Bletsoe Castle
Encyclopedia
Bletsoe Castle was a late medieval fortified manor house
in the village Bletsoe
, Bedfordshire
.
In the late 16th or early 17th century, a new building was erected around the castle, quadrangular in design with three or four storeys and gable windows. Much of this later building was pulled down, leaving a much smaller building, still incorporating parts of the older castle, within the older medieval earthworks.
Today the castle is a scheduled monument and a Grade 2* listed building. The medieval moat
has a diameter of 130 m, is on average 18 m wide and 2.4 m deep and is water-filled in parts; the south side has been destroyed by the construction of agricultural buildings over it.
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 the village Bletsoe
Bletsoe
Bletsoe is a village and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England. It is on the A6, and about eight miles north of Bedford. The village has a small park, the former site of Bletsoe Castle and a church. Nearby places are Sharnbrook, Milton Ernest, Riseley, Thurleigh, Odell, Souldrop, and Swineshead...
, Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire is a ceremonial county of historic origin in England that forms part of the East of England region.It borders Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Northamptonshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the west and Hertfordshire to the south-east....
.
Details
Bletsoe Castle was created by John Pateshull, who received a license to crenellate an existing manor house on the east side of Blestoe in 1327. Pateshull had owned the manor of Blestoe since 1313, but in 1324 he inherited additional lands, allowing him to acquire permission to crenellate the property.In the late 16th or early 17th century, a new building was erected around the castle, quadrangular in design with three or four storeys and gable windows. Much of this later building was pulled down, leaving a much smaller building, still incorporating parts of the older castle, within the older medieval earthworks.
Today the castle is a scheduled monument and a Grade 2* listed building. The medieval moat
Moat
A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that surrounds a castle, other building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive water defences, including natural or artificial lakes, dams and sluices...
has a diameter of 130 m, is on average 18 m wide and 2.4 m deep and is water-filled in parts; the south side has been destroyed by the construction of agricultural buildings over it.