Oakham Castle facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Oakham Castle |
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The Great Hall of Oakham Castle 2014
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| Location | Oakham, Rutland |
| Built | 12th century |
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Listed Building – Grade I
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| Designated | 8 May 1950 |
| Reference no. | 1073277 |
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Oakham Castle is a very old building in Oakham, Rutland, England. It's famous for its huge collection of horseshoes. People also know it as one of the best examples of Norman architecture (buildings from the time of the Normans) in England.
The castle is a Grade I listed building, which means it's a very important historic site. Rutland County Council owns and looks after it. You can even have wedding ceremonies there! The best part is, it's free to visit.
The Castle's Story
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Oakham Castle was built a long time ago, between 1180 and 1190. A man named Walkelin de Ferrers built it. He was the lord of the manor (the main landowner) of Oakham.
The main part of the castle is called the Great Hall. It has a central area and two side sections. These sections are separated by three large stone columns. You can see beautiful 12th-century sculptures in the hall. Six of these sculptures show musicians. They are carved from local stone found at Clipsham. Experts think the same builders who worked on Canterbury Cathedral also worked here.
Oakham Castle has been a place of justice for a very long time. A Crown Court (a type of law court) has met there every two years since 1229. That's over 790 years!
The main entrance gate you see today was likely built in the early 1600s. It looks a lot like gates at Burley-on-the-Hill.
In 2012, the TV show Time Team visited Oakham Castle. They filmed there to learn more about its history. The episode aired in 2013.
The castle was closed for a while for big repairs. This included fixing the outer wall, called the curtain wall. In 2014, Oakham Castle received a large grant of £2.165 million. This money helped with the restoration work. The castle officially reopened to visitors on May 30, 2016.
What Oakham Castle Looks Like
Oakham Castle is quite small, so it might not look like a typical castle. But what we call Oakham Castle today was actually the Great Hall of a much bigger fortified manor house. A fortified manor house was a large, strong home built to protect its owners.
This manor house had many features you'd expect in a castle. It had a strong outer wall (a curtain wall). There was also a gatehouse, which was a protected entrance. It even had a drawbridge with iron chains! Old records and digs have shown that Oakham Castle also had towers along its walls. It probably had a moat (a ditch filled with water) around it too.
The Famous Horseshoes
Oakham Castle has a very special and unique tradition. When important people, called peers of the realm (like dukes, earls, or barons), visit Oakham for the first time, they must give a horseshoe to the Lord of the Manor.
Today, there are about 230 horseshoes decorating the walls of Oakham Castle. This tradition is thought to be linked to the de Ferrers family name. "Ferrier" was the old Norman French word for a farrier (someone who shoes horses). The horseshoe has been a symbol for the de Ferrers family since 1066.
The horseshoe is also a symbol for the county of Rutland. You can see a horseshoe on the county council's coat of arms. It's also on the flag of Rutland. The horseshoes in the castle are hung in a special way, pointing downwards. This is the local custom.
The oldest horseshoe you can see was given by King Edward IV in 1470. He presented it after winning a battle called the Battle of Losecoat Field. More recently, members of the Royal Family have added to the collection. These include horseshoes from the Princess Royal in 1999, King Charles III (when he was Prince of Wales) in 2003, Princess Alexandra in 2005, and Queen Camilla (when she was Duchess of Cornwall) in 2014.
