Wigmore Castle,

Wigmore Castle was built in the late 12th century on the site of a wooden castle founded after the Norman Conquest, around 1070. Parts of the walls were built or rebuilt in stone and further work was carried out in the 13th century, by Hugh de Mortimer. The works included the curtain wall that surrounds the bailey, which still stands to this day at its full height on the east side and the south side between the south tower and the gatehouse.

The castle was the subject of extensive works in the late 13th or early 14th century, when it was held by Roger Mortimer. The walls were raised, the gatehouse remodelled and other buildings were constructed on the site, including a substantial block, possibly a lodgings range, within the inner bailey.

Roger had succeeded his father Edmund in 1304, and strengthened the position of the Mortimer family considerably, acquiring Ludlow Castle and many lands in Ireland through marriage to the heiress Joan de Geneville.

Roger was a leader of the party opposed to Edward II in the 1320s, and c.1325 became the lover of Edward's queen, Isabella of France. Following Edward's deposition and death in 1327, Mortimer, as the queen's lover and the effective stepfather of the young King Edward III, became the most important man in the kingdom.

Roger de Mortimer was executed in 1330 by King Edward III, and his lands seized by the crown. His heir Roger de Mortimer was killed in battle in Ireland in 1398 and when the male line of the Mortimers died out in 1424, the castle passed to Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York.

Throughout the 16th century the castle was managed by the Council of the Marches, partly as a prison.

After the Civil War, the castle was left in a state of ruin, and was gradually covered in trees and other vegetation until 1995 when Wigmore Castle came into the guardianship of English Heritage, which carried out some conservation work and small-scale excavation, making the site accessible to visitors.

Opening Times

Any reasonable time.

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Ticket Prices

Admission is free.

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Disabled Facilities

The Castle has steep steps to the summit, which are hazardous in icy conditions. There is no custodial presence.

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More Information

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