Venue Type & Location
Overview
Wigmore Castle, situated high atop a ridge, is one of the largest castles along the Welsh border. It is constructed out of local sandstone.
Walls and towers dating from the late 13th c. and 14th c. surround the inner bailey. There also exists a gatehouse which is half buried.
Current Status
History of the Venue
1067--71 Wigmore Castle built by William FitzOsbern, 1st Earl of Hereford.
ca. 1075 Castle forfeited by Roger, 2nd Earl of Hereford for conspiracy against the king, and granted to Roger de Mortimer, Seigneur of Mortemer-sur-Eaulne in Normandy.
late 12th c. Hugh de Mortimer (d 1180 or 1181) begins rebuilding of castle in stone, including part of the gatehouse and the lower walling of the shell keep.
early 13th c. Rebuiliding in stone completed by Hugh's grandsons Hugh (d 1227) and Ralph (d 1246).
early 14th c. Largely or entirely rebuilt, probably by Roger de Mortimer, 1st Earl of March.
1330 Earl of March executed for treason and attainted.
1331 Castle restored to Edmund de Mortimer, created 1st Baron Mortimer.
1425 Castle inherited by Richard, 3rd Duke of York, via his mother Anne, sister and heir of Edmund de Mortimer, 5th Earl of March. Upon the accession of Richard's son as Edward IV, the castle became a crown possession.
1534--1543 Castle repaired by Sir Henry Sydney and used as a prison.
Castle granted to Capt. Gelly Meyrick and Henry Lindley by Elizabeth.
1601 Sold to Sir Thomas Harley of Brampton Bryan, Herefordshire.
1643 Lady Brilliana, wife of Sir Robert Harley, ordered Parliamentarian troops to dismantle the walls of the castle to prevent it from being used by Royalist forces. It has been in ruins since.
Patrons who owned this venue
| Name | Date | Titles |
|---|---|---|
| Mortimer, Edmund de | 1391-1425 | Earl of March |
| Mortimer, Edmund de | 1391-1425 | Earl of Ulster |
| Mortimer, Edmund de | 1391-1425 | Baron Mortimer (of Wigmore) |
Bibliographic Sources
- Colvin, H.M., John Summerson, Martin Biddle, J.R. Hale and Marcus Merriman, eds. The History of the King's Works: 1485–1660 (Part II). vol 4. London: HMSO, 1982
- Pevsner, Nikolaus. Herefordshire. Harmondsworth, Midd: Penguin Books, 1963
- Royal Commission on Historical Monuments England. An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Herefordshire. 3 vols. London: HMSO, 1931--4
- Salter, Mike. The Castles of Herefordshire and Worcestershire. Malvern, Worc: Folly Publications, 1989
- Shoesmith, Ron. A Guide to Castles and Moated Sites in Herefordshire. Little Logaston: Logaston P, 1996