Launceston Castle (Cornwall)

Set on a large natural mound, 13th century Launceston Castle dominates the surrounding landscape.

Summary 13th century buildings (or older) 14th century buildings No smoking Gift shop Information provided Public car parking for a charge (nearby)

Food and Drinks Picnic area

Introduction

Set on a large natural mound, Launceston Castle dominates the surrounding landscape. Begun soon after the Norman Conquest, its focus is an unusual keep consisting of a 13th-century round tower built by Richard, Earl of Cornwall, inside an earlier circular shell-keep. The tower top is now reached via a dark internal staircase.

The castle long remained a prison and George Fox, founder of the Quakers, suffered harsh confinement here in 1656. A display traces 1,000 years of history, with finds from site excavations.

History to the present day

Launceston Castle dominates the surrounding landscape from its position on top of a large, natural mound. A castle was the status symbol of wealth and power in the Middle Ages. It was originally known as Dunheved and was an impressive and strategically important building, controlling entry by river in and out of Cornwall. The castle was started as an earthwork castle soon after the Norman conquest. Situated high up on a grassy mound it overlooked a nearby settlement of St Stephens.

Its prime location enabled it to become the administrative headquarters for the great Earls of Cornwall from which they could control their vast Cornish estates. Little change was made to the caslte apart from an inner keep added in the 12th century.

Richard, Earl of Cornwall, a younger brother of Henry III began a transformation of the castle, during the 13th century, rebuilding the edifice in stone. One of the wealthiest and most powerful men in England during the 13th century, he improved the defences by building a curtain wall skirting the original mound and he also rebuilt the gatehouses adding the fashionable drum towers. He also reconstructed the central free-standing tower within the existing twelfth century keep, which improved the accommodation at the castle and gave the occupiers the advantage of a higher fighting platform for defence. Eventually the space between the tower and the 12th century keep was covered over, creating a series of concentric platforms to aid in the defence of the tower.

The tower was constructed from a darker stone than the rest of the castle, containing two large rooms. The upper apartment featured a large window with window-seats and a sizeable and impressive fireplace. A new Great Hall was constructed within the walls of the 12th century Bailey and this hall remained in use until the early 1600s as an Assize Hall. The town of Launceston developed around the castle as the only example of a walled town in Cornwall. However, the strategic importance of both the town and the castle declined from the late 13th century as Cornwall's administrative centre was moved from Launceston to the Duchy Palace at Lostwithiel.

The castle continued holding the local Assizes and the jail, but the buildings largely fell into disrepair. The castle also continued to be used as a prison, housing George Fox, the founder of the Quakers for eight months in 1656. By the time of the Civil War, when the Parlimentarian army seized the castle from the Royalists, the castles walls and defences were in such a poor state of repair that the army did not see fit to cause any further damage to the already dilapidated castle.

Arrival information and how to find us

Address: Launceston Castle, Cornwall, , United Kingdom

Opening times: 2011

1 Apr-30 Jun 10am-5pm daily

1 Jul-31 Aug 10am-6pm daily

1-30 Sep 10am-5pm daily

1-31 Oct 10am-4pm daily

Closed 1 Nov-31 Mar

Admission prices: 2011

Adult:£3.40

Children:£2.00 (5-15 years)

Concession:£3.10

Photographs copyright of English Heritage Photographic Library