Stokesay Castle: a hidden gem in rural Shropshire

Old and new are juxtaposed in awkward fashion in many parts of Shropshire. You can be cruising along key arterial road, the A49, one moment, and then turn down a country lane, unchanged for centuries, and step seamlessly back in time to the Shropshire of yesteryear.

The roar of traffic along this major route through the heart of England,which incidentally stretches as far as Faddiley, was dampened by the myriad of hedgerows and twists of narrow farm roads, that lead to the enchanting little enclave of Stokesay.

Positioned next to the church of St John the Baptist, Stokesay is one of the increasing number of small country parishes that allows visitors to tour the church during daylight hours.

With a garland of seasonal flowers around its door, little I suspect has changed since its inaugural opening and ecclesiastical address.

Visitors are entreated to shut the door on entering in a bid to keep out vagrant and all too inquisitive birds. But the interior does not disappoint and has remained largely unchanged for centuries when the church would have been central to local village life.

However, the small hamlet that once surrounded the central castle and church have now all but disappeared. A scattering of farmsteads are spread out expansively within the immediate locale.

And a pleasant lady of a certain age, with headscarf and pastoral appearance, arrived at the church early this particular morning, as many have done in generations before, to ready it for the day's visitors.

Stokesay, in reality a fortified manor, and one of the best surviving examples in all of England, would in its hey-day have been a great powerbase for local lord of the manor, Lawrence of Ludlow.

A leading wool merchant of the time, Ludlow acquired the land in 1281 for the price of a sparrowhawk from the de Say family - who were descended from the Normans.

Interestingly, there was a presence here from the Norman conquests onwards when Roger de Montgomery, Earl of Shrewsbury took control of the lands in this region.

He gave Stokesay to one of his retainers, Roger de Lacy, who then in turn let it out to the de Say family (under the Norman feudal system of land tenure). And that's how Stokesay eventually got its name. As stoke meant dairy farm, the name translated literally to 'dairy farm of the de Says'.

It would perhaps be hard to believe standing before the manor today, that for 150 years from 1706 it became largely a run-down grain store and barn for local farmers.

It was only with the intervention of foresight of a Victorian MP and Worcester glove merchant, John Darby Allcroft, that Stokesay has survived in its present form.

In 1869, he bought the manor and began an extensive series of repairs, that were eventually taken over by English Heritage in 1992, when the last of the Allcroft line passed away.

What perhaps makes Stokesay a most interesting of castles and or manors, is its mixture of Jacobean-style architecture and old-style Normanesque stonework.

What immediately stands out on visiting the castle are the extended Jacobean windows that have the archetypal wood panelling and plaster design, in a pleasing ochre shade.

The gatehouse in a similar style also distinguishes the manor from so many other castles of its ilk because of the delightful mix of architectural motifs and influences.

And perhaps what is all the more remarkable is that it has survived at all. During the Civil War, when under the ownership of the Craven family, it was firmly on the side of the king (Charles I).

However, it fell in to Parliamentarian hands, and to punish its former allegiance to the crown, Cromwell ordered that it be totally levelled and demolished. Luckily, these orders were ignored, and the manor house survives much as it did in its early days.

On entering through the manicured lawns and gardens, people can see the open plan, main hall which was typical of the medieval period. There is a solar block fitted with living apartments and a north tower with further rooms. The southern tower was built as an additional line of defence. The moat is also said to be purely decorative in nature.

Almost church-like in parts, the building had additional ramparts added to it in 1291 under Edward I's royal approval, in a bid to strengthen it against potential invaders.

At the time, it's worth noting that local uprisings and attacks from Welsh insurgents were all too common an occurence, and life was often lived precariously at best.

The lower two storeys of the north tower actually date from 1240, and the great hall was then added after Lawrence of Ludlow acquired the site. He added considerably to the current building - as did successive generations of his dynasty right up until the reign of Charles I (when the Craven family acquired it).

The great hall is estimated at being 34ft high and has no fireplace, just an open octagonal hearth. And even in it's present state, its high vaulted ceilings and vast open spaces can perhaps transport people back to the days when it would have brimming with, say, dining guests, entertainers and servants rushing to satisfy their wishes and whims.

The solar or private appartments on the crosswing of the hall, can only be reached by an exterior timber stairway, which is sheltered by its own roof. The apartments contain Elizabethan oak panelling and an impressively ornate fireplace.

Back outside, the roof's double collar beams and curved collar braces are said to rest on masonry corbels in the walling - which were also said to have been quite an innovation for the time.

People today can experience a real slice of life as it was once lived, because re-enactors regularly stage sword fighting or longbow displays throughout the year, or dress up in period costume to relive the glory days of this once busy and important manor.

There is also an on-site shop and tea room for visitors after they have made a tour of the grounds. Or nearby Ludlow or Craven Arms could be visited for those in search of a greater choice of country inns or tearooms.

Directions:

Take the A534 from Faddiley and then join the A49 southwards towards Shrewsbury. Stay on this road, through Craven Arms, then watch out for a signpost that leads to Stokesay Castle a few miles further on from here (small country lane on your right). Journey should take under an hour and a half.