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Sudeley Castle
Sudeley Castle
Winchcombe
Gloucestershire GL54 5JD
Tel: 01242 602308
About Sudeley Castle
Sudeley Castle, not far from Winchcombe, Cheltenham, in Gloucestershire, and is a family attraction that’s been dubbed ‘the most romantic Castle in England’. Butthat’s not its only claim to fame, as Sudeley Castle boasts a panoply of captivating features and attractions that make it a great family day out. Home to Lord Ashcombe and the Dent Brocklehursts, Sudeley Castle is found in the Cotswolds and extends over 1200 acres of picture postcard gardens. Ticket holders have the run of the ruins and gardens, which are as restive as any family day.
Sudeley Castle’s origins lie in the 11th century Saxon manor house built on the site. Evolving into a Norman garrison, it was fortified in 1139 and, by 1170, was in the care of William de Tracy, one of the four knights who killed Thomas A Becket in Canterbury. In 1442, Ralph Boteler revamped it with a double courtyard and a moat. Sudeley Castle’s first courtyard has quarters for servants and soldiers, the second, state and family rooms, with other additions including a Chapel and Tithe Barn.
Richard III owned Sudeley Castle from 1483 and kitted out the Banqueting Hall with its ornate oriel windows and State rooms. Sudeley Castle was visited by Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn in 1535, and his heir, Edward VI, granted Sudeley Castle to his uncle, Thomas Seymour, who married Henry’s widow, Katherine Parr. In 1548, Seymour overhauled Sudeley Castle, which hosted Katherine and her maid-of-honour Lady Jane Grey. In 1572, Edmund Chandos continued the restoration of Sudeley Castle and, in 1592, Elizabeth I threw a three-day party within its walls! A top family day out way back when!
Sudeley Castle was involved in the British Civil Wars of 1642-51 and King Charles I and his nephew, Prince Rupert, stopped the night. The Roundheads converted the Chapel into stables and the chancel into an abattoir. By 1649, it was emasculated in terms of defences and fell into disuse. In 1782, Katherine Parr’s coffin was uncovered, and in 1788 ‘Mad’ King George III tripped down the Octagon Tower stairs, only to be saved by landing on the housekeeper, Mrs. Cox! Just the ticket, and not something any other family attraction can boast!
In 1837, Sudeley Castle was purchased by Worcester’s glove-makers, the Dent family, and in 1840, the courtyard was restored to their design. In 1854-55, George Gilbert Scott went to work on Sudeley Castle Chapel and, during the Second World War, a camp for captured Axis prisoners was opened on the estate. Later, Mary Dent-Brocklehurst nurtured the Walter Morrison collection of Dutch and English Old Masters – worth the price of the ticket alone for art lovers – and Sudeley Castle was open to the public by 1969. Large scale works went on through the 80s, fashioning the family attraction of today.
Connoisseur Tours of the grandiloquent private apartments can be booked three days a week (details at the Studeley Castle website), featuring the Stone Drawing Room, Library and Billiard Room, and masterpieces painted by Rubens, Van Dyck and Lorraine. A Historical Garden Tour takes an hour and half and includes contemporary artworks and, in season, beds of flowers, like clematis and boxwood. Revamped in the 19th century by Emma Dent and, later on, by Lady Ashcombe, there’s also a complex Tudor knot garden, sculpted Victorian yew hedges, wildflowers, anemones and snakes head fritillaries in the long grass, swathes of blue squill beneath silver pear trees, magnolias and cherry trees. The family attraction’s English Garden is magnificent, awash as it is with tulips, irises and peonies. Another top draw, the Queen’s Garden, is in the original parterre, with cleomes, echinacea and agapanthus flowerbeds in bloom. Well-established roses include Damascus, Provence, Ispahan, Othello, Falstaff, William Shakespeare, Celeste, and Great Maiden's Blush. Sudeley Castle garden staff oversee "Rose Week" workshops, which features The Knot Garden’s Moorish mosaic fountain, pots of Egyptian papyrus, and pools, along with pyramid pears and an iron arbour with strawberry grapes.
A family day out should also incorporate the grand Banqueting Hall, surrounded by sycamores and carpets of thyme, and featuring an original fireplace and stone chair. The Dungeon Tower Mulberry Garden is a riot of cowslips and primroses, while the White Garden was promenaded by Katherine Parr and Lady Jane Grey. A pair of topiary figures adorned with ivy and roses represents them, and the Chapel glimmers with white Passion Flower, white roses and tulips, tobacco and petunias.
The Secret Garden boasts 1000 tulips, in addition to heliotropes, penstemons and sage, while the Victorian Kitchen Garden near the arched gatehouse has rare vegetables growing in it. A family attraction and a leading conservation facility, it nurtures Onions, Asparagus, purple Beans, Peas and tayberries. By the canal and its koi carp residents, the Tithe Barn is decorated with wild hollyhocks, cardoons, hydrangeas and wisteria, and behind it are beech, oak, ferns, hostas, foxgloves, primroses and cyclamen. Last but not least, the Wildflower Walk And Meadow are a sanctuary for crab-apples, almonds and apricots, not to mention oxeye daisies, camassias, sweet rocket and cranesbill, butterflies, caterpillars and birds.
The nearby Pheasantry is another top draw for ticket holders, having no fewer than 15 rare species from across the world, not least Indian peafowl and red junglefowl, along with Blue Eared, Cheer, Golden, Lady Amherst’s, Mikado, Reeves’, Swinhoe’s, True Silver and Yellow Golden pheasants, plus Himalayan Monals, Javanese Green Peafowl, Satyr and Temminck Tragopans, and Siamese Firebacks. For bird lovers, it’s worth the price of a ticket alone.
Sudeley Castle’s Happily Ever After exhibit features outsize iron letters covered in climbing honeysuckle, a children's carousel, adventure treasure hunt, playground and bouncy castle.
A rolling programme of exhibitions hosted in the Long Room galleries include Bones To Bronze, which resurrects extinct animals in the form of bronze sculptures by Nick Bibby. They’re manufactured in runs of 10 and are available to buy, with profits going to the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation.
Letters From Khartoum is a short movie focusing on a mission to send letters to General Gordon in Khartoum, a hitherto unexplored episode that was instigated by Captain Johnny Brocklehurst, while the gallery also has a display of Gordon memorabilia.
Six Wives At Sudeley looks at Sudeley Castle’s royal links, with Tudor costumes from TV’s “The Six Wives of Henry VIII” series. The Emma Dent Collection includes diaries, needlework, jewellery, and autographs of Victorian authors, artists and statesmen. Threads Of Time looks at the Dent and Brocklehurst textile empires and takes in a 17th century Stumpwork casket with seven secret drawers, Whitework, costumes, furniture, silk wall hangings and tapestries.
Sudeley Castle ticket holders can also enjoy the Gift Shop and Plant Centre, while the Banqueting Hall hosts weddings for up to 80, with music in the Minstrels’ Gallery. The Long Room can also be used, and the panelled private library has sumptuous artworks and antiques, not least leather-bound books and the Sheldon Tapestry. It can entertain 30 at gourmet meals. In the Country Cottage zone (available for short breaks, as detailed at the Sudeley Castle website), the Chandos Hall can cater for 40 people on a corporate event or other special occasion, including themed Country Pursuits, Shooting Days, 4x4 Off Road Safaris, Jousting Events, Family Fun Days, Teambuilding, Adventure Treasure Trails, Medieval Banquets, Casino & Games Evenings, Parties, Summer Balls, Murder Mysteries and Barbecues (see details at the Sudeley Castle website). Thus, the family attraction has a huge number of ways to experience a captivating and enjoyable family day.