Sutton Valence Castle

The ruins of the donjon at Sutton Valence Castle

Sutton Valence Castle is a ruined medieval castle in the village of Sutton Valence in the English county of Kent . The castle was built in the second half of the 12th century, probably for Baudouin de Béthune , the Count of Aumale . From here one could control a strategically important route to the coast. Sutton Valence Castle probably consisted of an inner castle , an outer castle and a barbican for protection. The three-story donjon stood on the south side. The castle passed through the hands of the Marshal and De Montfort families and was then rebuilt by King Henry III in 1265 lent to his half-brother William de Valence , after whom the castle was named. At the beginning of the 14th century it was abandoned and fell into disrepair. Today the castle ruins are managed by English Heritage and the remains of the donjon are open to the public.

history

12-15 century

Sutton Valence Castle was probably built in the second half of the 12th century for the Counts of Aumale, probably for Baudouin de Béthune , but possibly also for William le Gros , Baudouin's father-in-law. The castle was built on an elevated point over the strategic route between the towns of Maidstone , Rye and Old Winchelsea . The place was originally called Town Sutton . The castle's stone keep was built around 1200.

In 1203 Baudouin de Béthune signed the castle over to his daughter Alicia on the occasion of her marriage to William Marshal , who later became the Earl of Pembroke. William Marshal later married again, whereby the property fell to his second wife, Eleanor . After William's death, Eleanor married Simon de Montfort . Simon de Montfort led a rebellion against King Henry III during the Barons' Second War . but fell in the Battle of Evesham in 1265 , after which Eleanor's castle was taken. The king forgave Sutton Valence to William de Valence, his half-brother, who had supported him in this conflict. Under its new owner, the castle was given its current name. Aymer de Valence , his son, inherited the castle in 1307. The Valences traveled around their various estates, but then turned their attention increasingly to a handful of their many large houses; they stayed at Sutton Valence Castle on a number of occasions.

After Aymer de Valence's death in 1324, the castle fell to Lawrence Hastings through marriage and remained in his family until 1390. Then she acquired Reginald Gray, 3rd Baron Gray de Ruthin . Since then, there have been few historical records of the castle, but it appears to have been abandoned and in ruins in the early 14th century.

16.-21. century

In the late 18th century, the historian Edward Hasted Sutton Valence Castle described as "now almost entirely overgrown with ivy and the branches of the trees are coming out of the walls." In the mid-1950s, with help from the Maidstone Museum and the local Sutton Valence School Excavations carried out that focused on the donjon. In 1976 the castle ruins passed into the hands of the state. Today it belongs to English Heritage, which had maintenance work carried out on the ruins in the 1980s. The castle ruin is listed as a historical building of the 2nd degree and is considered a Scheduled Monument .

architecture

The remains of the keep of ragstone and flint quarry

Sutton Valence Castle was built on a headland of the Chart Hills next to the village of Sutton Valence and was believed to have consisted of an inner castle and an outer castle and a barbican for protection. Visitors entered through the barbican to the east and came into the outer bailey; these parts of the castle are only preserved today as earthworks . A dry trench protected the core castle, which covered an area of about 300 meters × 34 meters and was located in the southern part of the site. This central castle probably consisted of a knight's hall , a chapel and kitchens, but only the donjon has survived to this day. The donjon has a footprint of 11 meters by 11 meters, its walls are 2.4 meters thick and it was made of ragstone and flint . The ruin is still 7 meters high today. It originally rose up to a height of 20 meters and had at least three floors. It was accessed via an outside staircase that led to an entrance on the first floor. The building had a corner tower in which a spiral staircase connected the individual floors, and bracing buttresses at the corners.

Individual evidence

^ Adrian Pettifer: English Castles: A Guide by Counties . Boydell Press, Woodbridge 1995. ISBN 978-0-851157-82-5 . P. 192.
↑ Harold Sands, PH Ditchfield (editor), George Clinton (editor): Memorials of Old Kent . Bemrose and Sons, London 1907. Chapter: Some Kentish Castles . P. 196.
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l History and Research: Sutton Valence Castle . English Heritage. Retrieved January 1, 2015.
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k Tower keep castle at Sutton Valence . Historic England. English Heritage. Retrieved October 19, 2016.
^ LRA Grove: Sutton Valence in Archaeologia Cantiana . Issue 71 (1957). Pp. 202-204.
↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d Harold Sands: Sutton Valence Castle in Archaeologia Cantiana . Issue 25 (1902). P. 205.
^ Anthony Emery: Greater Medieval Houses of England and Wales, 1300-1500 . Volume 3: Southern England . Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2006. ISBN 978-1-139449-19-9 . P. 28.
↑ Harold Sands: Sutton Valence Castle in Archaeologia Cantiana . Issue 25 (1902). Pp. 204-206.
^ Adrian Pettifer: English Castles: A Guide by Counties . Boydell Press, Woodbridge 1995. ISBN 978-0-851157-82-5 . P. 130.
^ LRA Grove: Sutton Valence in Archaeologia Cantiana . Issue 71 (1957). P. 228.
^ Edward Hasted: Parishes: Sutton Valence, in The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent: Volume 5 . British History Online. Pp. 364-375. 1798. Retrieved October 19, 2016.
^ LRA Grove: Sutton Valence in Archaeologia Cantiana . Issue 71 (1957). Pp. 227-228.
^ English Heritage: Extract from English Heritage's Record of Scheduled Monuments . Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Retrieved October 19, 2016.

Web links

Commons : Sutton Valence Castle - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Sutton Valence Castle . English Heritage.

51.21238 0.59775Coordinates: 51 ° 12 ′ 44.6 " N , 0 ° 35 ′ 51.9" E

[Pettifer192-1] Adrian Pettifer: English Castles: A Guide by Counties . Boydell Press, Woodbridge 1995. ISBN 978-0-851157-82-5 . P. 192.

[SandsB196-2] Harold Sands, PH Ditchfield (editor), George Clinton (editor): Memorials of Old Kent . Bemrose and Sons, London 1907. Chapter: Some Kentish Castles . P. 196.

[EHHR-3] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l History and Research: Sutton Valence Castle . English Heritage. Retrieved January 1, 2015.

[HE-4] ↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k Tower keep castle at Sutton Valence . Historic England. English Heritage. Retrieved October 19, 2016.

[Grove202204-5] LRA Grove: Sutton Valence in Archaeologia Cantiana . Issue 71 (1957). Pp. 202-204.

[SandsA205-6] Harold Sands: Sutton Valence Castle in Archaeologia Cantiana . Issue 25 (1902). P. 205.

[Emery28-7] Anthony Emery: Greater Medieval Houses of England and Wales, 1300-1500 . Volume 3: Southern England . Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 2006. ISBN 978-1-139449-19-9 . P. 28.

[SandsA204206-8] Harold Sands: Sutton Valence Castle in Archaeologia Cantiana . Issue 25 (1902). Pp. 204-206.

[Pettifer130-9] Adrian Pettifer: English Castles: A Guide by Counties . Boydell Press, Woodbridge 1995. ISBN 978-0-851157-82-5 . P. 130.

[Grove228-10] LRA Grove: Sutton Valence in Archaeologia Cantiana . Issue 71 (1957). P. 228.

[BHO-11] Edward Hasted: Parishes: Sutton Valence, in The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent: Volume 5 . British History Online. Pp. 364-375. 1798. Retrieved October 19, 2016.

[Grove227228-12] LRA Grove: Sutton Valence in Archaeologia Cantiana . Issue 71 (1957). Pp. 227-228.

[EHRDSM-13] English Heritage: Extract from English Heritage's Record of Scheduled Monuments . Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Retrieved October 19, 2016.