Pontefract Castle has had a long and
colourful history since it was first started in the years following the
Norman Conquest. It was frequently at the centre of national events, acting
as fortress, temporary home for lord or king, centre of local
administration, prison for important prisoners and armoury up to its
demolition in 1649.
The first earth and timber motte and bailey castle at Pontefract was built
by Ilbert de Lacy in the last 1080's. As reward for his services to William
the Conqueror, Ilbert received vast estates in Yorkshire. He controlled
these estates, which formed the Honour of Pontefract from the castle he
built here in a commanding position.
Pontefract Castle
c.1625-30
Attributed to Alexander
Keirinx (1600-1652)
Over the following century
the first castle was gradually rebuilt in stone for greater strength and
permanence. An impressive stretch of the main bailey wall can still be seen
from outside the castle north west of the Keep. Of the Great Hall, which was
at the centre of castle life, nothing now remains except the cellars cut out
of the bedrock beneath the bailey. The other visible remains of the earliest
stone buildings on the site are the foundations of the castle chapel
dedicated to St. Clement, of which the chancel can still be seen. This was
only the beginning of building;'work
which was to continue throughout the castle's long history ..,
The power and prestige of the Lacy family was gradually extended by Ilbert
de Lacy's successors. His son Robert acquired the Lancashire Honour of
Clitheroe, and Robert's son Henry , who founded Kirkstall Abbey near Leeds,
was a famous crusader who died in Palestine in 1177. In 1193 the castle and
honour passed to Roger de Lacy, a junior member of the family. He was a
renowned soldier and loyal supporter of King John. His son John married the
Countess of Lincoln and thereafter the Lacy lords were known as Earls of
Lincoln.
The last Lacy Earl of
Lincoln, Henry de Lacy ( 1251 -1311 ), was a prominent soldier and statesman
under Edward I. His daughter and heiress, Alice, married Thomas Earl of
Lancaster and it was their marriage settlement which transferred the Lacy
estates to the Houses of Lancaster. Thomas organised opposition to Edward II
and was eventually tried for treason in his castle of Pontefract, and was
executed on the hill north of St. John's Priory. Some extensive additions
were made to the castle in this period, and the importance of the castle was
reflected in the town which was at the time one of the largest and richest
towns in the West Riding.
Thomas's lands were
restored to his heirs and became part of the Duchy of Lancaster when it was
created in 1351. The Dukes of Lancaster became Kings of England in 1399 when
Henry Bolingbroke forced the abdication of his cousin, Richard II. From then
on Pontefract was effectively the foremost royal castle in the north of
England, maintained and extended while other castles were allowed to
stagnate because they no longer had a function. Major building at about this
time induded the Swillington Tower (1399 -1405) and the rebuilding of the
King's great kitchen (1413 onwards).
One of the uses to which the castle was put was to house important
prisoners. Richard II was imprisoned and died at Pontefract. Other famous
prisoners induded James ( of Scotland, and Charles Duke d'Orleans captured
at the battle of Agincourt in 1415.
RICHARD II KILLED IN 1400
The castle continued to act as a royal base for military activities in times
of unrest. During the Wars of the Roses it was used at times as a
Lancastrian stronghold, as when in 1460 the Lancastrian army came from
Pontefract to the battle of Wakefield. Later Richard III, while Duke of
Gloucester, used Pontefract as one of his official residences. In 1483,
during his usurpation of the throne, he had three of his political opponents
executed in the castle.
During the Civil War Pontefract Castle was held for the King and underwent
three sieges, during which the town suffered great damage. Siege coins were
minted at the castle, which was the last remaining Royalist stronghold when
it finally surrendered in 1649. On the orders of Parliament the castle was
so thoroughly demolished that a true picture of its strength and grandeur in
its heyday can now only be seen in the fine painting made in the early 17th
Century which is on display at Pontefract Museum. Later the bailey area was
used for growing liquorice. In 1882 Pontefract Corporation opened the castle
as a public park after some excavation.
The castle is now a scheduled ancient monument in the guardianship of
Wakefield Metropolitan District Council, although still the property of Her
Majesty the Queen in right of her Duchy of Lancaster, A programme of
excavation and conservation was under taken from 1981 -1985 by The Visit.(
Yorkshire Archaeology Service for the Pontefract Castle Conservation
Committee. Victorian garden features and remodelling were removed to enable
the public to understand the castle better and the mediaeval stonework as
restored. Associated excavation concentrated on the area of the kitchen and
bakehouse and on the area of the chapels and the Constable Tower. Finds
reflect in particular the Civil War period of the castle's history, and
include iron breastplates and helmets, spurs, powder measures and musket
balls, as well as more domestic finds such as keys, knives, pewter spoons,
bone combs, leather shoes and pottery. The finds from these excavations will
eventually be housed and displayed at Pontefract Museum, after research,
conservation and publication. Some early finds from Pontefract Castle may be
seen there. In 1988 a Visitor Centre with displays on the history of the
castle was opened at the castle.
The castle is currently
open to the public, without charge.
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