TICKETS & PRICES
Free To Visit, However you can help to fund the preservation of this historic site by making a donation...
Quick Navigation
Visiting Whittington Castle
The ruins of Whittington Castle in Shropshire, England, once held an important position on the border of Wales and England. The 13th-century castle replaced an early Norman fort that suffered Welsh slighting. Today, the castle and grounds are free to visit and open for picnics, events, and weddings.
Parking
Visitors may use the dedicated castle parking area directly adjacent to the A495 in Castle Street in the village centre opposite the church on the left. The pay and display parking fees go towards the upkeep of the castle site.
The castle itself is very well signposted, so it’s difficult to miss.
Price
Visitors may visit Whittington Castle for free and investigate the once-mighty enclosure castle. A small parking fee contributes to the extensive upkeep necessary for a monument of this type.
Whittington Castle Preservation Trust (WCPT) encourages visitors to join in the annual castle membership, contributing to this historic monument's upkeep.
With membership, guests will enjoy complimentary parking as well as special rates for castle vents.
Membership prices are:
- Single Adult: £15.00
- Joint (Couple): £22.00
- Family: £30.00
- Concession: £10.00
Opening
The castle grounds are free to visitors at any time of the day (including night vigils by pre-appointment for paranormal investigations). In addition, the castle tea room offers food and drinks from Wednesday to Sunday all year round from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., including Bank Holiday Mondays.
During the current COVID crisis, the tea room will only be open for takeaways, and WCPT advises visitors to check their website for any updates regarding opening times and the operation of the castle facilities.
Location and Access
Whittington is a quaint rural community in Shropshire close to the market town of Oswestry. Whittington Castle stands in the centre of the village at the physical address:
Whittington Castle
Castle Street
Whittington
Shropshire SY11 4DF
Visitors will find the castle off the A495 on the left, with an onsite car park entrance opposite the church.
The nearest station is the Gobowen station on the Chester to Birmingham line and is about 3 km (1.86 miles) from Whittington, and there is a number for taxis provided at the station.
The site provides wheelchair-friendly access to most parts of the castle with a bridge and disability ramps to the ruins. The pathway runs to the moat extension area, where the surface becomes grass.
The castle offers guided tours and events throughout the year, such as interactive history lessons and historical re-enactments. They also provide fun family dress-up activities and demonstrations of medieval life.
The water-filled moat has plenty of ducks and even swans, and the tea room sells healthy snacks for the waterfowl, which is a great favourite for children.
Visitors are welcome to picnic on the grounds or enjoy the castle tea room with various sweet and savoury treats.
Weddings at Whittington Castle
The WCPT also offers the castle site for an iconic wedding venue with facilities for several traditional and non-traditional ceremonies.
The castle provides an intimate space for up to 35 guests with an in-house wedding manager to guide you towards your perfect special day. They also offer professional wedding photography services with the backdrop of the romantic castle and grounds.
Know Before You Go
- The castle offers a second-hand bookshop and themed items for children such as swords and helmets and Damsel headdresses for the little ladies.
- The castle tea room offers a selection of tasty light meals and kiddie options for reasonable prices.
- WCPT welcomes dogs on the castle grounds that are on a leash.
- The castle provides toilets downstairs that are wheelchair accessible.
- The WCPT offers four vigil areas between 8-2 am or 8-11:45 pm for paranormal adventurers and provides refreshments from their tearoom.
- The castle site offers car boot sales and craft weekends showcasing unique crafts and gifts from local artisans.
- The castle museum houses a 17th-century coat of armour recovered from the castle moat.
Places To Stay Nearby
Premier Inn Oswestry Hotel
The Premier Inn Oswestry is a competitive price venue close to Whittington Castle, situated between England and Wales. The Premier Inn offers comfortable rooms for singles, couples, and families with ensuite facilities, wifi, and flatscreen TVs.
The inn provides guests with an in-house restaurant that offers affordable meals along with a bar to relax after your travels—rates per night range from £29 to £49 for standard double rooms.
Willington Lodge
Willington Lodge offers six rooms in the Georgian era house and a separate two-bedroom cottage for families and groups. The tastefully decorated rooms all have wifi, TV and en suite facilities.
Rates per room range from £330 for a double room to £550 for a family suite.
Red Lion Coaching Inn
The Red Lion Coaching Inn is a beautifully restored historic 16th-century coaching inn. The Red lion offers all the modern features such as wifi and flatscreen TV. Some of their rooms are dog-friendly, and they also have a bar and restaurant that serves fresh local fare.
Rates per night range from £60 for a double room with shared shower facilities to a double room en suite at £75 per night.
History of Whittington Castle
Whittington Castle first entered historical records in 1138 when Henry I granted the estate to William Perevrel during the Anarchy. Peverel built the first motte and bailey out of earthworks and wood using ditches and the natural marshland for defence. In 1223 the wood fort was replaced with stone.
Time Line
-Later Prehistoric Period
Archaeological evidence suggests that the castle site once held an early curved ditch enclosure and settlement on the low lying ground.
Early occupants may have made use of the natural springs and the marshy ground as a natural defence. In addition, the earlier fort had south and west fronts of two to three ditches which continued northward but are no longer visible.
-1067
After the Norman Conquest, William I divided the area into three Earldoms, and Whittington was part of the estates granted to Roger de Montgomery, the first Earl of Shrewsbury. He may likely have raised an earthwork and wood structure on the site, but no archaeological remains survived.
Whittington passed to de Montgomery's sons until Roger of Bellême rebelled against King Henry I and fled into exile.
-1138 (The Anarchy)
King Henry I granted the Whittington estates to his ally William Peverel, and the first mention of a castle appeared in historical records.
The early 1130s was a time of great political turmoil as the Crown played out its internecine battle for the throne between Empress Matilda and King Stephen. William placed his support behind Matilda's campaign and is likely to build the first fortification in the face of the potential conflict.
The first fort was a motte and bailey fortification protected by a surrounding ditch. Water-filled moats, earthworks, and the marshland of the north offered protection to the castle inhabitants and the ancillary buildings in the inner bailey.
-1149
Madog ap Maredudd annexed the lordship of Whittington, which only passed on after his death in 1160.
-1165
Henry II granted the castle to Roger de Powys and funded his ally to repair the castle in 1173. It passed along his male heirs until Fulk III FitzWarin made a rival claim to the castle under Peverel descent.
-1204
King John granted the castle and the Lordship of Whittington to FitzWarin, who passed the castle down to several generations of sons, all called Fulk Fitzwarin until Fulk XI died in 1420.
-1223 (Fist Stone Build)
Llywelyn ab Iorwerth captured and destroyed Whittington, then returned it under a peace treaty when the Crown rebuilt it in stone.
Builders replaced the tower keep and the inner bailey in stone, adding a curtain wall and five towers on a raised platform. A water-filled moat protected the area along with an outer gatehouse or barbican.
-1267–1276
The Crown ceded the castle to the Welsh Llywelyn ap Gruffydd, who held the castle at this time.
-1282
After Llywelyn ap Gruffydd's defeat in 1282, the FitWarins resumed their occupancy, making the castle fitting for a lordly residence. However, after Fulk VII’s death, the FitzWarin heirs were either absent or underage, and the Whittington declined.
-1404
The rebellion of Owain Glyndŵr destroyed the lordship of Whittington but did not capture the castle.
-1420
Fulk XI's mother and her new husband, William Lord Clinton, controlled the castle in his minority.
When the FitzWarin line ended, the castle passed to Fulk XI's sister Elizabeth who married Richard Hankford.
-1422 (Bourchier)
William FitzWarin briefly captured the castle, which was soon restored to Lord Clinton. The castle then passed through marriage to the Bourchier family. Whittington remained in the family line until 1545.
-Mid 14th Century (Medieval Gardens)
Fulk VI's wife, Eleanor, created the first pleasure gardens at Whittington along with comfortable apartments. However, by 1392, the castle is described as being in ruins.
-1545
John Bourchier, the grandson of the original William Bourchier, became Lord of Bath. His son exchanged the castle and lordship with Henry VIII for former monastic estates near their family seat in Devon.
Unfortunately, a survey of Whittington conducted at this time revealed the castle to be in a state of decay.
The castle passed through a succession of hands, and much was plundered to build other structures,
-1638
The Lyyod family took ownership of the castle, and their descendants still retain possession today. Although the Lloyds supported the Royalist cause in the Civil war, there is no documentary evidence that the castle underwent any military action at the time.
-1760 (Collapse)
In an advanced state of disrepair, one of the castle towers fell into the moat. The site was extensively plundered for stone to build roads, including the turnpike road to Ellesmere in 1776.
-1808 (Restoration)
William Lloyd undertook to restore the castle gatehouse in 1808 and created an ornamental garden, and leased it out as a farmhouse. The house remained in occupancy until the 1990s.
-Today
The Whittington Castle Preservation Trust now owns the castle on a 99-year lease and recently made a £1.5 million road upgrade to the site. The site is free to the public and managed by the Whittington Castle Preservation Trust.
Whittington Castle Occupants
- 1067: Roger de Montgomery assumed ownership of the castle site.
- 1138: William Peverel built the first recorded castle, although there was likely an underlying structure without documentary evidence.
- 1149-1160: Madog ap Maredudd seized the castle site and occupied it until 1160.
- 1204-1420: Fulk FitzWarin occupied the caste, and several generations of the FitzWarinclan followed suit until Fulk FitsWarin XI died in 1420.
- 1223: Llywelyn ab Iorwerth briefly held occupancy of the castle, which fell into English hands until 1267.
- 1267-1276: Llywelyn ap Gruffudd occupied the castle.
- 1282-1420: The castle passed down the FitzWarin line until Fulk XI died, and the castle passed to the Bourchiers.
- 1638: The Lloyd family took ownership of the castle, but the castle was no longer habitable by now.
- 1808: William Lloyd restored the gatehouse and created ornamental gardens, but no notable residents followed.
Images of Whittington Castle
Images Supplied and licensed from Shutterstock Standard Licence Package
Whittington Castle facts
- Whittington Castle is host to so many paranormal sightings that the Preservation Trust offers visitors night vigils for paranormal investigations. Ghostly encounters include children's faces and a robed man stalking the site.
- The castle is host to a local legend that Sir Fulk FitzWarin was the guardian of the Holy Grail, and a 13th-century legend tells of the grail kept in the castle chapel.
- Each year the castle hosts historical re-enactments of famous historical battles of the area that would have happened at the particular time of year.
- Fulk Fitzwarin III may have been the inspiration for the legend of Robin Hood as his life bears striking parallels with the legend. The castle site once boasted a considerable forest, and Fulk was outlawed by King John.
Whittington Castle Q&A
How Old Is Whittington Castle?
The Whittington Castle ruins are remains of a 13th-century build, but historians believe that the stone build replaced an earlier Norman motte and bailey fort. Norman forts of the time were earth and timber structures and were unlikely to leave much archaeological evidence.
The historical record refers to a castle in Whittington in 1138 during the Anarchy.
What Kind of Castle Is Whittington Castle?
Whittington Castle is a fine example of an enclosure castle that evolved from a Norman motte and bailey castle into a fortified stone stronghold. Enclosure castles were defended residences or fortresses with walls and towers protecting the perimeter.
Enclosure castles emerged in the 12th century due to military experience gained by Crusaders who used the new defensive architecture once they returned to England.
Location of Whittington Castle
Historians speculated that the flat-topped mound in the centre of the castle site reveals the remains of the original motte castle with a triangular bailey to the north and west.
However, later historians suggest that the raised mount was an early viewing area for the elaborate medieval garden built by Elenor FitzWarin in the mid 14th century.
The late 11th or early 12th-century build would have been wooden structures and unlikely to leave discoverable evidence. However, after the Welsh attack of 1223, the castle was substantially rebuilt, including a barbican that survives today.
Early builders remodelled the inner bailey in stone and added the tower keep with a twin-towered gateway and three corner towers. They then infilled the structure to create a raised platform surrounded by a water-filled moat and natural marshlands.
Other Places To Visit Near Whittington Castle
Old Oswestry Hillfort
The Old Oswestry Hillfort is a fascinating earthwork structure that is the remains of an ancient hillfort built in the 6th century BCE. The structure has multiple levels with five banks and ditches with entrances from the east and west.
Archaeologists report findings of a settlement from the late bronze age and habitation signs till the late Iron Age, along with the rams of hut circles. It is an open-access site that visitors may explore in reasonable daylight hours.
Chirk Castle
Chirk Castle is a border fortress built in 1295 and completed in 1310 by Roger Mortimer. It is a fine example of a concentric castle, but builders never completed the whole concentric plan. It was the scene of a Civil War attack in 1659 and rebuilt into a stately home. Small formal gardens around the castle offer elegant topiaries and flowering shrubs.
National Trust takes care of the castle, and tickets range from £14 for adults and £7 for a child. Visitors may explore the castle between 12 pm and 4 pm and the gardens from 10 am to 5 pm.
St Cadwaladr’s Church
The medieval St Cadwaladr's Church still stands in an ancient enclosure and dates back to 1291, although various vested interests extensively rebuilt the church over the centuries. Points of interest are a surviving medieval stained glass depicting a crucifixion scene with a translucent Jesus with his bones revealed.
There are also parts of the nave and chancel that are of medieval origin. The pulpit and pews date back to the Victorian era.
Sources
- English Heritage UK: HISTORY OF OLD OSWESTRY HILLFORT
- National Trust UK: Chirk Castle
- Coflein UK: St Cadwaladr Church, Llangadwaladr
- Whittington Castle UK: Preservation Trust
- Whittington Castle UK: History - an overview
- Whittington Castle UK: Homepage
- Castles Forts Battles UK: Whittington Castle
- Wikipedia: Whittington Castle
- Historic England UK: Whittington Castle
- Gatehouse Gazetteer: Whittington Castle