Donnington Castle is a ruined medieval castle, situated in the small village of Donnington, just north of the town of Newbury in the English county of

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; abbreviated ), officially the Royal County of Berkshire, is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Oxfordshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the north-east, Greater London ...

. It was founded by Sir

Richard Abberbury the Elder Sir Richard Abberbury the Elder (1331–1399) was the Chamberlain to Anne of Bohemia, Queen to King Richard II of England. Family Richard was the son of Thomas Abberbury of Donnington, Berkshire, Donnington in Berkshire and Steeple Aston in Oxfo ...

in 1386 and was bought by Thomas Chaucer before the castle was taken under royal control during the

Tudor period In England and Wales, the Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603, including the Elizabethan era during the reign of Elizabeth I (1558–1603). The Tudor period coincides with the dynasty of the House of Tudor in England, which began with ...

. 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. An estimated 15% to 20% of adult males in England and Wales served in the military at some point b ...

the castle was held by the

royalist A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of gove ...

Sir John Boys and withstood an 18-month siege; after the garrison eventually surrendered, Parliament voted to

demolish Demolition (also known as razing and wrecking) is the science and engineering in safely and efficiently tearing down buildings and other artificial structures. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a building apa ...

Donnington Castle in 1646. Only the gatehouse survives. The site is a

scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage, visu ...

under the care of

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

History

The manor of Donnington had been owned by the Abberbury family since 1292, Donnington Castle was built by its original owner, Sir

, under a licence granted by Richard II in 1386. The surviving castle

gatehouse A gatehouse is a type of fortified gateway, an entry control point building, enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a town, religious house, castle, manor house, or other fortification building of importance. Gatehouses are typically the most ...

dates from this time. In 1398, the castle was sold to Thomas Chaucer, son of the poet

Geoffrey Chaucer Geoffrey Chaucer ( ; – 25 October 1400) was an English poet, author, and civil servant best known for ''The Canterbury Tales''. He has been called the "father of English literature", or, alternatively, the "father of English poetry". He w ...

, as a residence for his daughter

Alice Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

, who later became Duchess of Suffolk. The Duke of Suffolk William De La Pole made Donnington his occasional residence, and considerably enlarged the buildings. This family later fell out with the Tudor monarchs, and the castle became a royal property. In 1514 it was given to Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk. Though Brandon appears to have stayed at the Donnington Castle in 1516, by the time the castle and manor returned to the Crown in 1535 the structure was in a state of decay. King Henry VIII,

Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and King of Ireland, Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. The only surviving son of Henry VIII by his thi ...

, and Queen Elizabeth I visited Donnington Castle, in 1539, 1552, and 1568 respectively. In 1590 Elizabeth I granted keepership to Elizabeth Cooke (Lady Russell), the first woman to hold such a title in England. In 1600, Elizabeth I gave the castle and surrounding manor to Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham. Howard took possession in September 1603 and Russell disputed his rights. By the time the

English Civil War The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...

broke out in 1643, the castle was owned by the Parliamentarian John Packer family but after the First Battle of Newbury it was taken for the King, Charles I, and held by Sir John Boys. They quickly enhanced the castle's defences by adding earthworks in a star shape to provide gun emplacements. Parliamentarians laid siege to the castle in October 1644 and the garrison held out for 18 months. With permission from the king, Boys surrendered the castle in April 1646 and was allowed to leave with all his men. In 1646 Parliament voted to demolish the castle; only the gatehouse was left standing though the 17th-century earthworks can still be seen. The castle is now in the care of English Heritage and is a scheduled ancient monument number 1007926.

The castle stayed in the Packer family until the mid 18th century, when Robert Packer married Mary Winchcombe, and the property passed into th
Winchcombe family tree
From 1833 to 1881 the manor and castle was owned b

Layout

Donnington Castle was originally built in a roughly rectangular form, though the west facade projected outwards irregularly. It was enclosed by a curtain wall, with a round tower at each of the four corners. Roughly halfway along the two walls running from west to east were two square towers. The courtyard enclosed by the curtain walls would probably have contained a hall, kitchens, and accommodation for guests. Measured from the inner sides of the curtain walls, the courtyard measured north to south and east to west. During the Civil War star-shaped defences were built around the castle to facilitate gun emplacements. Only the gatehouse, crested by battlements, survived the castle's destruction in 1646; standing three storeys high, it measures internally. Modern walls standing high outline the original layout of the demolished castle. The star-shaped earthworks added during the Civil War are still visible, surviving to a height of .

Castle Occupants

Donnington Castle's close association with the English monarchy dates back to its construction under a license granted by Richard II to the Adderbury family. Although the castle changed hands several times, it eventually became the property of the royal family, and consequently, many notable figures closely linked to the English monarchy visited Donnington. Among the most prominent residents of Donnington were Sir Richard Abberbury the Elder, the original owner of the castle and Chamberlain to Anne of Bohemia; Alice Chaucer, Duchess of Suffolk; William de la Pole, 1st Duke of Suffolk; Charles Brandon, 1st Duke of Suffolk and 1st Viscount Lisle;

King Henry VIII Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is known for his six marriages and his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disagreement w ...

; King Edward VI;

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

; Elizabeth Cooke, Lady Russell; Charles Howard, 1st Earl of Nottingham; John Packer, Parliamentarian, and secretary to George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham; Sir John Boys, the Royalist Governor of Donnington Castle; and Robert Packer, a politician and Member of Parliament.

In Popular Culture

Donnington Castle appears in an episode of '' The Saint'' called 'Little Girl Lost', first broadcast on 2 December 1966. The castle appeared in the

Children's Film Foundation The Children's Film Foundation (CFF) is a non-profit organisation which makes films and other media for children in the United Kingdom. Originally it made films to be shown as part of children's Saturday morning matinée cinema programming. Th ...

feature ''A Hitch in Time'' (1978), starring

Patrick Troughton Patrick George Troughton (; 25 March 1920 – 28 March 1987) was an English actor. He became best known for his roles in television, most notably starring as the Second Doctor, second incarnation of The Doctor (Doctor Who), the Doctor in the lo ...

. The twin-towered gatehouse is depicted on the cover of the compilation album ''The Best of '' Tenpole Tudor'' : Swords of a Thousand Men'' (2001).

Gallery

File:Donnington castle by BYRNE, WILLIAM - GMII.jpg, Print by William Byrne, 1778 Image:Donnington - Castle - geograph.org.uk - 827070.jpg, Waste disposal File:Donnington Castle, Newbury, Plan view.jpg, Aerial plan view photo of Donnington Castle, 2020 File:Plan of the last Skirmish at Donnington Castle.jpg, Plan of the last Skirmish at Donnington Castle during the

File:Donnington castle.jpg, Distant view of the castle, 2017

References

External links

{{Commons category
Donnington Castle - Newbury History English Heritage page on Donnington Castle

Investigation History
Castles in Berkshire Grade I listed buildings in Berkshire Grade I listed castles English Heritage sites in Berkshire Ruins in Berkshire Scheduled monuments in Berkshire