Restormel Castle; Situated in beautiful Cornish countryside and seen as, "one of the most remarkable castles in Britain", English Heritage.
/Why visit Restormel Castle?
It is virtually unique in its design and therefore is rather special in my opinion. There aren’t many shell keeps around and this is one of the best.
It is very different from the magnificent castles of North Wales, the amazing Warwick Castle, Dover castle and the beautiful Bodiam Castle.
Standing on the wall walk you can see the wonderful curved wall in front and behind you. The skill of the builders to create such curves is impressive.
It is quietly tucked away in the glorious Cornish countryside with wonderful views in all directions.
What is there to see at Restormel Castle?
Above. Standing in the outer ward or bailey, looking at the shell keep which enclosed an inner ward. In the outer ward, there would have been several buildings surrounded by a wooden curtain wall and ditch. These buildings would have included a Great Hall and its kitchen as well as a chapel, some stables and chambers for the various servants etc.
Above. The Gatehouse. To cross the ditch a drawbridge would be lowered. The arrow marks a hole where the pivot of the drawbridge would slot into place. The mechanism to raise and lower the drawbridge would have been housed in the room above the arch.
Looking from just inside the gatehouse, to the exterior, where an outer ward or bailey would have been.
Above. Looking back on the rooms to the left of the entrance.
Above. The kitchen to feed the Earl and guests. 1=the servers hatch. 2=The doorway to the server 3=The cooking hearth.
How much meat do you think was cooked here in the kitchen for the Earl and his guests? It is very large and would have had a spit for roasting large joints of meat such as boar that had been hunted in the nearby woods.
Above. This was taken from above the Great Hall. The Earl and his guests would feast in this important room.
Above. The chapel dedicated to St Mary. There was a chapel in the outer ward for the household but this was the smaller chapel for the Earl and his family plus guests and his inner household ie top officials.
Above. Looking into the chapel you can see where a window composing of three sections has been removed and the holes walled in.
Above. The square building on the left, projecting from the shell keep is the chapel.
Above. A feature of the chapel known as the “Piscina”. This is where all of the vessels used in the Mass, eg a chalice for the wine etc, would be washed.
The wardrobe only had one door that opened to the staircase for security because this was where the Earl’s possessions, often in large lockable chests, were kept. The Great Chamber, as its name suggests, is where the Earl would sleep.
Above. Classic castle features, crenels and merlons. Archers can hide behind the merlons and pop out and shoot arrows via the crenels.
Above. Looking from the wall walk near the gatehouse, across the outer ward or bailey. Originally, this would have been full of buildings and have a wooden curtain wall and a ditch surrounding it. The building in the photo is the toilet block and it was underneath this that a large buttressed wall was discovered by archaeologists in 2008. The size of it suggests it was part of the Great Hall. The outer ward fell into disuse long before the shell keep, so that by 1584, the only thing left to see was a large bread oven 14.3 metres (14 feet) in diameter.
Above On the outside of the shell keep are numerous holes. The lower ones are putlog holes that were created to hold the scaffolding to the wall whilst it was being built. The highest ones, just below the merlons, are where timber fighting platforms or brattice work were hanging from the wall temporarily.
Below you can see a couple of photos of Carcassonne castle with brattice work.
Above. You can see how steep the motte is from this photo. Imagine being ordered to attack the castle and having to charge down into the ditch/moat and then up the steep motte, whilst being fired at and having things being thrown at you.
What key events took place at Restormel Castle?
The castle we see today was probably the second castle on this site, with the first being built in the 1140s, during a period known as the “Great Anarchy”. Henry I (Aug 1100-Dec 1135) lost his son, his only legitimate male heir, William, in a shipping accident and so Henry planned for his daughter, Matilda (or Maud) to succeed him. His nephew, Stephen of Blois, had other ideas and this resulted in him challenging Matilda to the throne and succeeding. He became King Stephen I (Dec 1135-Oct 1154) but Matilda decided to fight for her claim and a civil war broke out known as “The Great Anarchy”. A settlement finally occured twenty years later with Matilda’s son , Henry II being made Stephen’s heir. At the time when the country was continuously at war, the monarch was obviously not very strong and therefore noblemen decided to build their own castles without royal permission. It is thought that the first castle at Restormel was constructed during this period of lawlessness. The square pit or hole for one of the square towers of the original castle is arrowed below. When Henry II came to the throne he ordered that these illegal castles should be demolished.
The construction of Restormel Castle
In 1268, Restormel Castle and the nearby town of Lostwithiel were granted to Henry III’s brother, Richard Earl of Cornwall. This added to his collection along with Tintagel Castle and Launceston Castle. He died in 1272 and most of the castle that we see today was built by his son, Edmund, Earl of Cornwall in the 1270s or 1280s. At the same time, Launceston and its Castle lost some of their importance and status, with Lostwithiel becoming his new capital. As the tin mining industry was now highly valuable and linked to this area, it made sense for Edmund to move to Restormel with Lostwithiel nearby. A further incentive to Edmund was the deer park adjacent to the castle. In addition to this, he supported a local hermit and on the hermit’s death, he financed two more hermits, probably with an eye to keeping in “God’s good books”. The Normans believed that Hermits and monks prayed so often that, for a small amount of money, their names would be added to a list that would be included in the prayers for their souls to get to heaven. The more prayers, the greater chance of getting to heaven. In this same tradition, the prospect of spending eternity in Hell was seen as so awful and that it was worth paying for such a good afterlife in Heaven.
Restormel Castle and Piers Gaveston
The next we hear of Restormel is when it was given to Edward II’s highly unpopular favourite, Piers Gaveston along with the title, Earl of Cornwall. He was so unpopular, that a group of barons successfully plotted against him and he was executed in 1312. Sadly, from this point, Restormel castle was left to decay.
Restormel castle and the Black Prince.
In March 1337, the Black Prince aged only six and heir to the throne, was made the Duke of Cornwall by Edward III and thereby the owner of the area of land known as the “Duchy of Cornwall”. He became a very wealthy child through the tin industry and lands of the estates that he now controlled. Even today, the “Duchy of Cornwall” is always run by the heir to the throne and generates a considerable income for, at the moment of writing, Prince Charles. Restormel Castle is still owned by the Duchy but English Heritage manage it.
Although he was the owner, all the other commitments of The Black Prince including fighting in France meant that he is thought to have visited Restormel Castle twice. Even when he was away fighting the French, he still took an interest in the upkeep of the castle and temporarily its decline was reversed. In 1360, he ordered fighting platforms or brattice work to be repaired and reinstalled. In earlier photos I have pointed out holes high up in the external wall where wooden posts would have slotted to hold the platforms. I have also added some photos of Carcassonne Castle’s fighting platforms of brattice work to give you some idea of what they looked like. The Black Prince died in 1376 and once again decline set in under the ownership of the crown. Occasionally, repairs were attempted but the long term story of Restormel was decline. By the time of the Tudors, the castle was used for imprisoning petty criminals and for storage.
Restormel and the English Civil war
In June 1644 when most of Cornwall was overwhelmingly on the side of the King, Restormel Castle was occupied by Parliamentarians but after a few weeks, the Royalist army turned up and the occupiers quickly surrendered probably without a shot being fired! Unlike some other castles in England that were seen as future fortresses for the enemies of the victorious parliamentarians, Restormel Castle was seen as too ruinous to bother with blowing it up.
Essential information
Getting there.
By car; Located 1 1⁄2 miles N of Lostwithiel, off A390. Get to Lostwithiel first before using this post code for your SAT NAV PL22 0EE. Post codes in Cornwall are notorious with buildings being a mile from each other having the same post code. It is easy to get lost and go down the wrong and somewhat narrow road. I got lost twice in trying to find Restormel! My advice is to there there early and preferably a week day for parking. The free on site car park has 25 spaces, and is roughly 70 metres from the site entrance. There are two coach spaces in the on site car park. Free parking is available in Lostwithiel, although it is over a mile away from the castle and at the top of a hill (a walk which some visitors may find tiring).
By bus;
Travel Cornwall 423 or 482 (Wed only); Roselyn 296 (Tue only); Gorran & District Community Bus G4 to Lostwithiel then 11⁄2 mile walk.
By train;
Lostwithiel 1 1⁄2 miles.
Tickets;
You don’t need to book your visit in advance, but you will always get the best price and guaranteed entry by booking online ahead of your visit. The prices shown here include a discount. The admission price will be higher if you choose to pay on the day you visit. You can book your advance ticket online up to 8.45am on the day you want to visit. Your booking is for the site/event only and does not guarantee a car parking space, which may carry an additional charge.
You can arrive anytime from the time slot you book, and stay as long as you like. If you are a Member and wish to book, your ticket will still be free. Please remember to bring your English Heritage membership card with you. Members are able to book tickets for those included in the membership only. Any additional bookings made will be chargeable on site. Some of our sites can get very busy, especially on Bank Holidays. Our busiest times are between 11am and 2pm, so if you prefer to visit at a quieter time you may wish to visit outside of these hours. Please remember to bring your booking confirmation with you when you visit.
For current ticket prices click here (English heritage website)
Opening times;
Restormel is closed for the winter season and so look on the English heritage website for Restormel’s opening details.
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