The Ghosts of Warwick Castle - Warwickshire
Warwick Castle is in the town of Warwick in Warwickshire, England. In 914, the daughter of Alfred the Great, Ethelfleda, built a wooden fortification on the site where the castle stands today, which was one of ten that were built to defend against the invading Danes.
In 1086, William the Conqueror built a motte and bailey castle on the site to keep control over the Midlands as he travelled to the north of England. In 1088, King William made Henry de Beaumont, the son of a powerful Norman family the 1st Earl of Warwick. |
Henry established the Church of All Saints in the castle grounds but the Bishop of Worcester demanded that he remove it in 1127 as it was inappropriate to have Gods house in a castle.
When Henry of Anjou invaded England in support of his mothers, Matilda’s claim to the throne in 1153, a message was sent out to the wife of Roger Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Warwick, that he’d died in battle. She surrendered the castle but didn’t realise that she’d been tricked. Upon hearing the news, her husband, Roger died of shock. Henry of Anjou became King Henry the 2nd of England and returned the castle to the Earls of Warwick as they’d been supporters of his mother. During this time, the old motte and bailey was replaced with a stone keep against the castle wall. |
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The castle was used to store provisions during the Barons Rebellion of 1173-74 and the Earl of Warwick stayed loyal to Henry II. The castle and lands stayed within the Beaumont family until 1242 when Thomas de Beaumont, 6th Earl of Warwick died. The castle was then passed onto his sister, Margaret de Beaumont, 7th Countess of Warwick. Not long after the castle was passed on to Margaret, her husband, John Marshall died, until she found a new, suitable husband, the castle was now in challenge of the new King, Henry III. Margaret didn’t the long to find a new husband, she married John de Place is in December 1242 and afterwards, the castle was returned to her.
The 8th Earl of Warwick, William Maudit was a supporter of Henry III during the Barons War between 1264-1267. After a surprise attack, Simon de Montfort, the 6th Earl of Leicester, from Kenilworth Castle, invaded Warwick Castle leaving much damage. According to the 15th century chronicler, John Rous, t eh damage was so bad, “that it should be no strength to the king". The Earl and Countess were held prisoners at Kenilworth Castle until a ransom was paid.
After William Maudit died in 1267, the title and castle was passed on to his nephew, William de Beauchamp who became the 9th Earl of Warwick.
The 10th Earl of Warwick, Guy de Beauchamp along with Thomas Crouchback, 2nd Earl of Lancaster, who was the son of Henry III despised King Edward II's favourite and maybe secret gay lover Piers Gaveston. Gaveston mocked them, calling Guy de Beauchamp, “The Black Dog of Arden”, and Thomas Crouchback “The Fiddler". After Gaveston had disgraced the aristocracy many times they decided to have him gone once and for all. They captured Piers Gaveston and imprisoned him in Warwick castle until they tried him, accusing him of stealing from the royal treasury and executed him on the 9th June 1312.
Between 1330 – 1360, Guy's son, Thomas de Beauchamp, 11th Earl of Warwick, had a considerable amount of work done on the castle. He added two towers, Caeser’s tower and Guy's Tower. Caesar's Tower included a dungeon that, according to local legend, it was also known as Poitiers Tower because it may have held prisoners from the Battle of Poitiers in 1356. He also oversaw the construction od the barabican and gatehouse on the north eastern part of the castle. The Watergate Tower was also built around this period.
The last in line of the Beauchamp family was Anne de Beauchamp who died in 1449. The next Earl of Warwick was Richard Neville, famously known as “The Kingmaker“, who gained the title through his wife's inheritance. During the War of the Roses, Neville played a central part in putting Edward 4th on the throne. Edward now needed a wife and who better to find him one but his right hand man, Richard Neville. Neville travelled to France for meetings with King Louis 11th and negotiated an agreement for his daughter, Bona of Savoy to marry the newly crowned English King, Edward. This marriage would have put an end to the ongoing conflict between the two countries. When Neville returned to England, King Edward announced that he’d got married in secret to Lady Elizabeth Woodville. This made Richard Neville look a fool, the Woodville’s were seen as the enemy to many of the Barons, as Elizabeth’s father fought against Edward at the Battle of Towton and Elizabeth was one of the Kings subjects had been married before, this was unheard of at this time. Neville rebelled against Edward 4th and imprisoned him at Warwick Castle. Neville tried to rule England in the Kings name but supporters of the King forced him to release the King. On 14th April 1471, during the Battle of Barnet, Richard Neville was killed fighting against the King.
The castle was then passed on to his nephew, George Plantagenet, 1st Duke of Clarence, the brother of King Edward IV (4th). The castle was then handed to George's son, Edward Plantagenet, 17th Earl of Warwick, who was only two years old at the time and a potential claimant to the throne during the reigns of both Richard III and his successor Henry VII . The lands were taken by the crown by Henry VII and Edward was not able to inherit the throne. He was held in the Tower of London for 14 years from the age of 10 and was executed in 1499 for high treason for conspiring to escape. Edward was the last Earl of Warwick since the titles 1st creation.
The castle stayed in care of the crown until 1547 when John Dudley was granted the estate along with the second creation of the title of Earl of Warwick. John Dudley commented the following about the castles condition:
“... The castle of itself is not able to lodge a good baron with his train, for all the one side of the said castle with also the dungeon tower is clearly ruinated and down to the ground".
“... The castle of itself is not able to lodge a good baron with his train, for all the one side of the said castle with also the dungeon tower is clearly ruinated and down to the ground".
The castle had been neglected over a long period even though when it was in possession of the crown, it had extensive works carried out, but John Dudley didn’t carry out any repairs.
In 1566, Queen Elizabeth I visited the castle during a tour of the country and she visited again and stayed for 4 nights in 1572. The 3rd Earl of Warwick, Ambrose Dudley, commissioned a timber structure for the Queen to stay in during her visit. The title of Earl of Warwick ended for the 2nd time in 1590 when Ambrose Dudley died.
In 1566, Queen Elizabeth I visited the castle during a tour of the country and she visited again and stayed for 4 nights in 1572. The 3rd Earl of Warwick, Ambrose Dudley, commissioned a timber structure for the Queen to stay in during her visit. The title of Earl of Warwick ended for the 2nd time in 1590 when Ambrose Dudley died.
At the time of his death, the castle was still in a bad state of repair, lead had even been stolen from the roof of various buildings including the chapel.
In October 1601, Sir Fulke Greville wrote:
The little stone building, there was, mightily in decay, the timber lodgings built 30 years ago for herself, Queen Elizabeth I all ruinous;... so as in very short time there will be nothing left but a name of Warwick".
In October 1601, Sir Fulke Greville wrote:
The little stone building, there was, mightily in decay, the timber lodgings built 30 years ago for herself, Queen Elizabeth I all ruinous;... so as in very short time there will be nothing left but a name of Warwick".
The castle was granted to the Secretary of Wales, Sir Fulke Greville in 1604 by James I and converted into a country house. Fulke made such an impression on the King that he made him Chancellor of England. Fulke carried extensive repairs to the castle to make it habitable again. During this time in 1605, the castle was indirectly involved with the Gunpowder Plot.
When the conspirators found out that Guy Fawkes had been captured and their plan had been found out, they left their hideout in nearby Dunchurch. They reached Warwick Castle and stole cavalry horses from the stables to help in their escape.
When the conspirators found out that Guy Fawkes had been captured and their plan had been found out, they left their hideout in nearby Dunchurch. They reached Warwick Castle and stole cavalry horses from the stables to help in their escape.
The title of Earl of Warwick was re-established for the 3rd time in 1618, it was given to Fulke Greville who also became Baron Brooke in 1621. He spent £20,000, which is £4 million in today’s money, renovating the castle. During this time, Fulke occupied the Watergate Tower. According to the 17th century antiquary, William Dugdale, he wrote:
“a place not only of great strength but extraordinary delight, with most pleasant gardens, walks and thickets, such as this part of England can hardly parallel".
“a place not only of great strength but extraordinary delight, with most pleasant gardens, walks and thickets, such as this part of England can hardly parallel".
In 1621, Fulke retired from public view when he was 68 years old. On the 1st of September 1628, Fulke was visiting a lawyer in London to sort out his last will and testament. The lawyer insisted that he had two witnesses to oversee that everything was written down was to Fulke’s wishes. Fulke asked two of his servants who he knew could read and write, one of them being Ralph Heywood, Fulke's valet. Heywood believed that he should have been left something in the will as he’d been a faithful servant to Fulke Greville for many years, but when he read that he was left nothing, he was outraged. Fulke believed that the wages for his service was payment enough. Heywood grabbed the penknife belonging to the lawyer and in a violent temper stabbed Fulke and then ran off. After a short search, Heywood’s body was found with the knife in his hand and lacerations to his throat, he’d killed himself by cutting his own throat. Sir Fulke Greville died 4 weeks later after he is wounds became infected. His physicians treated his wounds by filling them with pig fat which turned rancid and infected the wounds further. His body was taken back to Warwick Castle and his body was then interred in the Collegiate Church of St Mary in Warwick.
Between January and May 1642, the castles defences were built up with extra fortifications in preparation for the oncoming attacks during the first English Civil War under the 2nd Baron Brooke, Robert Greville. Two cannons were added and the garden walls were raised higher along with beams and soil the mount the artillery. On the 7th August 1642, the castle was under attack. Robert Greville was a Parliamentarian and the castle was under siege by Royalist soldiers under the command of Spencer Compton, 2nd Earl of Northampton, Lord Lieutenant of Warwickshire. Robert Greville wasn't at the castle at the time but he'd left the castle and garrison in charge of Sir Edward Peyto. The acting Herald, William Dugdale, called for the surrender of the castle but Peyto refused. The Royalists opened fire on the castle with little effect. Richard Bulstrode, author and soldier on the side of Charles I, wrote:
“... our endeavours for taking it were to little purpose, for we had only two small pieces of cannon which were brought from Compton House, belonging to the Earl of Northampton, and those were drawn up to the top of the church steeple, and were discharged at the castle, to which they could do no hut, but only frightened them within the castle, who shot into the street, and killed several of our men.”
“... our endeavours for taking it were to little purpose, for we had only two small pieces of cannon which were brought from Compton House, belonging to the Earl of Northampton, and those were drawn up to the top of the church steeple, and were discharged at the castle, to which they could do no hut, but only frightened them within the castle, who shot into the street, and killed several of our men.”
The Royalists were forced to retreat to Worcester after the garrison was relieved by the forces of the Earl of Essex on 23rd August 1642. After the Battle of Edgehill, many prisoners were held in the Caesar’s Tower and Guys Tower and again after the 2nd Civil War including from the Battle of Worcester in 1651. A garrison was stationed at Warwick Castle until 1660, 302 soldiers at one point with full artillery, until The English Council ordered it to disband and hand the castle back to 4th Baron Brooke. The castle apartments was left in a bad state of repair once again.
The 8th Baron Brooke, Francis Greville, was given the title of Earl of Warwick in 1759, recreating the title for the 4th time. The castle was once again in the ownership of the Earls of Warwick. Francis Brooke started to renovate the castle and grounds bringing in the infamous Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown to landscape the gardens.
George Greville, 2nd Earl of Warwick of the latest creation, had accumulated £115,000 worth of debt, that’s £11 million in today’s money. The Earls estates were given to the Earl of Galloway and John Fitzpatrick ,2nd Earl of Upper Ossory in 1806 but the castle was returned to the Earl of Warwick in 1813.
The last Earl of Warwick was Charles Guy Fulke Greville, the 7th Earl of Warwick and 7th Earl Brooke, who lived at the castle until it’s sale in 1978. He became the first British aristocrat to star in a Hollywood movie. He was nicknamed the Duke of Hollywood by the local press and his most notable role was in the Film Dawn Patrol starring alongside David Niven and Errol Flynn.
He once said in an interview with Life magazine:
“The Earls armour and art is worth $16 million dollars, the castle has 200 servants and 24 downstairs dining rooms. If I made $5000 a week, that would not be sufficient to run the castle ".
He took a movie job so that he could afford the great expense of being an Earl.
The castle was sold to the Tussauds Group in 1978 for £1.3 million and souls again in 2007 to The Blackstone Group and is now one of England’s top tourist attractions.
“The Earls armour and art is worth $16 million dollars, the castle has 200 servants and 24 downstairs dining rooms. If I made $5000 a week, that would not be sufficient to run the castle ".
He took a movie job so that he could afford the great expense of being an Earl.
The castle was sold to the Tussauds Group in 1978 for £1.3 million and souls again in 2007 to The Blackstone Group and is now one of England’s top tourist attractions.
Many people have witnessed a cloud of mist materialise from thin air in the Watergate Tower which is also now known as the Ghost Tower. It’s believed to be the ghost of Sir Fulke Greville returning to the place that he loved and spent so much time and money. It’s said that the pale figure of Fulke emerges from his portrait that hangs in the castle, he looks like he’s in extreme pain and wanders the grounds of the castle screaming in agony.
In 1999, a young family visited the castle and the parents were intrigued by the story of Fulke Greville’s murder and the ghost stories attached to the tower. They went into one of the rooms that was dimly lit that contained a bed. As they stood close together, they felt the presence of someone trying to get past the so they moved to let them past, only afterwards realising that no one was there.
In the same year, two friends who were historians went for a day out to the castle. They stood looking around the towers bedroom when they said that they heard a voice telling them to ‘get out', and at that point felt someone grab a their hands and pull them. They left rapidly.
People have also experienced the sound of footsteps in the Japanese Corridor, these have been heard by many people, even groups of people at the same time.
One of the former Countesses of Warwick used a room off the corridor as her writing room. She heard the footsteps often and would sometimes go the room which she always locked to find the papers on her desk moved around as if someone had been reading them.
An American guest who stayed at the castle during World War Two heard the footsteps one night. He stood his ground and waited for them to get closer to him in fascination. The footsteps not only got closer, they passed through him. He rushed off to his room and locked the door.
In the 13th Century, one of the Earl of Warwick’s servants who was too old to serve, lived in a small cottage below the castle walls. Her name was Moll Bloxham, and the Earl gave her the daily milk that wasn’t used in the castle to sell and to make butter for a small prophet. Her customers complained to the Earl that she was cheating them and not giving them the full amount. When the Earl checked, he found that she’d cheated on the weights to her advantage. He was angry and outraged that she’d not honoured his generosity towards her and had her publicly tortured. The torturer went over the top and just before the brink of death, she cursed the town saying that she’d be back to seek revenge. Moll died from the torture that day. That same night, a huge spectral black dog with red glowing eyes went rampage around the castle grounds, terrifying everyone in its path. This went on for weeks until the Earl sent for the clergy to cast the hideous black dog out. They chased it towards the castle and it entered one of the towers. They followed behind it, chanting prayers and holding crosses towards it. In fear of God, the black dog jumped from the tower, landing in the River Avon below. Some people believe that the black dog became trapped and is still there now, waiting for its moment to return to cause havoc again, others believe that Moll returned as a woman dressed in grey that is often seen around the castle grounds, terrifying anyone who comes I to contact with her.
In the dungeon of the castle, people have heard the cries and screaming of prisoners pleading to be let out. The ghost of a former jailer has been seen and heard many times in the dungeon. He is seen standing behind a metal gate, shouting at anyone who approaches him. They always describe him as sinister and evil.