Bollitree Castle is an historic site on the edge of the village of

Weston under Penyard Weston under Penyard is a small village in Herefordshire, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2021 Census was 1,000. It lies on the A40 road two miles east of Ross-on-Wye. The Penyard is a prominent hill. History The parish ch ...

, Herefordshire, England. The site consists of Bollitree Castle farmhouse, two barns, a

dovecote A dovecote or dovecot , doocot (Scots Language, Scots) or columbarium is a structure intended to house Domestic pigeon, pigeons or doves. Dovecotes may be free-standing structures in a variety of shapes, or built into the end of a house or b ...

, a gate, and a series of mock

castellated A battlement, in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at intervals t ...

curtain walls from which the site takes its name. Bollitree Castle Farmhouse is a

Grade II* listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

, one of the barns, which contains genuine

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

fragments, is listed at the highest grade, Grade I, while the other structures have their own Grade II listings.

History

There is architectural evidence of habitation at Bollitree Castle from

times. In the 15th century, the estate was owned by the Merryk family, of whom the most notable member was

Richard Amerike Richard ap Meryk (or ap Meurig), anglicised to Richard Amerike (or Ameryk) ( 1440–1503) was an English merchant, royal customs officer and later, sheriff of Bristol. Several claims have been made for Amerike by popular writers of the late twen ...

(c. 1440–1503), a Bristol-based merchant whose name has been suggested as the origin of

America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

although this is disputed. The castle farmhouse dates from c.1700. Later in the 18th century, the major transformation of the farmhouse and the wider site was undertaken. Local tradition suggests this was carried out by a Thomas Merrick, in pursuit of a Spanish woman whom he wanted to marry and who had indicated that she wished to live in a castle, but there is little documentary evidence for this.

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked with prot ...

records the sham castle fortifications, but posits no suggestion as to their builder's motivations. Bollitree is owned by

Richard Hammond Richard Mark Hammond (born 19 December 1969) is an English journalist, television presenter, and author. He co-hosted the BBC Two motoring programme ''Top Gear (2002 TV series), Top Gear'' from 2002 until 2015 with Jeremy Clarkson and James Ma ...

, the television presenter, who bought the castle in 2012. In 2023, redevelopment plans submitted by Hammond were turned down by Herefordshire County Council following objections from the Georgian Group.

Architecture and description

The main barn at Bollitree, with the bulk of the

curtain walls, contains some genuine

fragments, and is listed at

Grade I In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...

. The farmhouse, which forms the main residence on the site, is listed at Grade II*. Another ancillary agricultural building, a further barn, a

, and a gate in a garden wall are listed at Grade II.

Gallery

Bollitree castle - geograph.org.uk - 1684265.jpg, Mock castellated curtain walls and a fake moat Corner of Bollitree Castle - geograph.org.uk - 861860.jpg, Corner tower Bollitree 'Castle' - geograph.org.uk - 58365.jpg, Curtain wall

Notes

References

Sources

* {{Cite book , last1 = Brooks, first1 = Alan , last2 = Pevsner, first2 = Nikolaus , authorlink2 = Nikolaus Pevsner , series=The Buildings of England , title=Herefordshire , year=2012 , location=New Haven, US and London , publisher=

Yale University Press Yale University Press is the university press of Yale University. It was founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day and Clarence Day, grandsons of Benjamin Day, and became a department of Yale University in 1961, but it remains financially and ope ...

, isbn=978-0-300-12575-7 , oclc = 759174126 Grade I listed buildings in Herefordshire Grade II* listed buildings in Herefordshire Grade II listed buildings in Herefordshire Mock castles in England Grade II* listed houses Country houses in Herefordshire