Nottingham Castle - from Stuarts to the 21st Century
Created | Updated Aug 4, 2008
A21382607 | A21382689 | Nottingham Castle - from Stuarts to the 21st Century
Nottingham Castle had stood for over 500 years at the beginning of the 17th Century, but it was beginning to fade in brilliance from the peak of its grandeur in the early 16th Century. However, the fortress remained a place of great importance, as is evident from the following events in the history of the site from the 1600s into the 21st Century.
1600 - 1651
After 1605 the Castle became unpopular with royalty visiting Nottingham. James I preferred the residence of the Duke of Clare, Thurland Hall, when staying in the city. By 1623 James sold the now mostly ruinous Castle to the Earl of Rutland, who instead of working on returning it to its former glory simply sold off stone, timber and lead from the site. For the next twenty years the castle continued to fall further into ruin.
Then on 22 August, 1642, Charles I raised his standard outside the castle walls at Derry Mount, marking the beginning of the English Civil War. Quite why he chose to come to Nottingham to do it is a bit of a mystery, other than the fact that Richard III had rallied his own army there in the past, as Nottingham was pretty much full of Roundheads (Parliamentarians). Charles soon scampered off to nearby Newark with his small army of Cavaliers (Royalists), and the Castle was taken over by Parliamentarian officer Colonel John Hutchinson.
John Hutchinson's wife Lucy wrote of the castle in her 'Memoirs of the Life of Colonel Hutchinson', and remarked that:
the buildings were very ruinous and unhabitable, neither affording roome to lodge soldiers or provisions.
Despite this, the Roundhead forces garrisoned themselves in the Castle, and held it fast, even when Cavaliers led by Sir John Byron from Newark invaded Nottingham and took the Church of St Nicholas, the tower of which they could fire upon the Roundhead soldiers inside the castle walls. Lucy writes of the events:
From this Church the bullets play'd so thick...they could not passe from one gate to the other.
But Hutchinson's forces continued the fight, taking back the church and demolishing it, and also defending numerous attacks by the Royalist forces. The castle remained the property of the Parliamentary forces right up until Charles I lost his head.
In May of 1651 Parliament gave Hutchinson permission to demolish Nottingham Castle, his reasoning to prevent it being used as a fortress by others in the future, particularly the new Lord Protector of the Realm, Oliver Cromwell. Many of the Parliamentarians, including Hutchinson, saw Cromwell as a little too ambitious, so while he was away in Scotland, the castle was set to with gunpowder, picks, shovels and just about anything that came to hand - the already crumbling building being pretty much all but pulled down.
1652 - 1679
After the end of the Civil War the castle ruins were used as refuge not only by waifs and strays, but by non-conformists during the time of the Restoration of Charles II in 1660. In 1663 William Cavendish, the 1st Duke of Newcastle (and Royalist Commander during the Civil War), purchased the site and began work on a Ducal Palace in 1674. The 'new castle'1 was to be as magnificent as his residence at Bolsover Castle in Derbyshire, and William took inspiration from the Italian Renaissance buildings he had admired during a Grand Tour of the Continent. He was also insistent that the Palace should still be called 'Nottingham Castle', due in most to his Royalist background.
Unfortunately, William passed away in 1676 aged 85, before the building was even a few feet in height from the foundations. His son Henry, the 2nd Duke of Newcastle, continued the work at the bequest of William's will which stated that the Palace must be finished to the:
forme and modell thereof by me layd and designed.
The works didn't go without incident however, as one of the labourers was killed during construction. George Jackson was crushed to death when removing scaffolding from an archway. Part of the brickwork fell onto his head, and he succumbed to his injuries only two hours later. Despite this setback, the Ducal Palace was completed by 1679.
1680 - 1830
The Palace soon became known for the opulent parties held there (something Henry apparently had a bit of an appetite for) and a Great Ballroom glittered during day and night with candlelight, mirrors and jewels sparkling and refracting the light. Stately carriages would pass through the original 12th Century Gatehouse and party-goers would walk up the steps to the main doors, passing beneath a statue of the 1st Duke riding his favourite horse. Even Queen Anne found the surroundings to her liking a visit to Nottingham in 1704, but by the mid 1700s the building had fallen into disuse, and in 1776 the last Great Ball was held there.
The 3rd Duke of Newcastle, Thomas Pelham-Clinton (husband of one of William's granddaughters) took possession, however he wasn't keen on the property complaining:
the Bare shell of ye House can be of little or no value, but rather an expence.
Architect and playwright John Vanbrugh convinced Thomas to make improvements to the Palace to make it 'liveable', but soon afterwards visits by the owners of the site ceased altogether. When Thomas died in 1795 the building was transformed into a boarding school, and then eventually divided into separate apartments. However, the courtyard and grounds remained popular with the upper classes, and the last resident of the apartments vacated in 1829.
1831 - 1879
In 1831 a Reform Bill that would allow more people to vote was rejected by the House of Lords. The Nottingham people took out their frustrations on the now adult 4th Duke of Newcastle, Henry Pelham-Clinton (who was in opposition of the Bill). On 10 October the heavy Gatehouse Doors that led into the castle grounds were breeched by rioters - the 'Hundred of Broxtowe', and the Palace, now empty, was set alight and vandalised. The burning building could be seen across Nottingham. The Duke received very adequate compensation for the arson, around about £21,000, but he didn't spend any of the money on repairs to the Palace, he simply let the empty shell stand for over 40 years - to teach the Nottingham plebs a lesson.
From 1859 the newly formed 'Robin Hood Rifles' Volunteer Rifle Corps used the castle grounds for drill and parades, with stables built just outside the gatehouse. This was short-lived though, because by February 1872 the Town Council were looking at establishing a School of Art in Nottingham. From the very beginning of the project the South Kensington Museum2 assisted, and with an influx of loans and gifts of art there was a sudden need for a suitable space to display everything. In 1873 a proposal was put forward to take over the old Ducal Palace and convert it into a Fine Art Gallery, and on 11 October 1875 the castle and grounds were leased to the city for 500 years (at £250 per year) 'for the purposes of a Public Museum and Gallery of Art and Science'.
Local architect Thomas Chambers Hine, TC to his friends, was given the task of the restoration and conversion of the once magnificent building into something the city could again be proud of. All of the interior of the Palace was gutted and the original three floors were converted into two, which meant the new floors cut through the original windows. The restoration took just three years, and considerably less money than anticipated, and the new Castle Museum & Art Gallery was opened by the Prince of Wales (later Edward VII) on 3 July, 1878. The Castle had become the first Municipal Museum and Art Gallery outside of London.
1880 - 1980
In July of 1884 a War Memorial to commemorate the non-commissioned officers and private soldiers of Her Majesty's 59 Regiment who had lost their lives in the Afghan Campaigns of 1878 - 1880 was erected just near the site of the Black Tower. With the addition of lawns, flower beds and a bandstand in 1887, many people enjoyed a walk around the castle grounds while listening to music. In 1895 the castle had electricity put in, thanks to the publicity stunt of a local firm, and Nottingham's first telephone linked the museum to the local police station3.
In 1903 the Thoroton Society excavated some of King Richard's Tower, and then in 1908 the Gatehouse and Outer Bailey Wall were restored. During the years of the First World War the castle grounds and tunnels were used as air raid shelters, then after the First World War, on 8 September, 1921, the Albert Ball Memorial was unveiled in the castle grounds after funds were raised by the Nottingham public to remember their fallen son.
The castle again saw use for those seeking refuge from air raids during the Second World War, then in 1952 the City Council bought the lease of the castle and grounds outright for £16,000. In July of the same year a bronze statue of Robin Hood and accompanying plates by local sculptor James Woodford were presented to the city of Nottingham by Philip Clay, and unveiled on the old site of the stables by the Duchess of Portland. In 1976 the Trent Valley Archaeological Research Committee excavated the lower part of the Black Tower and the Middle Bailey Wall, and then in 1978 King Richard's Tower was re-excavated, along with a section of turf near the Ducal Palace gates, the apparent site of the 13th Century Chapel - yielding a skeleton that dated from the time of the Civil War.
1981 - Present Day
The Castle site continued to grow and expand culturally over the years, many touring exhibitions coming to the site. There are regular Guided Tours of the Castle and its surroundings, with interesting tit-bits and little known history told by the many experienced Guides. Various improvements are continually being made, and the future only looks bright for Nottingham Castle, even if visitors still exclaim in bewilderment,
Where's the Castle?!
The Entry A21382607 gives more information about the present day site of the Castle.
