ASHBY-DE-LA-ZOUCH CASTLE

Leicestershire

Ashby is Leicestershire's best preserved medieval Castle.  The town takes its name from the Zouche family who were granted the land by the Conqueror and died out in 1399.  The Zouches built the initial manor here.  A late Norman Hall and attendant buildings was extended in the 1300s when a massive kitchen range was added (pictured left).

In 1464 the land and manor were granted to Lord Hastings by Edward IV as a reward for his assistance in the Wars of the Roses.  Hastings turned Ashby from a manor into a Castle and raised the mighty square tower now known as the Hastings Tower (pictured right). Unfortunately for Lord Hastings politics during the Wars of the Roses were not particularly stable and when Richard, Duke of Gloucester siezed the Throne Hastings was dragged from the Court and executed on the spot.  (For those of a Shakespearian bent, read Richard III, Act III, scenes IV and V "O bloody Richard! Miserable England! I prophesy the fearfull'st time to thee, That ever retched age hath look'd upon, Come, lead me to the block; bear him my head, They smile at me who shortly shall be dead")

Hastings also started to construct nearby Kirby Muxloe Castle before his execution.

Surprisingly both Kirby and Ashby Castles remained in the possession of the Hastings family and Henry Hastings erected hasty fortifications to Ashby when Civil War broke out.  Ashby Castle was held for the King and over a year of siege was withstood before the Parliamentarians broke in in 1646.  The Castle was slighted, but parts remained occupied until the 18th Century.

The whole Castle is now a ruin, but a fascinating one.  The most fascinating of all must surely be the underground tunnel leading from Hastings Tower to the Kitchen block...this is the stuff of legends, hidden tunnels under Castles!  Be advised, take a torch - it's dark in there!

The Castle is owned by English Heritage today and is open all year.

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2001