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Chartley Castle

Chartley Castle comprises the ruins of a motte-and-bailey castle located north of the village of Stowe-by-Chartley in Staffordshire, England, between Stafford and Uttoxeter.^[1] Originally erected in earth and timber by the Earls of Chester toward the end of the 11th century following the Norman Conquest, the fortress was rebuilt in stone commencing in 1223 under Ranulph de Blondeville, 6th Earl of Chester, who added a cylindrical keep atop the motte, a curtain wall enclosing a double bailey, and defensive towers including a twin-towered gatehouse.^[1]^[2] Upon Ranulph's death without male heirs in 1232, ownership transferred through his sister to William de Ferrers, 5th Earl of Derby, establishing Chartley as a key seat for the de Ferrers family, which retained it until 1453 when it passed via marriage to the Devereux lineage.^[1]^[2] The castle functioned as a high-status residence through the medieval period but was abandoned as a dwelling after the death of Walter Devereux, 1st Baron Ferrers, at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, supplanted by the nearby moated Chartley Old Hall constructed by the Devereux family.^[1]^[2] Chartley Old Hall gained historical prominence when Queen Elizabeth I visited in 1575 during a progress through Staffordshire, and subsequently as the site of Mary, Queen of Scots' captivity from December 1585 to September 1586 under guard at the behest of the English crown.^[1] The Old Hall was devastated by fire in 1781 and replaced in 1847 by the present Chartley Hall in Elizabethan style, while the castle ruins, alongside associated features such as water control systems, moats, and garden earthworks, form a scheduled ancient monument recognized for illustrating continuous elite occupation from the 11th century and yielding insights into medieval defensive architecture and post-medieval landscape adaptation.^[1]^[2] Today, the site remains privately held with no public access, preserving its structural remnants including the motte, bailey enclosures, and partial curtain wall as a testament to early Norman fortification evolution in the region.^[1]

Location and Context

Geographical and Topographical Setting

Chartley Castle is situated in Staffordshire, England, within the Stafford District and Stowe-by-Chartley parish, approximately 1 km northwest of Stowe-by-Chartley village and between the towns of Stafford and Uttoxeter along the A518 road.^[1]^[2] The site's national grid reference is centred around SK 00911 28690.^[1] Topographically, the castle occupies a commanding position on the natural escarpment of a small east-west ridge, at an elevation of 108 metres (354 feet) above sea level.^[1]^[3] It was built atop a small natural hill, with the motte artificially raised from this high point to bolster defensive advantages.^[4] The surrounding terrain features dry ditches up to 18 metres wide and a counterscarp bank, while the nearby Amerton Brook valley includes streams and former ponds that contributed to the site's water management.^[1] Adjacent fields show remnants of medieval ridge and furrow cultivation, indicative of the area's historical agricultural use.^[1]

Etymology and Early Naming

The name Chartley derives from the Old English compound Ceorlanlēah, interpreted as "the woodland clearing or glade of the ceorlas"—referring to freemen or yeomen farmers—with the element lēah denoting a clearing in woodland and ceorla the genitive plural of ceorl. This form is attested as Cerlelie in the Domesday Book of 1086, reflecting pre-Conquest Anglo-Saxon settlement patterns in the region.^[5] The precise etymology remains tentative given sparse early attestations, but aligns with analogous Staffordshire place-names incorporating -lēah for cleared lands associated with communal or freeholding use.^[5] The castle itself, erected circa 1100 as an earth-and-timber motte-and-double-bailey fortification by Hugh d'Avranches, Earl of Chester (died 1101), or his immediate successor, took its designation from the adjoining Chartley manor and hamlet, which predated the structure.^[6] Early medieval records uniformly style it Chartley Castle, underscoring its role as a fortified outpost within the earldom's holdings; variant forms include Chartley Holme, likely alluding to the site's low-lying, possibly insular terrain amid marshy ground near the River Sow.^[7] By the 13th century, following enfeoffment to the de Ferrers family through marriage in 1232, the name solidified in association with baronial titles such as Baron Ferrers of Chartley, created in 1299.

Construction and Early History

Origins in the Norman Period

Chartley Castle originated as a motte-and-bailey fortress constructed by the Earls of Chester in the late 11th century, shortly after the Norman Conquest of 1066, when the earldom was granted extensive lands in the Midlands by William the Conqueror to Hugh d'Avranches, the first earl.^[1] This earthen and timber structure served as a defensive stronghold and administrative center amid the consolidation of Norman control in Staffordshire, leveraging the site's natural escarpment for strategic advantage on routes between key holdings like Chester and Tutbury.^[1]^[8] The castle's core featured a motte—an artificially raised mound with a base diameter of approximately 46 meters—at its western end, separated from the baileys by a 10-meter-wide ditch, reflecting standard Norman military architecture designed for rapid erection and oversight of surrounding territories.^[1]^[8] Adjoining it were double baileys: an inner rectangular enclosure of 0.25 hectares and an outer near-square one of 0.35 hectares, divided by a broader 24-meter ditch, which housed timber defenses, domestic buildings, and support facilities typical of early post-Conquest castles.^[1]^[8] The Earls of Chester, as marcher lords with semi-autonomous powers, utilized such fortifications to secure borders against residual Anglo-Saxon resistance and rival Norman barons, though the precise earl responsible for Chartley's initiation remains unattributed in surviving records.^[1] While the initial timber phases embodied the era's emphasis on mobility and deterrence, the castle's Norman roots laid the foundation for later enhancements, underscoring its role in the earldom's network of power projection across the Welsh Marches and English heartlands.^[8] By the early 13th century, under Ranulf de Blondeville, the sixth earl (d. 1232), stone reconstruction began around 1223, transitioning the site toward a more permanent enclosure castle with a circular keep and towered curtain walls, though this marked an evolution beyond the pure Norman origins.^[1]^[8]

12th-15th Century Developments and Ownership

Chartley Castle was constructed around 1220 by Ranulf de Blundeville, 6th Earl of Chester, following his return from the Fifth Crusade in the Holy Land, as part of a broader program of fortification in his estates to counter threats from Welsh incursions.^[9] The initial structure comprised a motte and double bailey layout, to which stone elements—including a keep, curtain walls with projecting towers constructed of ashlar-faced rubble—were added in the early 13th century, transitioning it toward an enclosure castle design.^[8] Upon Ranulf's death in 1232 without male heirs, the castle passed through inheritance to the Ferrers family via his sister's line, becoming a possession of William de Ferrers, 5th Earl of Derby (d. 1254). It remained under the control of the Ferrers earls of Derby, with Robert de Ferrers, 6th Earl (1239–1279), taking livery of his estates, including Chartley, upon attaining majority in 1260.^[10] During the Second Barons' War, Robert's adherence to the baronial opposition against Henry III led to the temporary seizure of his castles following the royalist victory at Evesham in 1265; Chartley was among those affected but was later addressed in the Dictum of Kenilworth settlements.^[11] In 1273, amid political tensions during Henry III's final years, Robert de Ferrers briefly seized Chartley Castle during the king's absence abroad but was compelled to relinquish it.^[12] Following Robert's death in 1279 and the forfeiture of the earldom of Derby due to his rebellions, Chartley devolved separately as a baronial holding; his son John de Ferrers (c. 1270–1312) was summoned to parliament as the 1st Baron Ferrers of Chartley circa 1299, establishing the title's continuity within the cadet Ferrers line.^[13] The barony and castle stayed with the Ferrers descendants through the 14th and into the 15th century, passing successively to John's heirs, including Robert de Ferrers, 5th Baron (c. 1358–1413), and Edmund de Ferrers, 6th Baron (c. 1387–1435), with no major recorded structural alterations during this period beyond routine maintenance.^[14] By the mid-15th century, the female-line inheritance culminated in Anne de Ferrers (d. 1468), daughter and heiress of William de Ferrers, 7th Baron (d. 1450), whose marriage to Walter Devereux transferred effective control of Chartley to the Devereux family in 1453, though the Ferrers title persisted in abeyance until revived.^[15]

Tudor Era and Political Significance

Integration into Tudor Power Structures

Following the Wars of the Roses, the Devereux family solidified control over Chartley through the 1446 marriage of Walter Devereux to Anne Ferrers, daughter and co-heiress of the last male-line Baron Ferrers of Chartley, thereby inheriting the barony and estate.^[16] This union positioned the Devereux as custodians of a key Staffordshire lordship, transitioning from medieval baronial autonomy toward Tudor-era dependence on royal favor for status elevation. By the early 16th century, with the original castle in ruins since at least 1545, the family resided primarily at the adjacent moated Chartley Manor, a timber-framed structure that symbolized the shift from fortified strongholds to administrative seats aligned with centralized monarchy.^[17] Walter Devereux (c. 1488–1558), 9th Baron Ferrers and 1st Viscount Hereford, exemplified this integration by demonstrating loyalty across Tudor regimes, culminating in his 1550 elevation to viscount by Edward VI—a title that bound the family more closely to the crown's patronage system.^[18] Residing at Chartley until his death there on 17 September 1558, Devereux served in local governance, including as sheriff of Staffordshire, reinforcing the estate's role in Tudor shrieval administration for tax collection and order maintenance.^[19] His adherence to Henrician reforms and avoidance of rebellion ensured Chartley's continuity under royal oversight, as the Tudors co-opted noble estates to prevent resurgence of independent marcher power. The next generation deepened this alignment: Walter Devereux (1539–1576), 2nd Viscount Hereford and 1st Earl of Essex, leveraged Chartley as a base for ambitious service to Elizabeth I, including command in the 1570s Irish campaigns where he established fortified settlements like Carrickfergus to extend English control over Ulster.^[20] Created Earl of Essex on 22 January 1572 for suppressing the Northern Rebellion's aftermath and advancing plantation policies, he embodied the Tudor strategy of ennobling border lords to integrate peripheral estates into the realm's defensive and colonizing apparatus.^[20] Chartley's strategic location near the Welsh marches thus contributed to the crown's consolidation of authority, with Devereux's 1573–1575 Ulster governorship—funded partly by private ventures but authorized by privy council warrants—illustrating how noble houses like his funneled local resources into royal imperatives, reducing feudal fragmentation.^[21] Under Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex (1566–1601), born at Chartley, the estate remained a symbol of Tudor courtly integration, though his later favoritism and 1601 rebellion highlighted tensions in this structure.^[22] As Elizabeth's privy councillor and general, Essex commanded forces in the 1590s Cadiz and Azores expeditions, deploying Chartley's networks for recruitment and logistics, which underscored the manor's function within the Tudor military-fiscal state.^[23] This era's reliance on such loyalist estates for sustaining England's continental commitments exemplified causal ties between noble patrimonies and monarchical power projection, with Chartley exemplifying the broader Tudor recalibration of aristocratic roles from autonomous warlords to crown-dependent administrators.^[24]

Captivity of Mary, Queen of Scots

Mary, Queen of Scots, arrived at Chartley Hall, situated near the ruins of Chartley Castle in Staffordshire, in December 1585, following her prior confinement at Tutbury Castle.^[25] This transfer, ordered by Queen Elizabeth I, placed her under the custody of Sir Amias Paulet, an English diplomat and staunch Protestant who had previously overseen her at Tutbury from April 1585.^[26] Paulet enforced rigorous oversight, prohibiting unauthorized visitors, restricting outdoor excursions, and confining her entourage to the premises with curfew-like measures, amid growing fears of Mary's involvement in Catholic intrigues.^[27] Despite the stringent regime, Mary's accommodations afforded a degree of comfort befitting her status, including a household staff numbering at least sixteen, fine tapestries for her chambers, daily changes of bed linens, and meals served on silver plate.^[26] She continued pursuits such as embroidery and letter-writing, supported by secretaries Gilbert Curll and Claude Nau, though all outgoing correspondence passed through Paulet's scrutiny or covert channels like sealed beer barrels from a local brewer.^[28] Occasional walks in the grounds were permitted, but Paulet's Puritan sensibilities led him to ignore her complaints about dampness, inadequate heating, and restrictions on Catholic observances, viewing her as a persistent threat.^[29] Mary's health deteriorated during her nine-month stay, with chronic rheumatism worsened by the site's moist climate and limited mobility; she repeatedly petitioned for relocation to a warmer locale like Buxton, requests Paulet denied per Elizabeth's directives.^[30] On September 25, 1586, following the discovery of compromising documents, she was abruptly removed to Fotheringhay Castle, ending her tenure at Chartley.^[25] This period marked one of the most isolated phases of her nineteen-year English captivity, reflecting Elizabeth's policy of containment without outright execution until treason charges solidified.^[26]

Uncovering of the Babington Plot

In late 1585, Mary, Queen of Scots, was transferred to Chartley under the custody of Sir Amias Paulet, where her communications were severely restricted, prompting conspirators to devise clandestine methods for correspondence.^[31] Walsingham, Elizabeth I's principal secretary and spymaster, exploited this vulnerability by deploying double agent Gilbert Gifford, who posed as a Catholic sympathizer and gained Paulet's trust.^[32] Gifford proposed smuggling letters via beer barrels supplied by Burton-upon-Trent brewer Gilbert Curll, whose deliveries to Chartley were approved; unbeknownst to Mary, Curll had been recruited by Walsingham's network, ensuring outbound casks were diverted to London for inspection.^[32] Letters were concealed in barrel corks or linings, written in cipher to evade detection; upon reaching London, Walsingham's decipherer Thomas Phelippes steamed them open, transcribed and decoded the contents, forged Mary's secretaries' seals if needed, and resealed them for onward delivery, allowing the plot to unfold while gathering evidence.^[32] On 6 July 1586, Anthony Babington's letter detailing the assassination of Elizabeth—via "six bold gentlemen" coordinated with a Spanish invasion and Mary's rescue—reached Chartley through this channel, though intercepted en route; a copy was permitted to Mary to elicit her response.^[31] Mary's reply on 17 July, decoded post-interception, endorsed the "dispatch" of the "usurper" without explicit prohibition, specifying timing for her liberation post-assassination, which Phelippes annotated with a gallows symbol to highlight incriminating intent.^[31] ^[32] By early August 1586, the accumulated decoded correspondence provided irrefutable proof of Mary's complicity, prompting arrests of Babington and six co-conspirators on 4 August, followed by Mary's own on 11 August at Chartley.^[32] Walsingham's operation, reliant on controlled infiltration rather than mere luck, transformed Chartley from a confinement site into a trap, as the beer-barrel conduit—intended for secrecy—systematically exposed the plot's mechanics and participants.^[31] The evidence, including Mary's letters, was pivotal at her trial in September 1586, underscoring how spycraft circumvented her isolation.^[32]

Architectural Description

Surviving Ruins and Defensive Features

Chartley Castle's surviving ruins primarily consist of elements from its early 13th-century stone reconstruction, transforming the original late 11th-century motte and double bailey earth-and-timber structure into a more enclosure-like castle. The motte, situated at the western end of the site, measures approximately 46 meters in base diameter and has been artificially raised atop a natural hillock; it is separated from the inner bailey by a 10-meter-wide ditch. Atop the motte stands a circular stone keep with an internal diameter of 10.7 meters, walls 3.7 meters thick, and heights reaching up to 3 meters in places, though partially restored with brick; a semicircular stair turret of 6 meters diameter adjoins it.^[8]^[33] The inner bailey, rectangular and covering 0.25 hectares, is enclosed by a curtain wall up to 10 meters high on its southern side, featuring five projecting semicircular towers for defensive projection; walls are approximately 12 feet thick with slit openings for archery. Two of these towers at the southeastern corner form a twin-towered gatehouse providing access to the inner bailey, while a three-quarter round tower marks the northeastern corner, though heavily ruined. The outer bailey, roughly 60 meters square and 0.35 hectares, shows no visible stone remains, suggesting it retained timber defenses.^[8]^[33] Defensive earthworks include a 24-meter-wide ditch dividing the inner and outer baileys, crossed by a causeway at the southeastern edge, and a surrounding dry moat up to 18 meters wide augmented by a counterscarp bank; these features, originally deeper ditches, enhanced the site's natural defensibility on elevated terrain. The stone phase, initiated around 1223 under Ranulph de Blundeville, Sixth Earl of Chester, emphasized robust masonry for fortification amid regional conflicts. By the mid-16th century, the castle had fallen into ruin, with families relocating to adjacent Chartley Hall, leaving these remnants overgrown but structurally indicative of transitional medieval defensive architecture.^[8]^[4]

Associated Structures and Landscape Modifications

Chartley Old Hall, situated approximately 100 meters northwest of the castle ruins, represents a key associated structure developed as a moated residential site by 1485, supplanting the castle as the primary residence of the Devereux family. The hall features a substantial moat measuring 12 meters wide surrounding a square island platform of about 94 meters per side, with integrated water management systems including leats and channels that facilitated both practical and ornamental functions.^[1] These water controls linked to two medieval watermills powered by Castle Pool, an impounded pond roughly 200 meters by 100 meters, supported by earthen dams up to 3 meters high; originally for corn milling, the system was adapted in the 16th century for decorative water gardens featuring interconnected rectangular ponds, canals, and terraced earthworks.^[1] The broader Chartley Hall estate, encompassing the old hall's site after a fire in 1781 led to partial rebuilding by 1847, incorporates additional landscape modifications such as grassed terraces descending westward to the moat, where a tennis court was later installed, and serpentine-shaped copses enhancing the picturesque quality of the grounds.^[34] ^[1] Kitchen garden remnants, including a surviving wall northwest of the pleasure grounds, attest to agricultural modifications supporting the estate's self-sufficiency. By 1777, the castle ruins themselves were repurposed as a summerhouse, prospect tower, and observatory, blending defensive remnants into ornamental landscape elements with partial earthworks and walls integrated into the parkland design.^[34] Enclosing the site is Chartley Park, a historic deer park forming part of the substantial medieval and post-medieval estate, with landscape alterations including boundary earthworks and pasturage adapted for managed wildlife.^[34] Surviving field evidence, such as ridge-and-furrow cultivation patterns, hollow ways, and ancient trackways, reflects broader agrarian modifications from the castle's operational period, while the emphasis on water features—moats, ponds, and leats—shifted the terrain from primarily defensive to a hybrid of utility and aesthetic landscaping by the late medieval era.^[1]

Decline, Ownership, and Modern Status

Post-Tudor Abandonment and Decay

Following the Tudor era, Chartley Castle remained unoccupied, having been supplanted as a residence by the adjacent Chartley Old Hall constructed around 1489 by Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex.^[1] Already described as a ruin by antiquarian John Leland circa 1545 during the Tudor period, the site's stone structures— including the cylindrical keep, D-shaped towers, and curtain wall—experienced ongoing deterioration from environmental exposure and neglect in the subsequent centuries.^[1] ^[35] No records indicate attempts at restoration or reuse post-1603, allowing the ruins to erode further through weathering, frost damage, and probable localized stone quarrying for nearby construction.^[36] By the early 17th century, the castle's condition had worsened amid broader estate shifts under the Talbot Earls of Shrewsbury, who focused resources on the hall rather than the obsolete fortifications.^[37] The site's role diminished to that of a landscape feature, emblematic of medieval heritage amid the agricultural lands of Stowe-by-Chartley, with surviving elements like partial tower heights up to 10 meters attesting to gradual rather than catastrophic post-medieval decay.^[1]

Historical Ownership Lineage

Chartley Castle's origins trace to the pre-Conquest era, when the manor was held by Earl Algar as recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086, encompassing a population of nine villagers, six smallholders, and eight-and-a-half ploughlands.^[38] Following the Norman Conquest, ownership transferred to the Earls of Chester, who erected the initial motte-and-bailey structure around 1100.^[2] The castle underwent significant reconstruction in stone circa 1220 under Ranulph de Blundeville, Earl of Chester (died 1232), transforming it into a quadrangular enclosure with corner towers.^[39] Upon Ranulph's death without heirs in 1232, the estate passed by marriage to William de Ferrers, 5th Earl of Derby (died 1254), integrating it into the Ferrers holdings.^[39] ^[38] The Ferrers family retained possession for more than two centuries, utilizing Chartley as a key seat despite periods of attainder, such as that of William de Ferrers, 6th Earl, in 1265 for adherence to Simon de Montfort, after which it briefly escheated to the Crown before restoration.^[2] In 1453, following the death of Edmund Ferrers without male issue, the barony and castle devolved through his daughter Elizabeth Ferrers, suo jure Baroness Ferrers of Chartley (died 1475), to her husband Walter Devereux (died 1459 initially, but succession via heirs), whose family thereby acquired the estate.^[2] ^[38] The Devereux lineage, later elevated to Earls of Essex, continued ownership into the 17th century, though the castle was largely abandoned as a residence by circa 1485 in favor of the adjacent moated Chartley Hall.^[39] Through female descent—specifically via Dorothy Devereux (died 1617), daughter of Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex, and her Shirley progeny—the barony transferred to the Shirley family, with Robert Shirley recognized as inheritor and created Earl Ferrers in 1711. Chartley remained linked to the Earls Ferrers (Shirley) as a principal ancestral seat until 1904, when the 10th Earl, Sewallis Shirley, sold the estate to Sir Philip Muntz amid financial pressures. The ruins have since been privately held, preserving their status as a scheduled ancient monument.^[40]

Contemporary Preservation and Access

Chartley Castle is designated as a Scheduled Monument under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act 1979, ensuring legal protection for its archaeological remains and earthworks, with scheduling formalized in 1953.^[1] The castle ruins themselves hold Grade II* listed building status, reflecting their architectural and historical significance and imposing restrictions on alterations to preserve structural integrity.^[8] As a privately owned site within the Chartley Estate, maintenance responsibilities fall to the landowner, David Edward Dunn Johnson, who has affirmed ownership through legal declarations.^[41] Public access to the interior of the castle ruins is prohibited without prior permission from the owner, as the property remains in private hands and is not maintained as a tourist attraction.^[42] Visitors may view the exterior ruins from adjacent public roads, where barbed wire fencing and livestock in surrounding fields limit closer approach.^[43] Occasional guided tours can be arranged through local authorities such as the Stafford Tourist Information Centre, though no fixed visiting hours or public opening schedule exists.^[43] This restricted access policy aligns with the site's status as private land, prioritizing preservation over general visitation.^[8]

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Chartley Manor (Chartley Manor Farm) (Chartley Castle) - DiCamillo
House & Family History: Chartley Manor was one of the last residences of Mary, Queen of Scots. In January 1586 Mary was moved to Chartley and it was here that ...
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[PDF] David Edward Dunn Johnson - Chartley Estate, Staffordshire
I, David Edward Dunn Johnson, of Chartley Hall,. Chartley, Staffordshire, ST18 OLN do solemnly and sincerely declare that: I am the owner of the Chartley ...Missing: current | Show results with:current
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Chartley Castle - Castlefacts
The castle is designed to be viewed from the road with the towers on the curtain wall all facing the road. The modern road follows the line of the medieval road ...
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Chartley Castle (2025) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go ...
Rating 3.2 (12) Chartley Castle has an interesting history, and was briefly a place of imprisonment for Mary, Queen of Scots. It is a ruin without public access that can only ...