Beverston Castle south tower of western range

Beverston Castle, also known as Beverstone Castle, was originally constructed as a medieval stone fortress and is situated in the village of Beverston, Gloucestershire, England. The castle was founded in AD 1229 by Maurice de Gaunt. Much of the castle is presently in the state of ruin as of 2006, but a portion of the structure is occupied, and an expansive handsome garden is part of the estate. The castle is situated in the centre of Beverston village, approximately 200 meters north (and out of sight) of the A4135 highway transecting Beverston. The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times. ... Fortifications (Latin fortis, strong, and facere, to make) are military constructions designed for defensive warfare. ... Gloucestershire (pronounced ; GLOSS-ter-sher) is a county in South West England. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister Tony Blair MP Unification    - by Athelstan AD927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi   - Water (%) Population... A castle (from the Latin castellum) is a structure that is fortified for defence against an enemy and generally serves as a military headquarters dominating the surrounding countryside[1]. The term is most often applied to a small self-contained fortress, usually of the Middle Ages. ... 2006 is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Beverston is a village and civil parish in the Cotswold district of Gloucestershire, England. ...

The original castle design was in an approximately pentagonal form; later in the early 14th century, a small quadrangular stronghold was added along with a twin towered gatehouse. Beverston Castle is situated approximately three kilometres west of the town of Tetbury and about two kilometers east of the medieval abbey annex, Calcot Manor. The castle is situated in the Cotswolds, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), which is an area of countryside with significant landscape value in England, Wales or Northern Ireland, that has been specially designated by the Countryside Agency on behalf of the United Kingdom government. A gatehouse is a feature of European castles and mansions. ... The centre of Tetbury Location within the British Isles Tetbury is a town and civil parish located in Cotswold (district), Gloucestershire, England. ... An abbey (from the Latin abbatia, which is derived from the Syriac abba, father), is a Christian monastery or convent, under the government of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serve as the spiritual father or mother of the community. ... The Cotswolds is the name given to a range of hills in central England, sometimes called the Heart of England, a hilly area reaching over 300 m or 1000 feet. ... Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) is a United Kingdom. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital London Largest city London Official language(s) English Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister Tony Blair MP Unification    - by Athelstan AD927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi   - Water (%) Population... Motto: (Welsh for Wales for ever) Anthem: Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau Capital Cardiff Largest city Cardiff Official language(s) English, Welsh Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister Tony Blair MP  - First Minister Rhodri Morgan AM Unification    - by Gruffudd ap Llywelyn 1056  Area    - Total 20,779 km² (3rd... Motto: (French for God and my right)2 Anthem: UK: God Save the Queen Regional: (De facto) Londonderry Air Capital Belfast Largest city Belfast Official language(s) English (De facto), Irish, Ulster Scots 3 Government Constitutional monarchy  - Queen Queen Elizabeth II  - Prime Minister Tony Blair MP  - First Minister Office suspended... The Countryside Agency in England is a statutory body with the task of improving the quality of the rural environment and the lives of those living in it. ... The agencies responsible for the government of the United Kingdom consist of a number of ministerial departments (usually headed by a Secretary of State) and non-ministerial departments headed by senior civil servants. ...

History

Beverston Castle gatehouse viewed from the inside

Early Roman remains have been found in the near vicinity at Calcot Manor, indicating habitation of this area as early as 400 AD^[1], although it is likely that earlier Iron Age peoples would have also been in this locale. Historically in medieval times the site is known as Beverstone, but in the earlier Middle Ages it was called Beverstane. Another early label for this site was Bureston, derived from the large number of blue stones found here^[2]. Roman or Romans may refer to: History Ancient Rome (9th century BC – 5th century AD) Roman Kingdom (753 BC to 509 BC) Roman Republic (509 BC to 44 BC) Roman Empire (44 BC to AD 476) Roman citizen Byzantine Empire (330 to 1453), also known as the Eastern Roman Empire... Iron Age Axe found on Gotland This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age, for the mythological Iron Age see Iron Age (mythology). ... The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ...

The site itself is known to have been the location of an important circa 1140 AD battle between the opposing English armies of King Stephen and Empress Matilda[1]. Apparently Maurice de Gaunt constructed the original castle somewhat prior to 1229 AD without a royal licence, but was granted a licence for the purpose of adding crenellation. This early castle was fortified by a T-shaped ditch, part of which is still intact in the appearance of a partial moat on the south side of the castle. In the early 14th century, Thomas, Lord Berkeley, the rich (1293–1361), modified Beverston Castle, erecting a small quadrangular stronghold, with a twin-towered gatehouse. A smaller square tower was added in the late 15th century. Stephen (1096 - October 25, 1154), the last Norman King of England, reigned from 1135 to 1154, when he was succeeded by his cousin (or, as the gossip of the time had it, his natural son) Henry II, the first of the Angevin or Plantagenet Kings. ... Empress Matilda (February, 1101 – September 10, 1167) (Saxon form Maud or Maude) – was the daughter and dispossessed heir of King Henry I of England. ... Events February 18 - The Sixth Crusade: Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor signs a ten-year truce with al-Kamil, regaining Jerusalem, Nazareth, and Bethlehem with neither military engagements nor support from the papacy. ... Crenellation (or crenelation) is the name for the distinctive pattern that framed the tops of the walls of many medieval castles, often called battlements. ... The moated manor house of Baddesley Clinton in Warwickshire, England Moats (also known as a Fosse) were deep and wide water-filled trenches, excavated to provide a barrier against attack upon castle ramparts or other fortifications. ... A stronghold is a strongly fortified defensive structure. ... A gatehouse is a feature of European castles and mansions. ...

In the 16th century, it is known that Sir Michael Hicks (son of from London and Julia Arthur) owned Beverston Castle and passed the Beverston holding to his son Sir William Hicks, 1st Bart of Beverston. The estate remained in the Hicks family through at least the early 19th century. From military outfall of the Civil War (mid-seventeenth century), much of Beverston Castle was destroyed^[3]. Roundhead forces attacked the castle twice during the Civil War, but the greatest blow may have been an order from Parliament to dismantle its defensive works. The western and southern ranges along with the gatehouse with one of its original D-shaped towers have survived.

Architecture

The massive extant west range of Beverston Castle (ST862-940) is flanked on its angles with square towers, and it contains a solar above a vaulted undercroft. The pentagon shaped masonry castle has two surviving, albeit ruined, round towers from the original 13th century construction of de Gaunt. The dressed bluish limestone appears to be of the same quarry source as nearby Calcot Manor. The two storey gatehouse, with one extant D-shaped tower, was added by Lord Berkeley in the 1350–1360 era. The gatehouse arch, totally intact as of 2006, would have originally been protected by an immense portcullis. Above the archway was a sizable first floor (second story in American vernacular) chamber. The ruined northwest square tower dates to the 14th century (Lord Berkeley's work) further modified in the late 15th century. An undercroft is a cellar or underground room, often brick-lined and vaulted, and used for storage in buildings since medieval times. ... Masonry is the building of structures from individual units laid in and bound together by mortar. ... Limey shale overlaid by limestone. ... A small cinder quarry A dimension stone quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. ... Isometric view of a typical arch An arch is a curved structure capable of spanning a space while supporting significant weight (e. ... A portcullis in Edinburgh Castle A portcullis is a grille or gate made of wood, metal or a combination of the two. ... Politics—see Chambers of parliament Firearms—see Chamber (weaponry) Heart chamber Combustion chamber Marvel Comics —see Chamber (comics) The Chamber was a short-lived game show on FOX. The Chamber is a suspense novel by John Grisham. ...

The southern domestic range, occupied as of 2006, was built by the Hicks family in the early 17th century, reflecting an age of growing security for large manor houses. This range was originally occupied by a medieval great hall from either the de Gaunt or Berkeley era. In the year 1691 a fire damaged this southern range, which was restored soon thereafter. A great hall was the main room of a royal palace, a noblemans castle or a large manor house in the Middle Ages, and in the country houses of the 16th and early 17th centuries. ...

Garden at Beverston Castle looking south

Present aspect

As of the year 2006, Beverston Castle is in private ownership. Some good photographs can be acquired from the public road providing access to the castle. The ancient moat has been incorporated into the expansive and well cared for garden. The gardens are considered a good site for viewing wild orchids^[4]. The southern entrance to the castle is by way of a bridge over the vestigial moat. Vehicle access to the north side of the castle is through the ancient gatehouse arch. A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the display, cultivation, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. ... Orchid re-directs here; for alternate uses see Orchid (disambiguation) Genera Over 800 See List of Orchidaceae genera. ...

See also

• Calcot Manor
• Oliver Cromwell

Unfinished portrait miniature of Oliver Cromwell by Samuel Cooper, 1657. ...

References

External links

• Fortified Castles of Gloucestershire
• View of Tetbury area in the 18th century