Sherborne Old Castle
Image by ell brown
The Estate of Sherborne Castle – grounds and gardens.
The region of the garden walk that goes previous Sherborne Old Castle.
This is Sherborne Old Castle. Built by Bishop Roger of Salisbury between 1122 and 1139.
Sir Walter Raleigh purchased the castle in 1592, and attempted to modernize it. But by 1594 he gave up and instead started to build his own house nearby.
The Digby’s got Sherborne Castle (each old and new) in 1617 when Sir John Digby acquired it.
For the duration of the Civil War, the Digby’s have been on the Royalist side, and the Old Castle was garrisoned and suffered two sieges. Following the second siege in 1645 Fairfax and his Parliamentarian army systematically demolished the Old Castle. As a result Sherborne Castle after that came to mean the new hous in the park.
Walking previous the boundary wall between the old castle grounds and the garden walk of the new 1.
Grade I listed.
Sherborne Old Castle, Castleton
CASTLETON
ST 6416 SHERBORNE CASTLE
12/26 Sherborne Old Castle
11.7.51
GV I
Episcopal castle with curtain-wall and gatetowers. Constructed by Roger, bishop
of Salisbury 1107-1135. Restoration begun by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1592,
and soon abandoned. Castle partly demolished and rendered untenable, 1645.
Rubble-stone walls, with close-jointed ashlar facing and freestone dressings.
Curtain wall and gatetowers. Curtain-wall enclosed an area 470 ft by 330 ft
with diagonal walls across the angles, forming an elongated octagon. Walling
stands either side of the SW gatetower,in places on the north, south and east
walls. SW gatehouse, C12, four storeys with a battered plinth and clasping
buttresses. NW angle stands to full height, S side is more ruined. W face,
facing of the outer archway has gone and only the segmental rear-arch remains.
C16 restorations and alterations under Raleigh. (See RCHM). Present method
to gate, C20. Abutments and central pier revealed by excavations. NW Tower,
foundations only. North gate and barbican, revealed by excavation, C12 and
C13. Flanking the C13 buildings are the remains of wing-operates with circular
turrets at the outer angles. NE gate, foundations and some walling. SE tower,
web site only. Hold and attached courtyard of buildings at the centre of the
bailey. Maintain. C12, of at least three stages. Ground floor has a dividing wall
running N and S., and supporting two barrel-vaults. These barrels run on
into groined vaults, supported by a cylindrical column with a scalloped capital.
South wall of the extension has externally a central buttress of segmental form.
SW angle of the keep adjoins the S wall of the forebuilding, which stands to
the prime of the third stage. The forebuilding has clasping buttresses at the
west angles. Late C16 stone staircase and terrace against north wall of
forebuilding. 3 ranges of buildings, and an excavated S variety stand round
a central courtyard, initially with cloister-walks. W Ranges running N from
Keep, W wall has pilaster buttresses and a moulded string-course. E wall of
this range largely destroyed. Rubble (tufa) barrel vault. N range, 2 storeys,
4 bays, with clasping and pilaster buttresses externally. Ground-floors groined
rubble vault over three E bays and barrel-vault more than W bay. N wall has remains of
former windows and openings upper floor round-headed windows decorated with
chevron, and label with billet. Internal wall-arcading of intersecting arches,
of which traces remain. Floor could have housed the chapel. East range, a lot
ruined. East hall has pilaster buttresses and an original window in every of
the three bays. Ground floor has a rubble barrel-vault of which the springing
remains. S range, foundations identified of N and S walls, possibly housed the
wonderful Hall. The castle was held for the Crown in 1642 and 1645.
(RCHM Dorset I, p.64(4))(Sch. Monument: DORSET.2)
Listing NGR: ST6480316768
Protected by English Heritage.
