Local Author

Devon Castles by Robert Hesketh

This invaluable little book surveys the fascinating array of castles and historic fortifications in Devon, and is an essential background guide for those planning visits. It explains the history of castles and how they were developed over the centuries, covering earlier and later fortifications from the Iron Age to Victorian times. Here I will use local examples from the book, which can be visited on a day out. It was the Normans who introduced castles to England, but the Saxons, Romans and Celts have all built fortifications and there are about one hundred Iron Age hill forts surviving in Devon along the eastern edge of Dartmoor. The Normans built hilltop castles throughout Devon to secure the conquest of England, establishing castles at Okehampton, Totnes, Lydford and Barnstaple, which began as motte and bailey castles. The Normans placed timber fortifications on top of the motte of Totnes castle, one of the highest in England. It was later built in stone, and is Devon’s largest and best preserved keep. Lydford provides a clear example of Saxon defences, built on a promontory with steep valleys on three sides, and further defended with earthen ramparts, topped with a timber palisade. The Normans built a ringwork castle there, which was superseded in 1195 by a very different castle with a square tower, which gained a grim reputation as a judicial centre and jail. Castles developed to become high status residences; the heart of the later medieval castle was the great hall which can be seen at Okehampton and Dartington. Okehampton is one of Devon’s largest castles, and was owned by the Courtenay family in the 1170s, who transformed it from a martial structure into an aristocratic residence with a deer park.

In Plymouth, Drake’s Island was fortified from 1548 and the 1590s with additions in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, and can be viewed from Plymouth Hoe. The Royal Citadel, built between 1665 and 1675, served to protect Plymouth from foreign attack, especially from the Dutch, and to keep the Puritan city under control should another civil war erupt. Crownhill Fort was the key fort among eleven fortifications designed to protect Plymouth from landward attack. It was used as a barracks until the 1980s but the original buildings are preserved inside and this fascinating piece of Victorian military architecture is a very late example of a true fort. Some castles were built as luxury homes including Bovey Castle, built in 1907 and now a hotel, and Castle Drogo, designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens and completed in 1930 making it England’s newest castle.

Review by Dr Ann Pulsford Available for £3.99 at www.roberthesketh.co.uk and from local outlets.

Robert Hesketh is giving a talk on Devon Castles on 20 January for the Tavistock Heritage Trust Talks series – see What’s On for details.