Ashby De La Zouch Castle, Leicestershire

This week we get to explore a vast, ruined 15th century military gothic castle, we climb the stairs of Lord Hastings tower, we head underground through the passageway and we discover life for the rich and famous that lived and dined at this incredible castle. So join us as we walk the remains of Ashby-De-La-Zouch Castle.

After the Norman Conquest, the estates here at Ashby, or ‘Aschebie’ as it’s known and called in the Domesday Book was owned by the Earls of Leicester. There wasn’t a castle here at the time just an unassuming fortified manor house. Sometime in the late 12th century, the estate at Ashby was granted to the le Zouch family in exchange for military service to the Earls. There is very little known about the Zouch family manor, which historians expect would have stood where the castles great hall is now.

The Zouch line died out in 1399 and there were major disputes that went on and on right up until 1462 when William, Lord Hastings was granted possession, along with other massive estates elsewhere in the Midlands. The powerful politician himself was an English nobleman who became the close friend of King Edward IV, William served as Edwards Lord chamberlain whose role was being the most senior officer of the royal household, the chamberlain would supervise the various departments and also acted as the main channel of communication to the King.

At the time of Edwards death, William became one of the most powerful and richest men in England. He was executed following accusations of treason by Edwards brother and successor, Richard the third – although his execution and death is very controversial, the more traditional justification is that Richard was eagerly trying to gain control of the throne for himself and taking William out of the picture would have been the easiest move. Either way, the death of him was classed as brutal, not for the physical violence, but more for the fact there were no charges, no real trial and no convictions especially considering Williams long and undoubtedly loyal service. Lord Hastings was buried in the north aisle of St George’s chapel at Windsor castle.

The original family manor house of the Zouch’s was later converted into a castle by William, he had acquired many properties across the midlands during the wars and many of them were confiscated from his enemies, amongst these was the manor of Ashby de la Zouch, which was given to William in 1462. A few years later after his father maintained the family seat at nearby Kirby Muxloe, Lord Hastings decided to use Ashby as his main residence. In 1474 Edward granted William the right to crenelate, meaning giving permission to fortify and fix up a property and so he did along with another three more of his manors and he built deer parks around them.

He had set about to develop the old complex at Ashby with new, fortified and impressive buildings and was authorised to design and create a massive 3,000 acre park around the site. His intentions were to construct a significant castle, similar to semi nearby Nottingham castle, with four massive towers. That being said, work on the site started a year before William was given permission with the construction of the castles chapel, but it appeared that William fancied a gamble and knew that the king would more than likely approve it anyway.

The castle became known as a famous location from Scottish historian and novelist, Sir Walter Scott, who released a known novel named Ivanhoe, which featured a scene of a tournament at Ashby de la Zouch castle, the novel at the time was immensely popular and drew in the crowds.

The Castle was repaired and opened with the hope to attract them to the nearby Ivanhoe Baths, but the castle was in such disrepair from the war it was unstable and dangerous, so the castle was placed into the guardianship of the ministry of works in 1932 when it was able to be funded better allowing the opening of the castle and surroundings grounds to visitors for a price. Fast forwarding to now, it’s managed and cared for by the English heritage as a popular tourist attraction and amazingly we’re able to explore here at our own leisure.

The modern town of Ashby de la Zouch, is but a stones throw down the road from the entrance of the castle ruins, the castle compromises of two large towers and buildings that are arranged around a court, with formal gardens to the south. Lord Hastings intended that his castle would have had four imposing towers and enclosed by the interior buildings with a curtain wall to a typical design, but sadly, only the two towers were ever completed by the time of his death.

So I hope we’ve given some insight into the incredible castle ruin that Ashby de la Zouch castle is and what a interesting visit we think you’ll have. I’ll give you Some information on the site that might be useful if you fancy a visit. It’s wheelchair accessible, but is limited to the grounds, you’ll be able to visit the English Heritage shop where you can pick up an audio tour for free and there is a toilet on site.

We brought a picnic that we sat on the benches to enjoy as it’s perfect for a stop off and dogs are allowed on the site on leads. There isn’t free parking on the site but a 2 minute walk away you can park in the local car park for 50p a hour – this was at the time of visiting, so just have a look on google if you need up to date prices and routes.

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Till Next Time!