CSG Annual Conference - - April 2016 - Wigmore

Wigmore Castle. The late 13th century three-storey with the stubs of the early 14th century barbican extension, looking NW. Most of the barbican is lost. The scar of the low-pitched roof line of the barbican can be traced well above the archway. There is probably about 10-15 ft of debris below the arch, and the barbican would have been two storeys high.

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Wigmore Castle. A painting of how the fragmentary castle looked in 1995/6, Image courtesy of artist and illustrator Brian Byron. This view was first published in the CSG Newsletter No. 10. 1996/7. View from the south. In 1425 the line died out and the castle Wigmore Castle more or less died with them. It was still habitable According to the Domesday Book this was one in 1461, when the future Edward IV lodged here of the strongholds founded by William Fitz before his decisive victory at Mortimer’s Cross Osbern, earl of Hereford. Following the rebel- but after that it lapsed into ruin. It is a powerfully- lion of his son in 1075 the castle was granted to sited motte-and-bailey stronghold with a lot of Ralph de Mortimer, founder of a dynasty which masonry still standing, although much has been became one of the most powerful in the Welsh lost (see above). The oval or ‘shell keep’ or Marches. Henry II captured the castle from upper bailey on the large motte incorporates Nor- Hugh de Mortimer in 1155, but it was here that man sections of walling, but most of the other Prince Edward obtained refuge following his stonework belongs to a reconstruction of circa escape from Hereford Castle in 1265. The most 1300-1330, probably undertaken by the ambi- notorious of the line was Roger Mortimer (V), tious Roger Mortimer. There are three towers on first earl of , who played a leading part in the line of the south Outer Bailey curtain, two the deposition and murder of Edward II (1327). rectangular (S & SW) and one ‘D-shaped’ (East). In concert with his lover, Queen Isabella, Mor- The largest tower (S) contained a suite of cham- timer ruled for three years until being bers and is divided by a cross-wall. In addition overthrown by the young Edward III. He died the arch of the gatehouse remains half·buried in on the gallows at Tyburn and Wigmore was an accumulation of earth and rubble, most of given to the earl of Salisbury; the which is probably an outer portcullis arch that later regained their lands and title by marriage. contained square grooves that fell in the mid C20.

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ABOVE: Wigmore Castle. A 1996 interpretation of how the castle may have appeared by the middle of the 15th century. Image courtesy of artist and illustrator Brian Byron. This view was first published in the CSG Newsletter No. 10. 1996/7 of 20 years ago. BELOW: Following continued research and the publication of the recent monograph by Stephanie Ratkai (ed.) 2015, a revised visual interpretation of the castle has been prepared by Dominic Andrews, for English Heritage. It also appears on the EH website for Wigmore. © Historic England. Reproduced with thanks. The various changes, compared to the 1996 drawing, are highlighted in the text, ‘Editor’s Note’ (p. 93).

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'Wigmore', in An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in , Volume 3, North West (London, 1934), pp. 203-210 http://www.british-history.ac.uk/rchme/heref/vol3/pp203-210

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ABOVE: S & N Buck. Wigmore from the south. 1733. 1. Upper Bailey (The Keep or ‘Shell Keep’) 2. The Hall range (the NE Tower hidden behind). 3. The East Tower. 4. The Gatehouse and Barbican. 5. The South Tower (lodging tower). 6. The South-West Tower (lodging tower). 1: has some Norman walling but is mainly C14; 3: East D-shaped tower early C13 (see Ratkai (ed.) 2015, 35-7. 2, 4-6 . Hall/Towers/gatehouse: early C14. BELOW: The 1934 Royal Commission plan. (Source details as previous page). Some masonry has since fallen. The ‘keep’ has a fragment of an octagonal or polygonal corner tower (NW) that has the label:‘former stairs’.

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The current English Heritage plan of Wigmore. (A cropped version of the full plan which includes areas further south including the village). The Upper Bailey is simply termed ‘Keep’. The ‘Inner Bailey,’ on the plan is perhaps better described as a ‘Lower Bailey’ and is circumscribed by the recognised curtain from the SW to the SE. ‘The Outer Bailey’ is circumscribed by the red dotted lines that travel south nearer to the village. See the EH website: www.english-heritage.org.uk/content/visit/places-to-visit/history-research-plans/wigmore-castle-phased-plan.

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ABOVE: Wigmore, from the south. By (John?) Deare, 1766, in Indian Ink. © The British Library Board. Ref: K Top 15 111.b. BELOW: Wigmore from the south. William Hodges, 1778. (Cropped). © The British Library Board. Ref: K Top 15 111.c. In both paintings the hall in the lower bailey has gone, and the N-E tower is now visible. The large NW donjon tower in the ‘Keep’ is now substantially reduced.

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ABOVE: Wigmore. 1815. View from the south, John George Wood.(1768-1838). Soft ground etching. BELOW: The remains of buildings around the Upper Bailey (or ‘Keep’) from the south ‘Lower Bailey’.

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Wigmore. Part of the ‘Donjon Tower’ on the motte at the north-western corner of the mound just beyond the Upper Bailey. View from the south. It may been part of a polygonal stair turret at the point where the tower meets the west curtain wing. The structure is often referred to as the ‘Stair Tower’. It is a 36ft (11m) pinnacle of masonry at the highest point of the castle.

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Wigmore. Part of the ‘Donjon Tower’ fragment on the motte at the north-western corner of the mound just beyond the ‘Upper Bailey’ (or Keep on the plan). View (looking north-west) of the internal side of the structure. Whilst known as the ‘Stair Tower’, it is not at all clear, at least to the writer, that the remaining features and moldings merit this description. As Jon Cooke (13/2012) notes:‘it is a complex structure with few clues as to the original form of the tower keep.. much is still conjectural’. Image courtesy of Peter Burton.

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Wigmore. View from the motte. Interior of the Upper Ward (Keep or Shell Keep) looking south-east. The masonry east wall, mostly about 23ft (7m) high, stands 7ft (2m) thick and nearly 131ft (40m) long. In the middle (but to the exterior side) stands a shallow but broad projection. Much of this walling may be 12th century work. It seems to the writer that the entrance to the ‘Upper Ward’ was always on the SE side following the present stepped route although Buck does not seem to show it this way.

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ABOVE: Edward Blore. The South Tower of the ‘Shell Keep’ looking down towards the interior side of the gatehouse c. 1800. Shelfmark: Additional MS 42023, Item number: f.26. © The British Library Board. Reproduced with thanks. BELOW:The interior view of the semi-octagonal North-East (Solar) Tower from the position of the present entrance to the Upper Bailey (or‘Shell Keep’) , looking east.

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Wigmore. The rectangular South (Lodging) Tower, c. 1320s, from the exterior. Below: South Tower - Ground floor interior ogee-headed light in the east chamber, characteristic of this era, bur rarely seen before 1320.

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South (Lodging) Tower, c. 1320s, ground floor, west chamber. Lights to south and west. Below: Fire- place adjacent to the west window. Above there is one large E-W chamber with central fireplace.

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Exterior of the East ‘D-shaped’ angle tower from across the ditch. c. 1225. Below: Interior view of ground floor from the bailey. The tower was equipped with a garderobe, fireplace and three equally spaced loops giving flanking fire to the north-east and south-west; basement inaccessible. See Ratkai, 2015, 55-73.

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ABOVE: The exterior of the semi-octagonal North-East (Solar) Tower. The facet looking north with the large first-floor window above the string-course offset.. BELOW: The NE Tower from the exterior, looking east. The tower extends boldly forward of the curtain. Semi-octagonal facets with a significant double-chamfered string-course and offset with ground floor window below. The tower appears to be more semi-octagonal than shown on plan.

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English Heritage Spends £1 Million and notices everywhere with worn patches and Saves a Castle in Ruin (in 1999) puddles where people had stood to read about On Oct. 12, 1999, in the presence of this writer, what they were looking at. There would be English Heritage opened the last great medieval warnings about dangerous ancient monuments castle in England, which, until English Heritage are. Instead, we have kept the promise I made acquired it in 1996, had never been repaired or three years ago that the Castle would remain conserved. After three years of work costing untouched and the spirit of the place intact. I almost £1 million, Wigmore Castle still looked want every visitor to feel they are discovering like it has done for the last 200 years. Is that good for themselves Wigmore, the magical, evoca- or bad for visitors? The late Sir Jocelyn Stevens, tive and mysterious ruin which invites explora- then EH Chairman, speaking at the opening cer- tion, vivid with wild flowers and sustaining a emony, said: "Three years ago Wigmore Castle remarkably rich and flourishing wildlife." was about to collapse. It was one of the most At Wigmore English Heritage has developed vulnerable historic monuments in England”. an 'organic' method of making ruins safe. In- “Having visited the castle with my commission- stead of imposing on the ruins an inappropriate ers we decided to save it and adopt an entirely 'textbook' programme of restoration and pre- new approach to its conservation and preserva- sentation, experts felt their way forward, using tion. We would consolidate the ruins so that the experimental techniques, learning as they went castle would remain a romantic ruin forever. from what the castle had to teach. Once again we have fulfilled our promise, com- English Heritage also took the unusual step for ing in ahead of time and under budget. As a result us of employing an ecologist on the team. His Wigmore Castle's spectacular ruins will continue expertise, combined with that of English Heri- to dominate their wild and windswept hilltop for tage's own landscape specialists and our health many generations to come”. and safety advisor, is responsible for the suc- "The fragile ecology of the site, with species of cessful use of nature itself - the planting of plants and animals little changed since the early dense and hostile native species of thorn, bram- 1700s, has been left intact. Likewise, much of ble and nettle - to deter visitors from dangerous the castle's past lies buried, eight metres deep zones. At Wigmore, the walls and wildlife are beneath the surface - a time-capsule and one of mutually dependent. Tufts of grass and wild- the most important archaeological sites in Eng- flowers temporarily removed from the wall tops land, undisturbed. during the works were kept alive in special tubs. Now back in place they will help protect the "Everyone from schoolchildren to academics, walls from frost and cracking. Even ivy, rein- will have access to the fully digitised three stated, will shield rather than invade the walls. dimensional record that we have made of the Castle, which is probably the most complete A visit to Wigmore Castle is free but not for computerised record of any site in Britain. Had everyone. There are no visitor facilities. It is a we adopted the traditional approach, one which hard walk to the top of the hill. Children must we and our colleagues in Cadw and Historic not go alone. We have worked with the local Scotland have used in the past, we would have authority and the people of the village to ensure excavated the entire site to reveal buried build- that visitors neither disturb the peace and char- ings. We would have laid out the site as some- acter of Wigmore nor, through their numbers, thing it never was, a ruin with neat grass lawns. destroy the very experience they have come to The fallen debris would have been removed, enjoy. Rob Williams, English Nature's Three formal paths laid and concrete steps, metal rail- Counties Team Manager, said, "We give a ings, litter bins, a custodian's hut, a car park, warm welcome to this outstanding example of lavatories, a shop, perhaps even a ‘heritage work which combines the conservation of flora center’ imposed. There would have been bossy and fauna with the preservation of the site’.

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Wigmore 20 years on now facing the visitor retains much of its gran- Nearly twenty years on from the start of imple- deur and romance, lost at other more traditional- menting this ground-breaking methodology, ly well-tended sites. And yet, the scope of the CSG members can now, after visiting the site, excavations was really too narrow, before the reflect on those words and consider the effective- site was made safe and returned to Nature’s ness and appropriateness of this approach to care, to reveal a fully coherent picture of life at conservation, consolidation and interpretation. the castle’. Two excavations at Wigmore Castle prior to open- ‘Much of the detail from the faunal and arte- ing, (1996, 1998) were undertaken and those form factual assemblages conforms to a pattern seen the subject of the recent Stephanie Ratkai mono- not just at Marcher but of castles gener- graph published in 2015. She notes that ‘as well as ally. The one difference is that Marcher castles the two excavations that form the subject of this retained their military function long after those monograph, there was a detailed survey of the in less marginal areas had ceased to do so. All visible masonry of the entire site (Cooke, 2008 - is totally in keeping with the quotidian life of now 2012) that revealed much about the castle’s the aristocracy and their households’….. history and structural development. A further re- ‘New information has come to light. There can sistivity survey of the upper part of the Outer be no doubt that the castle stands on the original Bailey was undertaken (Payne 2007), as was a site chosen by fitz Osbern nor can there be any topographical survey (Barratt 1998). Archaeolog- doubt that the castle was flourishing in the 15th ical investigators from the RCHME undertook century. Both of these conclusions could only their own landscape survey of the castle and its have been reached as a result of archaeological surroundings, including the evidence for the adja- intervention. The extent of the decay in the 16th cent deer park (Brown 2002). century, which is far from clear in the documen- A draft guidebook was also prepared, but never tary record, is more concretely manifest in the published (Coppack n.d). The initial presentation excavated deposits in and around the East Tow- of the site was minimal, with only (then) a single er [one of the excavations undertaken]. panel focusing on the conservation project and its ‘The fulsome and excellent range of documen- rationale, but the desire for new more detailed site tary evidence collated by Dr Cragoe [Chapter presentation materials in 2008 led to Stephanie 2] provides an interesting counterpoint to that being commissioned to undertake further re- recovered from excavation. Without allowing search. As part of this work, the archaeological the documentary sources to bind the excava- artist Dominic Andrews was commissioned to tion results into too prescriptive a scheme, it is, create a new reconstruction drawing taking into nevertheless, possible to hazard an opinion account all the evidence gathered from work on linking the two sets of data in many cases’. the site to that date to replace a reconstruction by EDITOR’S NOTE: Dominic Andrews’ new recon- Bryan Byron of 1995 (78). The work on develop- struction highlights a number a features not pre- ing Andrews’ reconstruction suggested a number viously noted or considered: 1. Internal routes of previously un-remarked upon features, includ- and access to the ‘Keep’ on the motte; 2. terraced ing a possible outer perimeter wall encompassing houses lining the ‘wing wall’ to the Keep to the the ditch at the back of the site, to the north-west E; 3. a cross-wall dividing the Inner Bailey; 4. a of the shell-keep, and details of the arrangement of two-storey long barbican extending from the the between the Inner and Outer Baileys. gatehouse; 5. an outer perimeter wall to the south Stephanie further comments in her Conclusion: with half-round towers or bastions (a footpath ‘In many ways, Wigmore Castle still remains follows this line); 6. ditto to the north of the something of an enigma. The bold step, taken by ‘Keep’; 7. a pool in the SW corner controlled by English Heritage, of returning the castle to its sluices; 8. an Outer Bailey circumscribed by a ‘wild’ state has much to commend it and the site timber leading to the present farmhouse.

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Further Reading Rátkai, Stephanie, 2015, Wigmore Castle, North Her- Shoesmith, R., 1998, ‘Archaeology, 1998, Report of efordshire: Excavations 1996 and 1998 (Society for Sectional Recorder’ Transactions of the Woolhope Medieval Archaeology Monograph Series 34), Society Naturalists' Field Club Vol. 49.2 p. 291-4 of Medieval Archaeology, London. Archaeological Research Section Woolhope NFC, 1997, Cragoe, Carol Davidson, ‘Historical and Architectur- Herefordshire Archaeological News Vol. 68 pp. 6-7 al Overview’, in Rátkai, Stephanie, 2015, Wigmore Remfry, Paul M., 1994, The Mortimers of Wigmore, Castle, North Herefordshire: Excavations 1996 and 1066 to 1181. Part 1: Wigmore Castle (SCS Pub- 1997 (Society for Medieval Archaeology Monograph lishing: Worcestershire). Series 34), pp. 5-34. Redhead, N., 1990, ‘Wigmore castle - a resistivity Brooks, Alan, 2012, Herefordshire (Pevsner Archi- survey of the outer bailey’ Transactions of the Wool- tectural Guides: Buildings of England).Yale UP. hope Naturalists' Field Club Vol. 46.3 p. 423-31 Goodall, John, 2011, The English Castle 1066-1650 Hopkinson, Charles, 1989, ‘The Mortimers of Wig- (Yale University Press) pp. 62, 253, 427, 453. more 1086-1214’ Transactions of the Woolhope Remfry, Paul, 2009, ‘The early Mortimers at Wig- Naturalists' Field Club Vol. 46.2 pp. 177-93 more, 1066-1181’, www.castles99ukprint.com Shoesmith, R., 1987, ‘Neglect and decay: Wigmore Shoesmith, Ron, 2009, Castles and Moated Sites of Castle - home of the Mortimers’ Rescue News Vol. Herefordshire (Logaston Press) pp. 288-301. 42 p. 3 Payne, A., 1988, Wigmore Castle, Herefordshire: Curnow, P. E., 1981, ‘Wigmore Castle’ The Ar- Report of Geophysical Surveys, August, 1998, Eng- chaeological Journal Vol. 138 pp. 23-5 lish Heritage Research Dept Report series 42/2007 Renn, D. F., 1973 (2 edn.), Norman Castles of Guy, Neil. (ed.), 2004-5, ‘English Heritage's Land- Britain (London: John Baker) p. 345, 347 scape Investigation: Wigmore Castle’ Castle Studies RCHME, 1934, An inventory of the historical mon- Group Bulletin Vol. 18 pp. 90-1 (news report) uments in Herefordshire Vol. 3: North-West. pp. Brown, Graham, 2002, Wigmore Castle, Hereford- 205-8 No. 2 (plans) shire (English Heritage Report AI/14/2002) Armitage, Ella, 1912, The Early Norman Castles of Channer, J., 2001, ‘Wigmore Castle’ Society for the the British Isles (London: John Murray) pp. 232-3 Protection of Ancient Buildings News Vol. 22 pp. 4, 21–5 Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of Remfry, Paul M., 2000, Wigmore Castle Tourist England (London: Methuen and Co) Guide (SCS Publishing: Worcestershire). Gould, I. Chalkley, 1908, in Page, Wm (ed), VCH Emery, Anthony, 2000, Greater Medieval Houses of Herefordshire Vol. 1 pp. 247-8 (plan) England and Vol. 2 East Anglia, Central Eng- Mackenzie, J. D., 1896, Castles of England; their land and Wales (Cambridge: Cambridge University story and structure (New York: Macmillan) Vol. 2 Press) p. 476 pp. 118-20 Salter, M, 2000, Castles of Herefordshire & Worces- Clark, G. T., 1884, Mediaeval Military Architecture tershire (Malvern:Folly Publications) pp. 68-70 in England (Wyman and Sons) Vol. 2, pp. 526-34 Guy, Neil, 1999-2000, ‘Wigmore Castle, Hereford- Robinson, C. J., 1869, The Castles of Herefordshire shire’ Castle Studies Group Newsletter 13 pp. 26-29 and Their Lords (London: Longman) pp. 137-42. Barrett, G., 1998, ‘Wigmore Castle Topographical Forthcoming Enhancement Survey - Shell-keep and Inner Ward Cooke, Jonathan,‘Wigmore Castle, Herefordshire: Interiors’, in J Cooke, Wigmore Castle, Hereford- Fabric Survey’. English Heritage Research Report shire, unpublished draft English Heritage Report (see 13/2012 (written in 2008) (now Historic England). forthcoming). Due for completion in 2016 Cooke, John, 1998-99, ‘Update on Wigmore’ Castle Mortimer, Ian, The chronology of the twelfth-centu- Studies Group Newsletter No. 12 pp. 34-5 ry de Mortemer family of Saint-Victor-en-Caux and Coppack, G, ‘Setting and structure: the conservation of Wigmore: a reappraisal. Institute for Historical Wigmore Castle’, in Managing Historic Sites and Build- Research. ings, G Chitty and D Baker (ed) (London, 1999) 61–70.

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