Sherborne New and Old Castles, Dorset

Sherborne Castle in Dorset is another of the magnificent historic homes that England is blessed with. Dating back to the reign of Queen Elizabeth the house is a popular tourist attraction and member of the Historic Houses Association.

Sherborne Old Castle - Pengannal - CC-BY-2.0

The term Sherborne Castle could actually apply to two different buildings set in the same ground, although the newer building is commonly called Sherborne Castle, there is actually the ruins of Sherborne Old Castle still visible. Sherborne Old Castle was built in the twelfth century as a fortified palace for the Bishop of Salisbury, Roger de Caen, who was also Chancellor of England. After the death of de Caen, Sherborne Castle remained in the possession of the church.

Sherborne New Castle, as viewable today, was built by Sir Walter Raleigh in 1594. Raleigh at the time was a favourite of Queen Elizabeth, and managed to persuade her to acquire the grounds from the Church, so that he in turn could take ownership of it through a ninety-nine year lease. Raleigh had fallen in love with the medieval site on his travels from London to Plymouth. Raleigh’s original idea was to make the original twelfth century castle habitable, but it was a dream that proved unachievable. Raleigh therefore turned his attention to the medieval hunting lodge found in the grounds.

Sherborne New Castle - mwanasimba - CC-BY-SA-2.0

Raleigh called his new Tudor mansion Sherborne lodge, a building consisting of four storeys in a rectangular shape with hexagonal corner turrets. Raleigh though only managed ten years as owner of Sherborne Castle as he fell out of favour with the crown, and whilst Raleigh was in prison, King James sold the castle and land to Sir John Digby in 1617. It was the Digby family who added the four additional wings in the 1620s.

Sherborne Castle though was substantially damaged during the English Civil War as it was a Royalist stronghold in Dorset. At this time the Parliamentary forces of General Fairfax effectively destroyed the old Castle. Repairs to Sherborne New Castle though followed the end of the Civil War, and ever since the castle has remained in the hands of the Digby family.

Sherborne New Castle is open to the general public from the end of March through until the end of October.

The castle has many interesting historic elements and artefacts, including porcelain, art and furniture, for visitors to observe, but it is the grounds that attract most visitors. The Sherborne Castle gardens are of high renown. The original gardens were laid out with the twelve hundred acres of parkland at about the time that William of Orange visited the Sherborne estate in 1688. It was though until Lancelot “Capability” Brown was brought in by Henry Digby in 1753 that the present gardens became established.

Capability Brown first created the fifty acre lake to separate the two Sherborne Castles. Brown then turned his attention to forty acres of landscaped gardens which made them the talk of the nation, even resulting in George III coming to Sherborne to take in the vistas.

Today the gardens make a very tranquil environment to pass the time of day. There is a set out lakeside walk that winds in and out of impressive trees, including giant cedars and Metasquoia. Planting has also been undertaken to make the most of the ruins of the Old Sherborne Castle, even though the ruins are owned by English Heritage.

If you are looking for a non-commercial day out, where you can take in the beauty and the history of an English castle, then there are few better venues than Sherborne Castle. It may not be the most entertaining of venues for children but for those people looking for something away from the hectic nature of many tourist attractions then Sherborne Castle must be high on your holiday itinerary.

Copyright - First Published 9th November 2008