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Dudley Castle is a
ruined Ruins () are the remains of a civilization's architecture. The term refers to formerly intact structures that have fallen into a state of partial or total disrepair over time due to a variety of factors, such as lack of maintenance, deliberate ...
fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...
in the town of
Dudley Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...
, West Midlands, England. Originally a wooden motte and bailey castle built soon after the Norman Conquest, it was rebuilt as a stone fortification during the twelfth century but subsequently demolished on the orders of King Henry II. Rebuilding of the castle took place from the second half of the thirteenth century and culminated in the construction of a range of buildings within the fortifications by
John Dudley John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland (1504Loades 2008 – 22 August 1553) was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady Ja ...
. The fortifications were
slighted Slighting is the deliberate damage of high-status buildings to reduce their value as military, administrative or social structures. This destruction of property sometimes extended to the contents of buildings and the surrounding landscape. It is ...
by order of Parliament during the English Civil War and the residential buildings destroyed by fire in 1750. In the nineteenth and early twentieth century the site was used for fêtes and pageants. Today
Dudley Zoo Dudley Zoological Gardens is a zoo located within the grounds of Dudley Castle in the town of Dudley, in the Black Country region of the West Midlands, England. The Zoo opened to the public on 18 May 1937. It contains 12 modernist animal encl ...
is located on its grounds. Its location, Castle Hill, is an outcrop of Wenlock Group
limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms when ...
that was extensively quarried during the
Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
and which now, along with Wren's Nest Hill, is a scheduled monument of the best surviving remains of the limestone industry in Dudley. It is also a Grade I
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
. Localised structural problems lead to it being placed on Historic England's Heritage at Risk register in 2020. The
Dudley Tunnel Dudley Tunnel is a canal tunnel on the Dudley Canal Line No 1, England. At about long, it is now the second longest canal tunnel on the UK canal network today. (Standedge Tunnel is the longest, at , and the Higham and Strood tunnel is now ...
runs beneath Castle Hill, but not the castle itself.


History


Medieval

The antiquarian
William Camden William Camden (2 May 1551 – 9 November 1623) was an English antiquarian, historian, topographer, and herald, best known as author of ''Britannia'', the first chorographical survey of the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, and the ''Annal ...
claimed a castle was constructed at Dudley about the year 700 by a
Mercia la, Merciorum regnum , conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia , common_name=Mercia , status=Kingdom , status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879)Client state of Wessex () , life_span=527–918 , era=Heptarchy , event_start= , date_start= , ye ...
n duke named Dodo or Doddo and some subsequent histories and articles repeated this claim. However, this assertion is not taken seriously by today's historians, who usually date the castle from soon after the Norman Conquest of 1066. It is thought one of the Conqueror's followers,
Ansculf de Picquigny Ansculf de Picquigny (c. 1014 – c. 1084) was a French baron who followed William the Conqueror to England. Biography Ansculf de Picquigny, born around 1014, was the son of Guermond de Picquigny, Picquigny being a village near Amiens in Picard ...
, built the first castle in 1070. The
Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
records that Ansculf's son,
William Fitz-Ansculf William Fitz-Ansculf was a Norman-French landowner who succeeded his father, Ansculf de Picquigny. Birth and early life William's date of birth is not known, though it was likely in Picquigny, Picardy, now in the Somme department, France, in ...
, was in possession of the castle when it was recorded at the time of the survey of 1086. The first line of the Domesday entry for Dudley translates as: "the said William held Dudley; and there is his castle". Some of the earthworks from this castle, notably the "motte", the vast mound on which the present castle
keep A keep (from the Middle English ''kype'') is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word ''keep'', but usually consider it to refer to large towers in c ...
now sits, still remain. However the earliest castle would have been of wooden construction and no longer exists. After Fitz-Ansculf, the castle came into the possession of the Paganel family, who built the first stone castle on the site. This castle was strong enough to withstand a siege in 1138 by the forces of King Stephen. However, after Gervase Paganel joined a failed rebellion against King Henry II in 1173 the castle was demolished (
slighted Slighting is the deliberate damage of high-status buildings to reduce their value as military, administrative or social structures. This destruction of property sometimes extended to the contents of buildings and the surrounding landscape. It is ...
) by order of the king. According to historian
Sidney Painter Sidney Painter (September 23, 1902 – January 12, 1960) was an American medievalist and historian. He was a fellow of the Mediaeval Academy and professor of history and chairman of the department of history at Johns Hopkins University. Painter ...
, it was one of at least 21 castles demolished on Henry II's instructions. The Somery's were the next dynasty to own the site when
Ralph de Somery I Ralph de Somery I inherited the barony of Dudley on the death of his uncle, Gervase Paganell, in 1194 although he did not get full ownership of the lands until the death of his mother in 1208. Ralph swapped land that he owned at Wolverhampton with K ...
succeeded his uncle, Gervase Paganel in 1194.
Roger de Somery II Roger de Somery inherited the feudal barony of Dudley in 1235. In 1262, Roger started the re-fortification of Dudley Castle, which had been slighted by order of King Henry II after a rebellion in 1173-1174. Roger married twice and died in 1272. ...
set about rebuilding the castle in 1262. The castle was far from complete on the death of Roger de Somery II in 1272 and construction carried on from this time into the 14th century by Roger's heirs. The keep (the most obvious part of the castle when viewed from the town) and the main gate date from this re-building. The last of the male line of Somery, John Somery, died in 1321. It is thought that the fortifications were complete by this date. The castle and estates passed to John Somery's sister Margaret and her husband John de Sutton. Subsequently, members of this family often used Dudley as a surname. John and Margaret were only in possession of the castle for a few years before the property was seized by the younger Hugh Despenser, a favourite of King Edward II. Despenser owned the castle from 1325-1326, being dispossessed when the king fell from power. The castle was returned to John and Margaret in 1327. It was probably during the time of John and Margaret's son and successor John Sutton II that a chapel and great chamber were added within the castle walls. Following the death of John Sutton II, the castle passed to his wife, Isabel, daughter of John de Cherleton who held it until her death in 1397.


Early modern

In 1532 another John Sutton inherited the castle but after having money problems was ousted by a relative,
John Dudley John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland (1504Loades 2008 – 22 August 1553) was an English general, admiral, and politician, who led the government of the young King Edward VI from 1550 until 1553, and unsuccessfully tried to install Lady Ja ...
, later Duke of Northumberland, in 1537. John Dudley was the great-grandson of John Sutton, 1st Baron Dudley and had risen to prominence during the reign of King Henry VIII. Starting around 1540, a range of new buildings were erected within the older castle walls by him. The architect was
William Sharington Sir William Sharington (born in around 1495, died before 6 July 1553) was an English courtier of the time of Henry VIII, master and embezzler of the Bristol Mint, member of parliament, conspirator, and High Sheriff of Wiltshire. Early life ...
and the buildings are thus usually referred to as Sharington Range. According to Historic England, the Sharrington Range represents "one of the earliest known examples of the influence of the Italian Renaissance on the secular architecture of the West Midlands." John Dudley was executed in 1553 for his attempt to set
Lady Jane Grey Lady Jane Grey ( 1537 – 12 February 1554), later known as Lady Jane Dudley (after her marriage) and as the "Nine Days' Queen", was an English noblewoman who claimed the throne of England and Ireland from 10 July until 19 July 1553. Jane was ...
on the throne of England. The castle was returned to the Sutton family by Queen Mary, ownership being given to Edward Sutton. The castle was visited by Queen Elizabeth I in August 1575 and was considered as a possible place of imprisonment for
Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scot ...
. However, the Sutton family were not destined to hold the castle for much longer and Edward Sutton's son, Edward Sutton III was the last of the male line to possess the property. In 1592, this Edward sent men to raid the property of Gilbert Lyttelton, carrying away cattle which were impounded in the Castle grounds. Financial difficulties continued to mount, however, until Edward Sutton III solved the problem by marrying his granddaughter and heir, Frances Sutton, to Humble Ward, the son of a wealthy merchant.


Civil War

During the
First English Civil War The First English Civil War took place in England and Wales from 1642 to 1646, and forms part of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. They include the Bishops' Wars, the Irish Confederate Wars, the Second English Civil War, the Angl ...
the castle was held by a Royalist garrison commanded by Colonel Thomas Leveson, a local Catholic who was later one of only 25 former Royalists listed by Parliament in 1651 as subject to 'perpetual banishment and confiscation.'. It was besieged by Parliamentary forces in 1644 and finally surrendered to forces led by Sir William Brereton on 13 May 1646. The castle was partly demolished to prevent it being used again and the present ruined appearance of the keep results from this decision. However some habitable buildings remained and were subsequently used occasionally by the Earls of Dudley although by this time they preferred to reside at Himley Hall, approximately four miles away, when in the Midlands.


Final years and ruin

A stable block was constructed on the site at some point before 1700. This was the final building to be constructed in the castle. The bulk of the remaining habitable parts of the castle was destroyed by fire in 1750. However, in the nineteenth century, the site found a new use as a 'Romantic Ruin' and a certain amount of tidying up of the site was carried out by the Earls of Dudley. Battlements on one of the remaining towers were reconstructed and two cannon captured during the
Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...
s were installed. In the nineteenth and early twentieth century the site was used for fêtes and pageants. In 1937, when the Dudley Zoo was established, the castle grounds were incorporated into the zoo.


Location

The castle is located on a hill at one end of Dudley Town centre with the entrance (shared with Dudley Zoo) to the grounds off Castle Hill (the A459). The hill is an outcrop of
limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms when ...
that was extensively quarried during the
Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
. Despite being situated on the edge of Dudley town centre, historically the castle was situated within the borders of
Sedgley Sedgley is a town in the north of the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, in the West Midlands, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, Sedgley is on the A459 road between Wolverhampton and Dudley, and was formerly the seat of an ancie ...
– which was part of neighbouring
Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked Counties of England, county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwicks ...
rather than
Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see ...
as shown by the maps of
Christopher Saxton Christopher Saxton (c. 1540 – c. 1610) was an English cartographer who produced the first county maps of England and Wales. Life and family Saxton was probably born in Sowood, Ossett in the parish of Dewsbury, in the West Riding of Yorkshire ...
drawn in 1579 and
John Speed John Speed (1551 or 1552 – 28 July 1629) was an English cartographer, chronologer and historian of Cheshire origins.S. Bendall, 'Speed, John (1551/2–1629), historian and cartographer', ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (OUP 2004/2 ...
in 1610. The borders were changed to include the castle and its grounds within the Dudley borough only in 1926, when restructuring of the boundaries took place to allow the development of the
Priory Estate The Priory Estate is a housing estate in Dudley, West Midlands, England, which has largely been developed since 1929. History The Priory Estate is so named because it is located near the Priory ruins and Priory Park. It stands on the land wh ...
.


The castle remains


Motte and bailey

The motte is the oldest remaining structure at the castle site. It originally had a moat at its foot which could have been wet or dry. The motte has a core of limestone rubble encased in clay. It stands around 9 metres high. The oval-shaped bailey, which measures 100 metres north to south and 80 metres east to west is surrounded by a dry moat. In the medieval period, there were probably buildings in an outer court beyond the bailey moat.


The keep

The castle keep dates from the rebuilding that started in 1262. It rests on the motte, constructed in the Norman period but somewhat reduced in height afterwards. The original building was slightly rectangular in plan with approximate dimensions 15 metres north to south and 22 metres east to west. The four drum towers on each corner are 9.8 metres in diameter. After the slighting at the end of the civil war, only the north side of the castle and parts of two of the drum towers remain.


Main gatehouse

A little to the east of the keep is the main gatehouse. Like the keep, it was subject to slighting at the end of the Civil War. Some elements of the Paganell's Norman castle remain in the structure but it mainly dates from the rebuilding carried out after 1262 by the de Somery family. A double gateway with two portcullises was constructed at this time. Under the Suttons, a barbican was added to the outside of the gatehouse so that the whole structure is sometimes called the 'Triple Gate'. Originally the gatehouse was connected to the keep by a thick curtain wall. When built, the gatehouse had three floors with the machinery for operating the portcullises on the first floor and a guard room on the second floor. Above the guard room were the battlements.


Great chamber and chapel block

Probably constructed during the time of John Sutton II but re-modelled in the Tudor era when the Sharington Range was built for John Dudley. The block was in ruins before the fire of 1750.


Sharington range

Constructed for John Dudley, starting around 1540, the three-storey range included a great hall, kitchen, servery, buttery, cellars and bedrooms. A small amount of masonry dating from the early Paganell castle is evident in the ruins. The range was destroyed by the fire of 1750.


Stable block

Once thought to be lodgings, the stable block was one of the last buildings constructed at the castle site, dating from before 1700. The block is situated between the Main Gate and the base of the motte.


Elizabethan gatehouse and east watch tower

In front of the main gate but further down the hill is a gatehouse dating from the Elizabethan era. A wall runs to the east of this gate to a round tower, built at the same time, known as the watch tower.


Cannon

Two Russian cannon brought back as trophies from the
Crimean War The Crimean War, , was fought from October 1853 to February 1856 between Russia and an ultimately victorious alliance of the Ottoman Empire, France, the United Kingdom and Piedmont-Sardinia. Geopolitical causes of the war included the ...
are installed in prominent positions on the remains of the two south-facing drum towers. The cannon were brought to the castle in June 1857 during one of the Dudley Castle Fêtes.


Visitor centre

The castle visitor centre was opened by
Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during h ...
in June 1994, and amongst other exhibits housed a computer generated reconstruction of the castle as it was in 1550, displayed through hardware that demonstrated the first use of the
virtual tour A virtual tour is a simulation of an existing location, usually composed of a sequence of videos, still images or 360-degree images. It may also use other multimedia elements such as sound effects, music, narration, text and floor map. It is dis ...
concept, prior to its widespread adoption as a Web-based browser utility. More details of how Her Majesty became the first Royal to experience a virtual worl
here


List of lords of Dudley Castle

Dudley Castle was the capital of the feudal barony of Dudley, with several lords over its history: *
Ansculf de Picquigny Ansculf de Picquigny (c. 1014 – c. 1084) was a French baron who followed William the Conqueror to England. Biography Ansculf de Picquigny, born around 1014, was the son of Guermond de Picquigny, Picquigny being a village near Amiens in Picard ...
, a Norman who took part on the Battle of Hastings *
William Fitz-Ansculf William Fitz-Ansculf was a Norman-French landowner who succeeded his father, Ansculf de Picquigny. Birth and early life William's date of birth is not known, though it was likely in Picquigny, Picardy, now in the Somme department, France, in ...
, his son * Fulke Paganell (fl.1100-30) * Ralph Paganell (fl.1130s-1150s), his son *
Gervase Paganell Gervase Paganell inherited the feudal barony of Dudley (which included Dudley Castle) around the year 1150. However, after rebelling against King Henry II, his castle was demolished. Gervase founded the Cluniac Priory of St James in Dudley and prob ...
(d.1194), his son *
Ralph de Somery I Ralph de Somery I inherited the barony of Dudley on the death of his uncle, Gervase Paganell, in 1194 although he did not get full ownership of the lands until the death of his mother in 1208. Ralph swapped land that he owned at Wolverhampton with K ...
(d.1210), son of John de Somery and Hawyse sister and heir of Gervase Paganell * Ralph de Somery II (c.1193-1216), eldest son of Ralph I * William Percival de Somery (d.1222), his brother * Nicholas de Somery (d.1229), still a minor * Roger de Somery I (d.1225), 3rd son of Ralph I *
Roger de Somery II Roger de Somery inherited the feudal barony of Dudley in 1235. In 1262, Roger started the re-fortification of Dudley Castle, which had been slighted by order of King Henry II after a rebellion in 1173-1174. Roger married twice and died in 1272. ...
(d.1272), his son * Roger de Somery III (c.1254-1291), his son ** Agnes de Somery (d.1309), his widow and guardian of her son * John de Somery (1280-1322), their son On his death the lands of the barony were divided between his two sisters. Weoley Castle went to Joan de Botetourt and her husband John de Botetourt. Dudley Castle passed to her elder sister Margaret, who had married John de Sutton I. John de Sutton II was summoned to Parliament, but none of his successors were until John de Sutton VI * John de Sutton I (d.1327) in the right of Margaret * John de Sutton II (d.1360), their son ** Isabel Cherleton de Sutton (d.1397), his widow held Dudley jointly with her son * John de Sutton III (d.1369), her son - outlived by his mother * John de Sutton IV (1360-1391), his son - outlived by his grandmother * John de Sutton V (1380-1406), his son **Constance de Sutton (d.1422), his widow * John Sutton, 1st Baron Dudley 1400-87, their son For the evolution of the castle and estate until 1740 see
Baron Dudley Baron Dudley is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created circa 1440 for John Sutton, a soldier who served as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. The title descended in the Sutton family until the 17th century when Frances Sutton, the heir appar ...
and from the late 17th century until the 20th century as Baron Ward John de Sutton I


See also

*
Castles in Great Britain and Ireland Castles have played an important military, economic and social role in Great Britain and Ireland since their introduction following the Norman invasion of England in 1066. Although a small number of castles had been built in England in the 1050 ...
*
List of castles in England This list of castles in England is not a list of every building and site that has "castle" as part of its name, nor does it list only buildings that conform to a strict definition of a castle as a medieval fortified residence. It is not a li ...
*
Wren's Nest The Wren's Nest is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in the Dudley Metropolitan Borough, north west of the town centre of Dudley, in the West Midlands of England. It is one of the most important geological locations in Britain ...


References


External links

* *
The Friends of Dudley Castle
{{coord, 52.5142, -2.0800, region:GB_type:landmark_scale:10000, display=title Grade I listed buildings in the West Midlands (county) Buildings and structures in Dudley Ruins in the West Midlands (county) Tourist attractions in the West Midlands (county) Ward family Ruined castles in England Grade I listed ruins Grade I listed castles Castles in the West Midlands (county) Motte-and-bailey castles Structures on the Heritage at Risk register