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KENILWORTH CASTLE
England’s Largest of Castle Ruins -
Largely
destroyed in the English Civil War, Kenilworth was one Britain’s
magbificent relics of a historic past. The
imposing Norman keep with its distinct square tower had dominated the
castle and midlands countryside since the conquest and it’s
walls had housed some of Great Britain’s greatest historical
figures. King John expanded the castle defenses in 1210, building curtain
walls
and defensive towers of the outer court, and creating a massive lake
moat, turning Kenilworth into an island fortress.
In
1266 rebels under the leadership of Henry of Hastings used the castle
as a refuge during
a year long siege of Kenilworth Castle with it’s water defenses,
the double moat fending off siege towers and even an assault by barge.
Edward II was imprisoned here after his defeat by the army rasied by
his wife Queen Isabella and Roger Mortimer in 1326 (see Traitor's
Gate To Mortimer's Hole).
In 1394, John of Gaunt added the marvelous great hall and private apartments
of the inner court, turning the military fortress into a royal palace,
enjoyed
by Henry V, who built a summerhouse and water-garden called The Pleasaunce.
The castle was granted to Robert Dudley by the Elizabeth I, the "Virgin
Queen" as a gift and he built the Leicester Gatehouse and Elizabethan
gardens (see Warwick
Castle). The
Leicester Gate, closed since the last
occupants departed in the 1930’s
has been painstakingly restored with a collection
of exhibitions. On the top floor can be discovered
the tale of love and transgression of Queen Elizabeth I and
Sir Robert Dudley in all its Tudor soap opera
glory in “Queen
and Castle: Robert Dudley’s Kenilworth” with rare
portraits of Elizabeth and Dudley. Another exhibition showing
the castle’s
long and colorful history can be found in the restored stables
built by Dudley.
Excellent countryside views can be had along the Millennium Trail
from the castle to the Pleasaunce. There are Christmas events
at Kenilworth
in December and a Tearoom in summer. Located just outside Conventry
in Warwickshire, Kenilworth is about about 15 minutes from Warwick
by
car, 25 minutes from Stratford-Upon-Avon (see Shakespeare
in Stratford),
40 minutes from Blenheim
Palace in Oxfordshire and 40 minutes
from Birmingham Airport and Heathrow about
two hours by
car. Along with these other historic destinations Kenilworth
is a Great
British Heritage site and included in the Great British
Heritage Pass (see British
Heritage Pass - One Price Entry). © Bargain
Travel Europe
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Kenilworth
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SEE ALSO:
ETTINGTON
PARK - HAUNTING
Sleep To The Manor Born
600
YEARS OF
HOSPITALITY AND HISTORY
The Lord Leycester Hospital in Warwick
OXFORD
England’s Ye old College Town
MUNCASTER
CASTLE
Bed & Breakfast in Haunted Cumbrian Castle
STRATFORD,
OXFORD AND WARWICK CASTLE
Escorted Day Coach Tour from London
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