Clun Castle
Encyclopedia
Clun Castle is a ruined castle
in the small town of Clun
, Shropshire
. Clun Castle was established by the Norman lord Robert de Say
after the invasion and went on to become an important Marcher lord castle in the 12th century, with an extensive castle-guard
system. Owned for many years by the Fitzalan family, Clun played a key part in protecting the region from Welsh attack until it was gradually abandoned as a property in favour of the more luxurious Arundel Castle
. The Fitzalans converted Clun Castle into a hunting lodge in the 14th century, complete with pleasure gardens
, but by the 16th century the castle was largely ruined. Slighted
in 1646 after the English Civil War
Clun remained in poor condition until renovation work in the 1890s.
Today the castle is classed as a Grade I listed building and as a Scheduled Monument. It is owned by the Duke of Norfolk
, who also holds the title of Baron Clun, and is managed by English Heritage
.
, overlooking the local village of Clun
and the church. The river provides natural defences from the north and west, whilst the main keep of the castle stands upon a large motte or mound. Most historians conclude that this is primarily a natural elevation of rock, which has then been cut
and scarped
into its current, although others argue that it is mostly artificial. Three similar, but less dramatic mounds around the main motte provide the basic structure for the castle defences.
The remains of the 80 ft (24.4 m) tall, four-storey rectangular great keep
are still standing on the north side of the motte. In large part this a typical late Norman keep, 68 by wide, similar to those locally at Alberbury
, Bridgnorth
and Hopton
, featuring pilaster
buttress
es and round-headed Norman windows. Unusually the keep is off-centre, probably to allow the foundations greater reach and avoid placing excessive pressure on the motte - a similar design can be found at Guildford Castle
. The ground floor was used for storage, with the upper three storeys for the family's residential use. Each floor had its own large fireplace and five windows. The great keep appears powerful, but was built as a compromise between security and comfort - the building has relatively few arrowslits - many of the externally visible arrowslits are fakes and the building as a whole could easily have been undermined.
On the highest point of the main motte are the remains of one wall of what appears to have been an earlier small square keep
, probably dating from the 11th or 12th centuries. The remains of a bridge, linking the main motte with the south-west mound, can just be seen to the south of this; this bridge would have formed the main route to the local village. South of the bridge is the site of the gatehouse, while the foundations of a great round tower can be seen to the south-west. Along the west front are the remains of two solid turrets, built in possible imitation of Château Gaillard. A number of domestic buildings once stood inside the main bailey
, including a grange, a stable and a bakehouse. The earthworks of two further bailey walls can be seen on the east side of the castle.
The surrounding grounds around Clun Castle have been extensively developed in the past and a pleasure garden can still be made out in the field beyond the River Clun
to the west. To the north-east lies the remains of a fish pond
, with a sluice
connecting this to the river.
. The area around Clun was rugged, thinly populated and covered in extensive forests in early medieval times. Clun Castle was originally established by Robert de Say
, an early Norman
baron
who seized the territory from Edric; Robert built a substantial motte castle with two baileys. Robert held the castle and district from the Earl of Shrewsbury
until 1102. After the Shrewsbury rebellion of that year, Robert and his descendants held their castle directly from the Crown.
Picot's daughter married the local Welsh lord, Cadwgan ap Bleddyn
. In 1109 Cadwgan was forced out of Powys
and it is possible that he lived at Clun Castle during this time. The couple had a son, Henry de Say
, who inherited the castle in 1098, with his son, Helias de Say
controlling the castle until his death in 1165. Under Helias, the barony of Say was divided in two, with Helias' daughter Isabella de Say
receiving an expanded estate centred on Clun, and the more easterly elements of the de Say land, including the future Stokesay Castle
, being given to Theodoric de Say.
At around the same time, Henry I established a new castle-guard
system was established at Clun, probably in response to the succession of Welsh attacks in the decades following the rebellion of Gruffydd ap Cynan
in 1094. Under the castle-guard system, protecting Clun Castle was undertaken by knights from a group of fiefs
stretching eastwards away from Clun and the Welsh frontier, linked in many cases by the old Roman road
running alongside the river Clun
. Each knight had to conduct forty days of military service each year, probably being called up in a crisis rather than maintaining a constant guard, and were supplemented when required by additional mounted or infantry sergeants. Henry II continued the royal focus on Clun as the regional centre for protecting the border, investing heavily in the castle during 1160–64. The castle could also draw on Welsh feudal service
, with twenty-five local Welsh settlements owing the castle military duty.
The area surrounding the castle was now declared a Marcher Barony, known in the 13th century as the Honour of Clun, which meant it was governed by its own, rather than English law, and the Marcher Lord who controlled this section of the Welsh Marches
. In particular, the lord Clun Castle was known for having the right to execute criminals on his own behalf, rather than as the representative of the king; criminals would be taken from as far as Shrewsbury
for this punishment to be carried out.
Isabella married William Fitz Alan
, the lord of nearby Oswestry
. William was another powerful regional lord, and was appointed the High Sheriff of Shropshire
by Adeliza of Louvain
, the second wife of Henry I
. After Henry I's death during the Anarchy
, in which England was split between the rival claimants of King Stephen and the Empress Matilda
, William declared for the Empress Maud and in 1138 held Shrewsbury Castle
for four weeks against Stephen. William escaped before the fall of the city, spending the next fifteen years in exile before the return of Henry II
in 1153.
Isabella married twice more after William's death, with her husbands Geoffrey de Vere and William Botorel being lords of Clun Castle by virtue of marriage, but on her death in 1199 the castle passed to her son from her first marriage, the second William Fitz Alan
. In doing so, Isabella created the combined lordship of neighbouring Oswestry and Clun, the beginnings of what would become a powerful noble family. William built the tall, off-centre Norman keep that dominates the site today, blending a defensive fortification with the beginnings of a more luxurious style of living. William had been with King Richard I
during the building of Château Gaillard in Normandy
and it would seem that the distinctive circular towers William built to defend the new keep at Clun were based on those at Gaillard. The result was echoed, on a smaller scale, in the fortified tower-houses at nearby Upper Millichope and Wattlesborough, whilst several generations later the trend would result in Stokesay Castle
.
to reassert the power of the Welsh principality, aided by the difficult relations that King John enjoyed with the local barons. For many years there was an erroneous story that in 1196 the castle was besieged
by the Welsh
under Prince Rhys ap Gruffydd
, a Prince of the Welsh Kingdom of Deheubarth. This story is a confusion of Colwyn Castle
in Radnorshire
, which was attacked in 1196, and the Welsh rendition of Clun, Colunwy.
William died in 1210, leaving the castle to his eldest son, another William Fitz Alan
. King John, however, demanded a huge fee of 10,000 marks
for William to inherit his lands; unable to pay, Clun Castle was assigned to Thomas de Eardington instead. William died shortly afterwards at Easter, 1215, and his brother, John Fitz Alan
, a close friend of Llywelyn the Great, promptly took up arms against the king, immediately seizing Clun and Oswestry from royal control. In 1216, King John responded militarily, his forces attacking and burning Oswestry
town, before besieging and taking Clun Castle in a surprise attack. John came to an understanding with King John's successor, Henry III
in 1217 after finally paying a fine of 10,000 marks.
In 1233–34 during the conflict between King Henry III, the Earl Marshal
, and Llywelyn the Great, suspicions were raised again over the loyalty of John Fitzalan
, and Clun Castle was garrisoned with royal troops in 1233 to ensure its continued reliability as a key fortress. The castle successfully resisted the attack by Llywelyn that year, although the village of Clun itself was destroyed.
In 1244 John FitzAlan
inherited the castle from his dad; John also became the de jure Earl of Arundel
. The Welsh border situation was still unsettled, and security grew significantly worse in the next few years, as the Welsh prince Llwelyn up Gruffudd
conducted numerous raids into English territories. John's son, another John Fitzalan
inherited the castle, marrying Isabella
, one of the neighbouring and powerful Mortimer family. In 1272 John died leaving a young son, Richard
; during his minority the castle was controlled by Roger Mortimer of Wigmore
. A group of commissioners, called into examine the castle as part of the inquest, noted that the castle was described as "small but strongly built", but in some need of repair, with the bridge and the roof of one of the towers needing particular work.
by marriage in 1243; their new castle proved to be a much more amenable location for the Earls of Arundlel
and became their primary residence. By the 14th century Clun Castle had been transformed into a hunting lodge complete with pleasure gardens by the FitzAlan family, who kept a large horse stud
at the castle, along with their collections at Chirk
and Holt
castles.
Richard II
made an attempt to break the power of the Arundel family in the area, removing Clun Castle from the Fitz Alan family with the execution of Richard FitzAlan
in 1397, granting it to the Duke of York
with the intent that it became part of the Earldom of Chester; with the fall of Richard II and the return to favour of Thomas FitzAlan
, the castle was restored to the family. There was a resurgence of interest in Clun Castle during the Glyndŵr Rising
of 1400–15, with Thomas playing a key role in suppressing the revolt; the castle was refortified and saw some service against the Welsh rebels led by Owain Glyndŵr
.
By the 16th century, the antiquarian John Leland observed the increasingly ruined nature of Clun Castle. Philip Howard
, the 20th earl of Arundel, died in 1595 whilst under attainment
, and James I
gave Clun Castle to Henry Howard
. The castle was abandoned by the time of the English Civil War
of 1642–46 and saw no military action; it was slighted
by Parliament, however, in 1646 to prevent any possible use a fortress. The castle passed through several hands in the coming years, including a period in which is was owned by Clive of India
. The 19th century author Sir Walter Scott
used Clun Castle as the model for the castle "Guarde Doleureuse" in his medieval novel The Betrothed
in 1825.
, a descendant of the original FitzAlan family. The Duke undertook a programme of conservation on the castle, stabilising its condition. The castle is classed as a Grade I listed building and as a Scheduled Monument. The site is open to the public, managed by English Heritage
.
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
in the small town of Clun
Clun
Clun is a small town in Shropshire, England. The town is located entirely in the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The 2001 census recorded 642 people living in the town...
, Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
. Clun Castle was established by the Norman lord Robert de Say
Robert de Say
Robert de Say, also called Picot, was a Norman knight who arrived in Shropshire after the Norman invasion.Robert is most noted for the initial construction of Clun Castle, building it overlooking the lands he had seized from Edric the Wild after the invasion. The family name de Say comes from the...
after the invasion and went on to become an important Marcher lord castle in the 12th century, with an extensive castle-guard
Castle-guard
Castle-guard was an arrangement under the feudal system, by which the duty of finding knights to guard royal castles was imposed on certain manors, knight's fees or baronies. The greater barons provided for the guard of their castles by exacting a similar duty from their sub-enfeoffedknights...
system. Owned for many years by the Fitzalan family, Clun played a key part in protecting the region from Welsh attack until it was gradually abandoned as a property in favour of the more luxurious Arundel Castle
Arundel Castle
Arundel Castle in Arundel, West Sussex, England is a restored medieval castle. It was founded by Roger de Montgomery on Christmas Day 1067. Roger became the first to hold the earldom of Arundel by the graces of William the Conqueror...
. The Fitzalans converted Clun Castle into a hunting lodge in the 14th century, complete with pleasure gardens
Pleasure gardens
A pleasure garden is usually a garden that is open to the public for recreation. They differ from other public gardens in that they serve as venues for entertainment, variously featuring concert halls or bandstands, rides, zoos, and menageries.-History:...
, but by the 16th century the castle was largely ruined. Slighted
Slighting
A slighting is the deliberate destruction, partial or complete, of a fortification without opposition. During the English Civil War this was to render it unusable as a fort.-Middle Ages:...
in 1646 after the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
Clun remained in poor condition until renovation work in the 1890s.
Today the castle is classed as a Grade I listed building and as a Scheduled Monument. It is owned by the Duke of Norfolk
Duke of Norfolk
The Duke of Norfolk is the premier duke in the peerage of England, and also, as Earl of Arundel, the premier earl. The Duke of Norfolk is, moreover, the Earl Marshal and hereditary Marshal of England. The seat of the Duke of Norfolk is Arundel Castle in Sussex, although the title refers to the...
, who also holds the title of Baron Clun, and is managed by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
.
Architecture
Clun Castle is located on a bend in the river ClunRiver Clun, Shropshire
The River Clun is a river in Shropshire, England which runs through the small town of Clun, as well as Newcastle-on-Clun and other villages. It meets the River Teme at Leintwardine, Herefordshire....
, overlooking the local village of Clun
Clun
Clun is a small town in Shropshire, England. The town is located entirely in the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The 2001 census recorded 642 people living in the town...
and the church. The river provides natural defences from the north and west, whilst the main keep of the castle stands upon a large motte or mound. Most historians conclude that this is primarily a natural elevation of rock, which has then been cut
Cut (earthmoving)
In civil engineering, a cut or cutting is where soil or rock material from a hill or mountain is cut out to make way for a canal, road or railway line....
and scarped
Counterscarp
A scarp and a counterscarp are the inner and outer sides of a ditch used in fortifications. In permanent fortifications the scarp and counterscarp may be encased in stone...
into its current, although others argue that it is mostly artificial. Three similar, but less dramatic mounds around the main motte provide the basic structure for the castle defences.
The remains of the 80 ft (24.4 m) tall, four-storey rectangular great keep
Keep
A keep 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 castles that were fortified residences, used as a refuge of last resort should the rest of the...
are still standing on the north side of the motte. In large part this a typical late Norman keep, 68 by wide, similar to those locally at Alberbury
Alberbury Castle
Alberbury Castle is in the village of Alberbury, some nine miles north-west of Shrewsbury, Shropshire and very close to the border with Wales. It is a Grade II listed building....
, Bridgnorth
Bridgnorth Castle
Bridgnorth Castle is in the town of Bridgnorth, Shropshire beside the River Severn .The castle was founded in 1101 by Robert de Belleme, the son of the French Earl, Roger de Montgomery, who succeeded his father to become the Earl of Shrewsbury...
and Hopton
Hopton Castle (structure)
Hopton Castle is situated in the village of the same name which lies approximately half way between Knighton and Craven Arms, in the English county of Shropshire. Hopton Castle featured in the British TV series Time Team in 2010...
, featuring pilaster
Pilaster
A pilaster is a slightly-projecting column built into or applied to the face of a wall. Most commonly flattened or rectangular in form, pilasters can also take a half-round form or the shape of any type of column, including tortile....
buttress
Buttress
A buttress is an architectural structure built against or projecting from a wall which serves to support or reinforce the wall...
es and round-headed Norman windows. Unusually the keep is off-centre, probably to allow the foundations greater reach and avoid placing excessive pressure on the motte - a similar design can be found at Guildford Castle
Guildford Castle
Guildford Castle is in Guildford, Surrey, England. It is thought to have been built shortly after the 1066 invasion of England by William the Conqueror.-Construction and development:...
. The ground floor was used for storage, with the upper three storeys for the family's residential use. Each floor had its own large fireplace and five windows. The great keep appears powerful, but was built as a compromise between security and comfort - the building has relatively few arrowslits - many of the externally visible arrowslits are fakes and the building as a whole could easily have been undermined.
On the highest point of the main motte are the remains of one wall of what appears to have been an earlier small square keep
Keep
A keep 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 castles that were fortified residences, used as a refuge of last resort should the rest of the...
, probably dating from the 11th or 12th centuries. The remains of a bridge, linking the main motte with the south-west mound, can just be seen to the south of this; this bridge would have formed the main route to the local village. South of the bridge is the site of the gatehouse, while the foundations of a great round tower can be seen to the south-west. Along the west front are the remains of two solid turrets, built in possible imitation of Château Gaillard. A number of domestic buildings once stood inside the main bailey
Ward (fortification)
In fortifications, a bailey or ward refers to a courtyard enclosed by a curtain wall. In particular, an early type of European castle was known as a Motte-and-bailey. Castles can have more than one ward. Their layout depends both on the local topography and the level of fortification technology...
, including a grange, a stable and a bakehouse. The earthworks of two further bailey walls can be seen on the east side of the castle.
The surrounding grounds around Clun Castle have been extensively developed in the past and a pleasure garden can still be made out in the field beyond the River Clun
River Clun, Shropshire
The River Clun is a river in Shropshire, England which runs through the small town of Clun, as well as Newcastle-on-Clun and other villages. It meets the River Teme at Leintwardine, Herefordshire....
to the west. To the north-east lies the remains of a fish pond
Fish pond
A fish pond, or fishpond, is a controlled pond, artificial lake, or reservoir that is stocked with fish and is used in aquaculture for fish farming, or is used for recreational fishing or for ornamental purposes...
, with a sluice
Sluice
A sluice is a water channel that is controlled at its head by a gate . For example, a millrace is a sluice that channels water toward a water mill...
connecting this to the river.
11th–12th centuries
Before the Norman invasion, the manor of Clun was owned by Eadric the WildEadric the Wild
Eadric the Wild , also known as Eadric Cild, was an Anglo-Saxon magnate of the West Midlands who led English resistance to the Norman Conquest, active in 1068-70.-Background:...
. The area around Clun was rugged, thinly populated and covered in extensive forests in early medieval times. Clun Castle was originally established by Robert de Say
Robert de Say
Robert de Say, also called Picot, was a Norman knight who arrived in Shropshire after the Norman invasion.Robert is most noted for the initial construction of Clun Castle, building it overlooking the lands he had seized from Edric the Wild after the invasion. The family name de Say comes from the...
, an early Norman
Normans
The Normans were the people who gave their name to Normandy, a region in northern France. They were descended from Norse Viking conquerors of the territory and the native population of Frankish and Gallo-Roman stock...
baron
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
who seized the territory from Edric; Robert built a substantial motte castle with two baileys. Robert held the castle and district from the Earl of Shrewsbury
Earl of Shrewsbury
Earl of Shrewsbury is a hereditary title of nobility created twice in the peerage of England.-First creation, 1074:The first creation occurred in 1074 for Roger de Montgomerie, one of William the Conqueror's principal counselors...
until 1102. After the Shrewsbury rebellion of that year, Robert and his descendants held their castle directly from the Crown.
Picot's daughter married the local Welsh lord, Cadwgan ap Bleddyn
Cadwgan ap Bleddyn
Cadwgan ap Bleddyn was a prince of Powys in eastern Wales.Cadwgan was the second son of Bleddyn ap Cynfyn who was king of both Powys and Gwynedd. When Bleddyn was killed in 1075, Powys was divided between three of his sons, Cadwgan, Iorwerth and Maredudd. Cadwgan is first heard of in 1088 when he...
. In 1109 Cadwgan was forced out of Powys
Powys
Powys is a local-government county and preserved county in Wales.-Geography:Powys covers the historic counties of Montgomeryshire and Radnorshire, most of Brecknockshire , and a small part of Denbighshire — an area of 5,179 km², making it the largest county in Wales by land area.It is...
and it is possible that he lived at Clun Castle during this time. The couple had a son, Henry de Say
Henry de Say
Henry de Say was a Norman nobleman who lived in Clun near Shrewsbury, along the medieval Welsh Marches. He inherited the important fortification Clun Castle from his father, Robert de Say, in 1098. Henry died some time after 1130.-Bibliography:...
, who inherited the castle in 1098, with his son, Helias de Say
Helias de Say
Helias de Say , also called Hellias, was a Norman nobleman who lived in Clun near Shrewsbury, along the medieval Welsh Marches. He is believed to have inherited Clun Castle from his father, Henry de Say, in the reign of Henry I. Helias held the key fortification of Clun Castle during the years of...
controlling the castle until his death in 1165. Under Helias, the barony of Say was divided in two, with Helias' daughter Isabella de Say
Isabella de Say
Isabella de Say was an Anglo-Norman heiress. Isabella was the only surviving child of Helias de Say upon his death in 1165; Helias was the third lord of Clun, a powerful Norman stronghold in Shropshire, England, along the Welsh border. She was also a niece of the influential Robert, 1st Earl of...
receiving an expanded estate centred on Clun, and the more easterly elements of the de Say land, including the future Stokesay Castle
Stokesay Castle
Stokesay Castle is a fortified manor house in Stokesay, a mile south of the town of Craven Arms, in southern Shropshire. It was built in the late 13th century...
, being given to Theodoric de Say.
At around the same time, Henry I established a new castle-guard
Castle-guard
Castle-guard was an arrangement under the feudal system, by which the duty of finding knights to guard royal castles was imposed on certain manors, knight's fees or baronies. The greater barons provided for the guard of their castles by exacting a similar duty from their sub-enfeoffedknights...
system was established at Clun, probably in response to the succession of Welsh attacks in the decades following the rebellion of Gruffydd ap Cynan
Gruffydd ap Cynan
Gruffydd ap Cynan was a King of Gwynedd. In the course of a long and eventful life, he became a key figure in Welsh resistance to Norman rule, and was remembered as King of all Wales...
in 1094. Under the castle-guard system, protecting Clun Castle was undertaken by knights from a group of fiefs
Fiefs
Fiefs may refer to:* Fiefdom* Fiefs, a commune of the Pas-de-Calais département in northern France...
stretching eastwards away from Clun and the Welsh frontier, linked in many cases by the old Roman road
Roman road
The Roman roads were a vital part of the development of the Roman state, from about 500 BC through the expansion during the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire. Roman roads enabled the Romans to move armies and trade goods and to communicate. The Roman road system spanned more than 400,000 km...
running alongside the river Clun
River Clun, Shropshire
The River Clun is a river in Shropshire, England which runs through the small town of Clun, as well as Newcastle-on-Clun and other villages. It meets the River Teme at Leintwardine, Herefordshire....
. Each knight had to conduct forty days of military service each year, probably being called up in a crisis rather than maintaining a constant guard, and were supplemented when required by additional mounted or infantry sergeants. Henry II continued the royal focus on Clun as the regional centre for protecting the border, investing heavily in the castle during 1160–64. The castle could also draw on Welsh feudal service
Feudalism
Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...
, with twenty-five local Welsh settlements owing the castle military duty.
The area surrounding the castle was now declared a Marcher Barony, known in the 13th century as the Honour of Clun, which meant it was governed by its own, rather than English law, and the Marcher Lord who controlled this section of the Welsh Marches
Welsh Marches
The Welsh Marches is a term which, in modern usage, denotes an imprecisely defined area along and around the border between England and Wales in the United Kingdom. The precise meaning of the term has varied at different periods...
. In particular, the lord Clun Castle was known for having the right to execute criminals on his own behalf, rather than as the representative of the king; criminals would be taken from as far as Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury is the county town of Shropshire, in the West Midlands region of England. Lying on the River Severn, it is a civil parish home to some 70,000 inhabitants, and is the primary settlement and headquarters of Shropshire Council...
for this punishment to be carried out.
Isabella married William Fitz Alan
William Fitz Allan, Lord of Oswestry
William Fitz Allan was a Norman noble, the eldest son of Alan fitz Flaad and the lord of Oswestry.William married Isabella de Say, the niece of Robert, 1st Earl of Gloucester...
, the lord of nearby Oswestry
Oswestry
Oswestry is a town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, close to the Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5, A483, and A495 roads....
. William was another powerful regional lord, and was appointed the High Sheriff of Shropshire
High Sheriff of Shropshire
The High Sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. Formerly the High Sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities associated with the post have been transferred elsewhere or are now defunct, so that its functions...
by Adeliza of Louvain
Adeliza of Louvain
Adeliza of Louvain, sometimes known in England as Adelicia of Louvain, also called Adela and Aleidis; was queen consort of the Kingdom of England from 1121 to 1135, the second wife of Henry I...
, the second wife of Henry I
Henry I of England
Henry I was the fourth son of William I of England. He succeeded his elder brother William II as King of England in 1100 and defeated his eldest brother, Robert Curthose, to become Duke of Normandy in 1106...
. After Henry I's death during the Anarchy
The Anarchy
The Anarchy or The Nineteen-Year Winter was a period of English history during the reign of King Stephen, which was characterised by civil war and unsettled government...
, in which England was split between the rival claimants of King Stephen and the Empress Matilda
Empress Matilda
Empress Matilda , also known as Matilda of England or Maude, was the daughter and heir of King Henry I of England. Matilda and her younger brother, William Adelin, were the only legitimate children of King Henry to survive to adulthood...
, William declared for the Empress Maud and in 1138 held Shrewsbury Castle
Shrewsbury Castle
Shrewsbury Castle is a red sandstone castle in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. It stands on a hill in the neck of the meander of the River Severn on which the town originally developed. The castle is situated directly above Shrewsbury railway station....
for four weeks against Stephen. William escaped before the fall of the city, spending the next fifteen years in exile before the return of Henry II
Henry II of England
Henry II ruled as King of England , Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Count of Nantes, Lord of Ireland and, at various times, controlled parts of Wales, Scotland and western France. Henry, the great-grandson of William the Conqueror, was the...
in 1153.
Isabella married twice more after William's death, with her husbands Geoffrey de Vere and William Botorel being lords of Clun Castle by virtue of marriage, but on her death in 1199 the castle passed to her son from her first marriage, the second William Fitz Alan
William Fitz Alan, 1st Lord of Oswestry and Clun
William Fitz Alan was a Norman nobleman who lived in Oswestry and Clun, near Shrewsbury, along the medieval Welsh Marches. William was the son of William Fitz Alan and Isabella de Say; he was the first Fitz Alan to hold both the castles of Clun and Oswestry in his own right, and was responsible for...
. In doing so, Isabella created the combined lordship of neighbouring Oswestry and Clun, the beginnings of what would become a powerful noble family. William built the tall, off-centre Norman keep that dominates the site today, blending a defensive fortification with the beginnings of a more luxurious style of living. William had been with King Richard I
Richard I of England
Richard I was King of England from 6 July 1189 until his death. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, Duke of Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, Count of Nantes, and Overlord of Brittany at various times during the same period...
during the building of Château Gaillard in Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
and it would seem that the distinctive circular towers William built to defend the new keep at Clun were based on those at Gaillard. The result was echoed, on a smaller scale, in the fortified tower-houses at nearby Upper Millichope and Wattlesborough, whilst several generations later the trend would result in Stokesay Castle
Stokesay Castle
Stokesay Castle is a fortified manor house in Stokesay, a mile south of the town of Craven Arms, in southern Shropshire. It was built in the late 13th century...
.
13th century
In the 13th century, Shropshire was in the front line of attempts by Prince Llywelyn the GreatLlywelyn the Great
Llywelyn the Great , full name Llywelyn ab Iorwerth, was a Prince of Gwynedd in north Wales and eventually de facto ruler over most of Wales...
to reassert the power of the Welsh principality, aided by the difficult relations that King John enjoyed with the local barons. For many years there was an erroneous story that in 1196 the castle was besieged
Siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...
by the Welsh
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
under Prince Rhys ap Gruffydd
Rhys ap Gruffydd
Rhys ap Gruffydd or ap Gruffudd was the ruler of the kingdom of Deheubarth in south Wales. He is commonly known as The Lord Rhys, in Welsh Yr Arglwydd Rhys, but this title may not have been used in his lifetime...
, a Prince of the Welsh Kingdom of Deheubarth. This story is a confusion of Colwyn Castle
Colwyn Castle
Colwyn Castle was a medieval castle near Llansantffraed in Wales. It was built on the site of a Roman fort. The castle was captured in 1196 by Rhys ap Gruffydd, who was campaigning against the Normans. It was rebuilt in 1242 by Ralph de Mortimer to protect the lordship of Maelienydd, which he had...
in Radnorshire
Radnorshire
Radnorshire is one of thirteen historic and former administrative counties of Wales. It is represented by the Radnorshire area of Powys, which according to the 2001 census, had a population of 24,805...
, which was attacked in 1196, and the Welsh rendition of Clun, Colunwy.
William died in 1210, leaving the castle to his eldest son, another William Fitz Alan
William Fitz Alan, 2nd Lord of Oswestry and Clun
William Fitz Alan was a Norman nobleman who lived in Oswestry and Clun near Shrewsbury, along the medieval Welsh Marches. William was the son of William Fitz Allan, controlling the castles of Clun and Oswestry and later became the High Sheriff of Shropshire. William married Mary de Lacy...
. King John, however, demanded a huge fee of 10,000 marks
Mark (money)
Mark was a measure of weight mainly for gold and silver, commonly used throughout western Europe and often equivalent to 8 ounces. Considerable variations, however, occurred throughout the Middle Ages Mark (from a merging of three Teutonic/Germanic languages words, Latinized in 9th century...
for William to inherit his lands; unable to pay, Clun Castle was assigned to Thomas de Eardington instead. William died shortly afterwards at Easter, 1215, and his brother, John Fitz Alan
John Fitzalan, Lord of Oswestry
John FitzAlan, Lord of Clun and Oswestry in the Welsh Marches in the county of Shropshire.-Family:John succeeded his brother, William FitzAlan, Lord of Clun and Oswestry, who died in 1216 without issue. They were sons of William FitzAlan of Oswestry and Isabel, daughter and heiress of Ingram de...
, a close friend of Llywelyn the Great, promptly took up arms against the king, immediately seizing Clun and Oswestry from royal control. In 1216, King John responded militarily, his forces attacking and burning Oswestry
Oswestry
Oswestry is a town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, close to the Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5, A483, and A495 roads....
town, before besieging and taking Clun Castle in a surprise attack. John came to an understanding with King John's successor, Henry III
Henry III of England
Henry III was the son and successor of John as King of England, reigning for 56 years from 1216 until his death. His contemporaries knew him as Henry of Winchester. He was the first child king in England since the reign of Æthelred the Unready...
in 1217 after finally paying a fine of 10,000 marks.
In 1233–34 during the conflict between King Henry III, the Earl Marshal
Earl Marshal
Earl Marshal is a hereditary royal officeholder and chivalric title under the sovereign of the United Kingdom used in England...
, and Llywelyn the Great, suspicions were raised again over the loyalty of John Fitzalan
John Fitzalan, Lord of Oswestry
John FitzAlan, Lord of Clun and Oswestry in the Welsh Marches in the county of Shropshire.-Family:John succeeded his brother, William FitzAlan, Lord of Clun and Oswestry, who died in 1216 without issue. They were sons of William FitzAlan of Oswestry and Isabel, daughter and heiress of Ingram de...
, and Clun Castle was garrisoned with royal troops in 1233 to ensure its continued reliability as a key fortress. The castle successfully resisted the attack by Llywelyn that year, although the village of Clun itself was destroyed.
In 1244 John FitzAlan
John FitzAlan, 6th Earl of Arundel
John FitzAlan , Lord of Oswestry and Clun, and de jure Earl of Arundel, was a Breton-English nobleman and Marcher Lord with lands in the Welsh Marches.-Family:...
inherited the castle from his dad; John also became the de jure Earl of Arundel
Earl of Arundel
The title Earl of Arundel is the oldest extant Earldom and perhaps the oldest extant title in the Peerage of England. It is currently held by the Duke of Norfolk, and is used by his heir apparent as a courtesy title. It was created in 1138 for the Norman baron Sir William d'Aubigny...
. The Welsh border situation was still unsettled, and security grew significantly worse in the next few years, as the Welsh prince Llwelyn up Gruffudd
Llywelyn the Last
Llywelyn ap Gruffydd or Llywelyn Ein Llyw Olaf , sometimes rendered as Llywelyn II, was the last prince of an independent Wales before its conquest by Edward I of England....
conducted numerous raids into English territories. John's son, another John Fitzalan
John FitzAlan, 7th Earl of Arundel
John FitzAlan, 7th Earl of Arundel was an English nobleman. He was also feudal Lord of Clun and Oswestry in the Welsh Marches.-Family:...
inherited the castle, marrying Isabella
Isabella Mortimer, Countess of Arundel
Isabella Mortimer, Countess of Arundel, Lady of Clun and Ostwestry was a noblewoman and a member of an important and powerful Welsh Marcher family. She was the wife of John Fitzalan, 7th Earl of Arundel, Lord of Clun and Oswestry...
, one of the neighbouring and powerful Mortimer family. In 1272 John died leaving a young son, Richard
Richard FitzAlan, 8th Earl of Arundel
Richard FitzAlan, 8th Earl of Arundel was an English Norman medieval nobleman.- Lineage :...
; during his minority the castle was controlled by Roger Mortimer of Wigmore
Wigmore Castle
Wigmore Castle is a ruined castle which is barely visible from the village of Wigmore in the northwest region of Herefordshire, England.- History :...
. A group of commissioners, called into examine the castle as part of the inquest, noted that the castle was described as "small but strongly built", but in some need of repair, with the bridge and the roof of one of the towers needing particular work.
14th–17th centuries
The invasion of North Wales by Edward I in the 1280s significantly reduced the threat of Welsh invasion and the long-term requirements for strong military fortifications such as Clun Castle. Meanwhile, the FitzAlan family had acquired Arundel CastleArundel Castle
Arundel Castle in Arundel, West Sussex, England is a restored medieval castle. It was founded by Roger de Montgomery on Christmas Day 1067. Roger became the first to hold the earldom of Arundel by the graces of William the Conqueror...
by marriage in 1243; their new castle proved to be a much more amenable location for the Earls of Arundlel
Earl of Arundel
The title Earl of Arundel is the oldest extant Earldom and perhaps the oldest extant title in the Peerage of England. It is currently held by the Duke of Norfolk, and is used by his heir apparent as a courtesy title. It was created in 1138 for the Norman baron Sir William d'Aubigny...
and became their primary residence. By the 14th century Clun Castle had been transformed into a hunting lodge complete with pleasure gardens by the FitzAlan family, who kept a large horse stud
Stud farm
A stud farm or stud in animal husbandry, is an establishment for selective breeding of livestock. The word "stud" comes from the Old English stod meaning "herd of horses, place where horses are kept for breeding" Historically, documentation of the breedings that occur on a stud farm leads to the...
at the castle, along with their collections at Chirk
Chirk Castle
Chirk Castle is a castle located at Chirk, Wrexham, Wales.The castle was built in 1295 by Roger Mortimer de Chirk, uncle of Roger Mortimer, 1st Earl of March as part of King Edward I's chain of fortresses across the north of Wales. It guards the entrance to the Ceiriog Valley...
and Holt
Holt Castle
Holt Castle was a medieval castle in the town of Holt, Wrexham Borough, Wales. Work began in the 13th century during the Welsh Wars, the castle was sited on the Welsh-English border by the banks of the River Dee....
castles.
Richard II
Richard II of England
Richard II was King of England, a member of the House of Plantagenet and the last of its main-line kings. He ruled from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. Richard was a son of Edward, the Black Prince, and was born during the reign of his grandfather, Edward III...
made an attempt to break the power of the Arundel family in the area, removing Clun Castle from the Fitz Alan family with the execution of Richard FitzAlan
Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel
Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel and 9th Earl of Surrey KG was an English medieval nobleman and military commander.-Lineage:...
in 1397, granting it to the Duke of York
Edward of Norwich, 2nd Duke of York
Sir Edward of Norwich, 2nd Duke of York, 2nd Earl of Cambridge, Earl of Rutland, Earl of Cork, Duke of Aumale KG was a member of the English royal family who died at the Battle of Agincourt....
with the intent that it became part of the Earldom of Chester; with the fall of Richard II and the return to favour of Thomas FitzAlan
Thomas FitzAlan, 12th Earl of Arundel
Thomas Fitzalan, 12th Earl of Arundel and 10th Earl of Surrey, KG was an English nobleman, one of the principals of the deposition of Richard II, and a major figure during the reign of Henry IV.-Lineage:...
, the castle was restored to the family. There was a resurgence of interest in Clun Castle during the Glyndŵr Rising
Glyndwr Rising
The Glyndŵr Rising, Welsh Revolt or Last War of Independence was an uprising of the Welsh, led by Owain Glyndŵr, against England. It was the last major manifestation of a Welsh independence movement before the incorporation of Wales into England by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542.- The Fall of...
of 1400–15, with Thomas playing a key role in suppressing the revolt; the castle was refortified and saw some service against the Welsh rebels led by Owain Glyndŵr
Owain Glyndwr
Owain Glyndŵr , or Owain Glyn Dŵr, anglicised by William Shakespeare as Owen Glendower , was a Welsh ruler and the last native Welshman to hold the title Prince of Wales...
.
By the 16th century, the antiquarian John Leland observed the increasingly ruined nature of Clun Castle. Philip Howard
Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel
Saint Philip Howard, 20th Earl of Arundel was an English nobleman. He was canonised by Pope Paul VI in 1970, as one of the Forty Martyrs of England and Wales...
, the 20th earl of Arundel, died in 1595 whilst under attainment
Bill of attainder
A bill of attainder is an act of a legislature declaring a person or group of persons guilty of some crime and punishing them without benefit of a judicial trial.-English law:...
, and James I
James I of England
James VI and I was King of Scots as James VI from 24 July 1567 and King of England and Ireland as James I from the union of the English and Scottish crowns on 24 March 1603...
gave Clun Castle to Henry Howard
Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton
Henry Howard, 1st Earl of Northampton was a significant English aristocrat and courtier. He was suspect as a crypto-Catholic throughout his life, and went through periods of royal disfavour, in which his reputation suffered greatly. He was distinguished for learning, artistic culture and his...
. The castle was abandoned by the time of the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
of 1642–46 and saw no military action; it was slighted
Slighting
A slighting is the deliberate destruction, partial or complete, of a fortification without opposition. During the English Civil War this was to render it unusable as a fort.-Middle Ages:...
by Parliament, however, in 1646 to prevent any possible use a fortress. The castle passed through several hands in the coming years, including a period in which is was owned by Clive of India
Robert Clive, 1st Baron Clive
Major-General Robert Clive, 1st Baron Clive, KB , also known as Clive of India, was a British officer who established the military and political supremacy of the East India Company in Bengal. He is credited with securing India, and the wealth that followed, for the British crown...
. The 19th century author Sir Walter Scott
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time....
used Clun Castle as the model for the castle "Guarde Doleureuse" in his medieval novel The Betrothed
The Betrothed (1825 novel)
The Betrothed is an 1825 novel by Sir Walter Scott. It is the first of two Tales of the Crusaders, the second being The Talisman....
in 1825.
Today
In 1894, the site was purchased by the Duke of NorfolkHenry Fitzalan-Howard, 15th Duke of Norfolk
Henry Fitzalan-Howard, 15th Duke of Norfolk, , styled Baron Maltravers until 1856 and Earl of Arundel and Surrey between 1856 and 1860, was a British Unionist politician and philanthropist...
, a descendant of the original FitzAlan family. The Duke undertook a programme of conservation on the castle, stabilising its condition. The castle is classed as a Grade I listed building and as a Scheduled Monument. The site is open to the public, managed by English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
.