Stafford Castle Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Stafford Castle
Staffordshire, England
Stafford Castle
Stafford Castle
Coordinates	52°47′50″N 2°08′48″W / 52.7973°N 2.1468°W / 52.7973; -2.1468
Grid reference	grid reference SJ902222
Type	Motte and bailey, later Gothic Revival

Stafford Castle is an old castle found near the town of Stafford in Staffordshire, England. It's a very important historical building. For hundreds of years, starting after the Norman Conquest in 1066, it was the home of the powerful Stafford family. This family included important people like barons, earls, and even dukes.

The original stone castle was mostly destroyed in 1643 during the English Civil War. This happened when Lady Isabel Stafford, who supported the King, was living there. Later, in the early 1800s, the Jerningham family rebuilt parts of the castle. They used the old foundations and stones, giving it a new look called Gothic Revival. Today, the castle is a well-known landmark. You can see it from the nearby A518 road, the M6 motorway, and the West Coast train line.

Castle History
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Castle History

Early Beginnings

A Saxon Fortress

An old historian named Robert Plot wrote about a Saxon princess named Æthelflæd. She was a strong ruler of the Mercians. He said she built a castle in Stafford in the year 913. She also built a fortified town nearby. We don't know exactly where this first castle was. It was probably made of wood.

Norman Arrival

Before the castle was built, a Saxon leader named Eadric the Wild tried to fight against the Normans. He lost the Battle of Stafford in 1069.

Around the 1070s, a Norman lord named Robert de Stafford built a wooden castle here. He came to England with William the Conqueror in 1066. The King gave him many lands, especially in Staffordshire. This helped him control the area and collect taxes. It also helped prepare for the Norman invasion of Wales. The first castle was a motte and bailey. This means it had a large mound (motte) with a tower on top. It also had a fenced area (bailey) below for buildings.

Building a Stone Castle

Later, in 1347, Ralph de Stafford, 1st Earl of Stafford, decided to build a stone castle. He was an important commander for the King. The new castle was a rectangular stone tower, called a keep. It first had a tower at each corner. Later, a fifth tower was added in the middle of one wall.

Important Families and Wars

The Dukes of Buckingham

The stone castle was at its grandest when Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham lived there. He was killed in a battle in 1460. His grandson, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham, first supported King Richard III. But then he rebelled and was executed in 1483.

Henry's son, Edward Stafford, 3rd Duke of Buckingham, managed to escape. King Henry VII later gave him back his lands. In 1511, this Duke built another large house called Thornbury Castle. But his royal connections made King Henry VIII see him as a threat. So, in 1521, the King had him executed. Stafford Castle and its lands then became the King's property.

Decline and Civil War

Stafford Castle was eventually returned to the Stafford family. But they never got back their old wealth or power. The castle keep slowly fell apart. In 1603, Edward Stafford, 3rd Baron Stafford, called it "My rotten castle of Stafford."

During the English Civil War in 1643, Lady Isabel Stafford lived at the castle. She was a strong supporter of the King. The Parliamentarian army captured Stafford town. But some of the King's soldiers escaped to the castle. They hoped to use it to take back the town.

A Parliamentarian leader, Colonel William Brereton, rode to the castle. He asked Lady Stafford to give up, but she refused. The Parliamentarians then set fire to some of the castle's outer buildings. This made the soldiers inside angry, and they shot at the attackers. The siege was stopped when more of the King's soldiers arrived.

Lady Stafford was eventually convinced to leave. A small group of soldiers stayed to defend the castle. But they soon fled when they heard a large Parliamentarian army was coming with powerful cannons. The castle then fell to the Parliamentarians. In December 1643, they ordered the castle to be destroyed. By 1698, a traveler noted that only the old fortified trenches remained on the hill.

The Castle Reappears

The inside of the rebuilt castle keep.

By the late 1700s, only a small part of a wall could be seen above ground. Workers trying to fix this wall found buried castle basements and foundations. They told Sir William Jerningham about their discovery. He ordered all the old foundations to be uncovered. He also had the whole mound cleared of plants.

The castle was partly rebuilt starting in 1813. This was done in the Gothic Revival style. The work stopped because of a lack of money. Also, the Jerningham family became nobles, which was one reason they started the project. The rebuilt keep was meant to be lived in, and people did live there until the mid-1900s.

Modern Times

After World War II, the trees around the castle were cut down. This might have made the castle more open to strong winds. By 1949, large pieces of stone began falling from the towers. The castle was declared unsafe. The last caretakers left the building that winter. The site was then damaged by vandals. In 1961, Lord Stafford gave the castle to the local government.

In 1978, experts began digging at the site. They found many interesting things about the castle's long history. These digs continued for many years. They even provided jobs for young people during a time of economic hardship. The BBC filmed these excavations for many years.

In 1988, the castle site officially opened to the public. A walking trail was created with signs explaining the history. New fences and better paths were added. In 1992, a new museum and gift shop opened below the castle mound.

Stafford Castle facts for kids

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