| Site history | |
| Materials | Red sandstone |
| Events | The Anarchy, English Civil War, the Glorious Revolution |
Dunster Castle is a historic country house in the village of Dunster, Somerset, England. It started as a strong castle built on a very steep hill called the Tor. People have used this spot for protection since the late Anglo-Saxon times. After the Norman Conquest in the 11th century, a timber (wooden) castle was built here. This was part of the Normans' plan to control Somerset.
By the early 12th century, a stone tower was added to the castle. It even survived a long attack during a civil war called the Anarchy. Later, in the late 1300s, the Mohun family sold the castle to the Luttrell family. The Luttrells lived there for many centuries, right up until the late 1900s.
The Luttrell family made the castle much bigger over time. In 1617, they built a large house inside the castle walls. This house was updated many times in the 1680s and 1760s. The old medieval castle walls were mostly destroyed after a big battle during the First English Civil War. Parliament ordered the defenses to be taken down so they couldn't be used again. In the 1860s and 1870s, a famous architect named Anthony Salvin changed the castle to look more like a grand, old Gothic building.
After Alexander Luttrell died in 1944, his family couldn't afford the taxes on the estate. The castle was sold, but the family continued to live there as renters. They bought it back in 1954. Finally, in 1976, Colonel Sir Walter Luttrell gave Dunster Castle and most of its treasures to the National Trust. Today, the National Trust looks after it, and it's a popular place for visitors to explore. It's also a very important historic building, protected by law.
Contents
Exploring Dunster Castle's Past
How Did Dunster Castle Begin? (11th to 12th Centuries)
Dunster Castle sits on a high hill, about 200 feet (60 meters) tall, overlooking the village of Dunster in Somerset. Long ago, the sea came right up to the base of this hill. This made the village a port and gave the castle a natural defense. Before the Normans, there was an Anglo-Saxon fort here. It might have protected the area from sea raiders. A local nobleman named Aelfric controlled it in the mid-1000s.
In 1066, the Normans invaded England. After their victory, William the Conqueror sent his half-brother, Robert of Mortain, to conquer the southwest. William de Mohun landed by sea along the Somerset coast. By 1086, he had built a castle at Dunster. This castle became the main center for his new lands. It also helped guard the coast and control the road to Gloucestershire.
This first castle was a "motte and bailey" design. The top of the Tor hill was shaped into the motte (a mound). An area below it became the bailey (a courtyard). After the invasion, Somerset became more peaceful. The Normans often built religious houses near their castles. So, William de Mohun also started a Benedictine priory in Dunster in 1090.
The River Avill was important for trade. The area around Dunster had many fisheries and vineyards, helping the castle to thrive. In the early 1100s, stone defenses were added. These probably formed a strong stone wall around the top of the motte.
In the late 1130s, England fell into a civil war called the Anarchy. William de Mohun was a strong supporter of Empress Matilda. Dunster was one of her most important castles in the southwest. In 1138, King Stephen's forces attacked the castle. William successfully defended it and was made the Earl of Somerset. After the war, William's son, also named William, took over the castle. He made his tenants help repair the castle walls.
Castle Changes: From the 13th to 17th Centuries
In the 1200s, the Lower Ward (the lower courtyard) was rebuilt in stone. This was paid for by Reynold Mohun. He used money from his tenants and his rich wife. A survey in 1266 described the castle. The Upper Ward had a hall, kitchen, chapel, and a knight's hall. It was protected by three towers. The Lower Ward had a granary, two towers, and a gatehouse. One tower, the Fleming Tower, was a prison.
In 1330, Sir John de Mohun inherited the castle. He had no children and was in debt. His wife, Joan, managed their lands. When John died in 1376, she agreed to sell the castle to Lady Elizabeth Luttrell for 5,000 marks. The castle would become hers after Joan's death. Stone buildings were also added to the Lower Ward during this time.
Joan lived longer than Elizabeth. So, Sir Hugh Luttrell, a high-ranking officer for King Henry V in Normandy, finally took over the castle in 1404. The castle needed repairs. Luttrell spent £252 to fix and expand it. He built the impressive Great Gatehouse and a barbican (a fortified gate) between 1419 and 1424. This new entrance was grand but not very easy to defend.
By the 1400s, the sea had moved away from the castle. The Luttrells created a deer park nearby. This park was a sign of wealth and allowed them to hunt. It also provided the castle with venison (deer meat).
During the 1400s, England had a long civil war called the Wars of the Roses. The Luttrells supported the Lancastrian side. In 1461, Sir James Luttrell died in battle. His family lost the castle for a while. But they got it back in 1485 when Henry VII became king. Sir Hugh Luttrell repaired the castle chapel. His son, Sir Andrew Luttrell, built a new wall on the east side.
Sir Andrew's son, Sir John Luttrell, was a famous soldier and diplomat. He served under Henry VIII. In 1542, a historian noted that the castle was falling apart, except for the chapel. After Sir John's death, the castle was rented out for several years.
By 1571, when George Luttrell inherited the castle, it was very old and worn out. The family preferred to live at their other house. In 1617, George hired architect William Arnold to build a new house inside the castle. Arnold was a well-known architect in the southwest. He designed a new house in the Jacobean style. It had a balanced front and square towers. The new house was built within the old castle walls. It cost George Luttrell more than £1,200, which was a huge amount of money then.
The English Civil War and Beyond
When the First English Civil War started in 1642, Thomas Luttrell, George's son, supported Parliament. He was told to make the castle stronger. In 1642, Royalist forces attacked but were pushed back by Thomas's wife, Jane. In 1643, the Royalists gained strength. They attacked the castle again, and Luttrell switched sides to support the King. Charles II even stayed at the castle in 1645.
By 1645, the Royalist side was losing the war. Colonel Robert Blake led Parliament's forces against Dunster in October. They set up cannons and started digging tunnels under the castle walls. The castle was briefly helped in February 1646, but the attack continued. By April, the Royalists had to give up. They surrendered honorably, and Parliament's soldiers took over.
After the war, Parliament decided to destroy the defenses of castles in Royalist areas. This was to stop them from being used again. Thomas Luttrell had died in 1644. His son, George Luttrell, convinced the authorities to destroy only the old medieval walls, not the whole castle. So, the walls were torn down over 12 days in August 1650. Only the Great Gatehouse and the bases of two towers survived.
George Luttrell died without children. Dunster Castle went to his brother Francis. Francis died in 1666. The castle then passed to his second son, also named Francis. He married a very rich woman, Mary Tregonwell. He used her money to update the castle in the 1680s. He added a grand staircase.
In 1688, during the Glorious Revolution, Francis supported William of Orange. When William landed in Devon, Francis gathered soldiers at Dunster to help him. This group later became the Green Howards regiment. Francis died in 1690, deeply in debt. His wife, Mary, moved the castle's contents to London, but they were destroyed in a fire in 1696.
Dunster Castle in the 18th Century
At the start of the 1700s, the Luttrell family faced many money problems. Francis's son, Alexander, inherited the castle in 1704. It was mostly empty and had huge debts. Alexander died young in 1711. His wife, Dorothy, spent almost twenty years paying off the debts.
Dorothy built a new chapel at the back of the mansion. It cost £1,300, which is like £178,000 today. A safer, but less grand, road to the castle was built, called the New Way. The top of the motte (the old castle mound) was flattened. It became a bowling green with a small, eight-sided summer house. Dorothy's son, Alexander Luttrell, took over in 1726. But he also got into debt, and the castle was put under financial control.
Henry Fownes Luttrell married Alexander's daughter, Margaret. He moved to Dunster in 1747. The couple redecorated the castle in a fancy Rococo style. They used a lot of new and fashionable wallpaper. Henry Luttrell raised the ground level of the Lower Ward in 1764-1765. This extended the New Way to the front of his house. He also added decorative towers to the Great Gatehouse.
A folly (a decorative building), Conygar Tower, was built to make the view from the castle better. A larger park, covering 348 acres (141 hectares), was created south of the castle. This meant some tenant farmers had to move.
Dunster Castle in the 19th and 20th Centuries
Henry's son, John, inherited the castle in 1780. But his son, also named John, chose to live in London when he inherited in 1816. He opened Dunster Castle to the public. By 1845, visitors felt the castle was past its best. Only two of John's sisters lived there. There were no horses or hunting dogs left.
George Luttrell inherited the castle in 1867. He started a huge modernization project. He had a lot of money from the Dunster estates. In the mid-Victorian period, it was popular to update old castles. People wanted them to look more "Gothic" or "Picturesque." George, who loved history, decided to do this at Dunster. He also wanted to make space for a larger household. By 1881, the castle needed 15 live-in servants.
He hired Anthony Salvin, a famous architect, to do the work between 1868 and 1872. It cost £25,350, which is like £1.76 million today. The work included building an underground reservoir to provide running water for the castle and village.
Salvin wanted the castle to look like it had grown naturally over time. He built a large square tower on the west side and a smaller one on the east. These added space and made the castle look uneven on purpose. The 18th-century chapel was removed and replaced with another tower and a modern conservatory. Different styles of windows were put in the walls. Modern Victorian technology was added, like gas lighting and central heating. The roof of the Great Gatehouse was raised. A new wing for servants and offices was built into the hill.
Inside, Salvin created new rooms. These included the Outer Hall, a new gallery, a billiard room, a new library, and a drawing room. Much of the old wooden paneling was removed. Salvin used strong wrought-iron beams to support the new spaces. The house was filled with new 16th and 17th-century art. It also got two brass Italian cannons and a stuffed polar bear.
Alexander Luttrell, who inherited in 1910, chose to live elsewhere. The castle was empty until his son Geoffrey moved back in 1920. Geoffrey redecorated some rooms and built a polo ground. The family enjoyed fox hunting and shooting around the castle. During World War II, the castle was used as a recovery home for injured naval and American officers.
Alexander died in 1944. The taxes on his estate were very high for Geoffrey. In 1949, he sold the castle and much of the land. He kept the right to live in the castle as a renter. The Crown Estate bought the land and sold the castle back to Geoffrey in 1954. His son, Colonel Sir Walter Luttrell, lived away from Dunster. After his mother died (the last Luttrell to live there), he gave the castle and most of its contents to the National Trust in 1976.
Dunster Castle Today
Today, the National Trust manages Dunster Castle as a popular tourist attraction. Not much is left of the original medieval castle, except for the Great Gatehouse and parts of some towers. The main part of the castle you see today is the 17th-century house, which has been changed many times.
Some key things to see at the castle include the original 13th-century gates. There are also several pieces of art. These include a copy of a famous painting of Sir John Luttrell and a series of leather tapestries showing scenes from the story of Antony and Cleopatra. The castle also has a piano that belonged to the composer Vivian Ellis.
The gardens around the castle cover about 6 hectares (15 acres). They include a special collection of Strawberry Trees. The larger parkland covers 277 hectares (684 acres).
Just south of the castle is the restored 18th-century castle watermill. In 2017, the castle welcomed over 209,000 visitors. Dunster Castle is a Grade I listed building and a Scheduled Monument, meaning it's a very important historic site. Its grounds are also protected.
The castle needs ongoing care, especially its roof, which is a historic feature itself. Efforts are being made to redecorate the castle to look like it did in different historical periods. In 2008, the National Trust installed solar panels behind the battlements on the roof. This helps provide electricity and makes the castle more eco-friendly. It was the first time the National Trust did this for a Grade I listed building. It's expected to save a lot of carbon each year. In 2015, plans were announced to open the 19th-century reservoir to the public. It officially opened in April 2016.
See also
- Grade I listed buildings in West Somerset
- List of National Trust properties in Somerset
- Castles in Great Britain and Ireland
- List of castles in England
