Fulbrook Castle

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Fulbroke; Duke of Bedfords Castle

In the civil parish of Fulbrook. In the historic county of Warwickshire (Modern Authority of Warwickshire, 1974 county of Warwickshire).

C15 castle of John, Duke of Bedford. There are no remains above ground, but excavations some years ago are said to have produced brick-lined foundations, and recent ploughing has produced large quantities of brick and fragments of glazed tile and pottery. Sir William Compton demolished the castle in the time of Henry VIII. The castle is said to have been ruinous by 1478, though a lodge is said to have survived into C16. The cropmark site was examined. A very clear parch mark in which individual rooms and corridors placed around a central courtyard could be traced. Webster has suggested that this is a courtyard villa, but field investigation in 1985 produced evidence for a dense scatter of Medieval tile and brick mixed with small quantities of stone. The castle was situated on a hilltop with commanding views in all directions. There is no indication of any form of surrounding earthwork. The building was about 35m square. One wonders to what extent the castle was defensive; its plan is similar to phase 1 of Compton Wynyates. Only a small proportion of the site has been excavated and, despite deep ploughing, substantial deposits will survive undisturbed. The sites importance is enhanced by documents which describe it as an early example of the use of brick.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is SP25056027

Air Photo from Air Photo and general mapping	1st edition OS Map from Mid to late 19th century maps
Modern Map from Landscape form and features	Modern Map from General location and route planning
Geograph British Isles occasionally has photos of the site and will usually give an idea of the surrounding landscape.

Sources of information, references and further reading

This site's English Heritage (PastScape) Defra or Monument number is 333568
This site's County Historic Environment Record (formerly Sites and Monuments Record) number is 835 'grey' literature, such as watching brief reports, held by H.E.R.s is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded in this website.

• Web site links
  • http://timetrail.warwickshire.gov.uk/detail.aspx?monuid=WA835
• Books
  • Emery, Anthony, 2000, Greater Medieval Houses Vol2 (Cambridge) p306
    Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p263 [slight]
    Salter, Mike, 1993, Midlands Castles (Birmingham) p46
    Salter, Mike, 1992, Castles and Moated Mansions of Warwickshire (Malvern) p29
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol2 p485
    Colvin, H.M., Brown, R.Allen and Taylor, A.J., 1963, The history of the King's Works Vol2: the Middle Ages (London: HMSO) p941-2
    Salzman, L.F. (ed), 1945, VCH Warwickshire Vol3 p92
    Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (Methuen and Co)
    Mackenzie, J.D., 1897, Castles of England (Heinemann) Vol1 p349-50
    Dugdale, William (2edn rev by Wm Thomas), 1730, The Antiquities of Warwickshire (London) Vol2 p669-70
• Journal Articles
  • Hingley R., 1985, West Midlands Archaeology Vol28 p57-8
    Chatwin, P.B., 1947, Transactions of the Birmingham and Warwickshire Archaeological Society Vol67 p30
• Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
  • Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p467
    Toulmin-Smith, Lucy (ed), 1910, The itinerary of John Leland in or about the years 1535-1543 (Bell and Sons; London) Vol2 p47-8 http://www.archive.org/details/itineraryofjohnl02lelauoft ; Vol5 p115 http://www.archive.org/details/itineraryofjohnl05lelauoft