Astwell Castle
Encyclopedia
Astwell Castle is a manor house
in Northamptonshire
, England about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) south-west of Wappenham
. It is a listed building and part of the parish of Helmdon
, a village 1 miles (1.6 km) west.
nearby.
. The Shirleys, who were ennobled as Earls Ferrers
in 1677, ceased to live at Astwell in the 18th century. It was sold in 1763 and most of the buildings were demolished shortly afterwards.
of the 327th bomb squadron, 92nd bomb group, 8th bomber command crashed near the farm buildings. It had taken off on its way with the rest of the squadron on a mission to bomb the industrial complex at Solingen
, Germany. All 10 crew members were killed.
On 9 November 2008 Lt Col Terry Hayes, Deputy Commander of the American 422nd Air Base Group at RAF Croughton
laid a special wreath and read out the names of the American airmen. The men were included in the 2008 Remembrance Service in at Helmdon parish church.
The south range of the building was altered in the 19th century and again in 1957 when the house was remodelled and the roof timbers replaced.
Manor house
A manor house is a country house that historically formed the administrative centre of a manor, the lowest unit of territorial organisation in the feudal system in Europe. The term is applied to country houses that belonged to the gentry and other grand stately homes...
in Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
, England about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) south-west of Wappenham
Wappenham
Wappenham is a linear village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is south-west of Towcester, north of Syresham and north-west of Silverstone and forms part of the district of South Northamptonshire...
. It is a listed building and part of the parish of Helmdon
Helmdon
Helmdon is a village and civil parish in the district of South Northamptonshire, Northamptonshire, England. The parish covers an area of about and includes the village of Helmdon and the hamlets of Astwell and Falcutt.-Geography:...
, a village 1 miles (1.6 km) west.
15th-16th century
The house was begun by Thomas Lovett, who acquired the estate in 1471. The embattled gatehouse tower with the lower attachment to the left is of his time. To the west a large courtyard house with over forty rooms accumulated under later owners in the Lovett and Shirley families in the 16th and 17th centuries, of which only a fragment survives. It still has mullioned windows with arched lights, suggesting 16th rather than 17th century. Inside is a fireplace with a broad frieze of simple geometrical motifs above the four-centered arch. Early 18th century drawings show ranges added against both the west and south sides of the house which were built up to or over the moat. These may be related to infilling the moat and setting out a garden with formal terraces on the south and east sides of the house. A deer park was created in 1547. There is a memorial to Lovett in the church at WappenhamWappenham
Wappenham is a linear village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is south-west of Towcester, north of Syresham and north-west of Silverstone and forms part of the district of South Northamptonshire...
nearby.
17th-19th century
A house was added about 1606 by George ShirleyEarl Ferrers
Earl Ferrers is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1711 for Robert Shirley, 13th Baron Ferrers of Chartley. The Shirley family descends from George Shirley of Astwell Castle, Northamptonshire....
. The Shirleys, who were ennobled as Earls Ferrers
Earl Ferrers
Earl Ferrers is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1711 for Robert Shirley, 13th Baron Ferrers of Chartley. The Shirley family descends from George Shirley of Astwell Castle, Northamptonshire....
in 1677, ceased to live at Astwell in the 18th century. It was sold in 1763 and most of the buildings were demolished shortly afterwards.
20th-21st century
On 8.19am on 30 November 1943 a B-17 Flying Fortress bomber, No.42-3048 from USAAF station 109 PodingtonRAF Podington
RAF Podington is a former World War II United States Army Air Force base in England. It is located six miles south-east of Wellingborough, in Bedfordshire.-Overview:...
of the 327th bomb squadron, 92nd bomb group, 8th bomber command crashed near the farm buildings. It had taken off on its way with the rest of the squadron on a mission to bomb the industrial complex at Solingen
Solingen
Solingen is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the northern edge of the region called Bergisches Land, south of the Ruhr area, and with a 2009 population of 161,366 is the second largest city in the Bergisches Land...
, Germany. All 10 crew members were killed.
On 9 November 2008 Lt Col Terry Hayes, Deputy Commander of the American 422nd Air Base Group at RAF Croughton
RAF Croughton
RAF Croughton is a United States Air Force communications base in Northamptonshire, England, to the southeast of the village of Croughton. The station is home to the 422nd Air Base Group and operates one of Europe's largest military switchboards and processes approximately a third of all U.S...
laid a special wreath and read out the names of the American airmen. The men were included in the 2008 Remembrance Service in at Helmdon parish church.
The south range of the building was altered in the 19th century and again in 1957 when the house was remodelled and the roof timbers replaced.