Emm in London: East Sussex

Saturday, February 24, 2024

A February Visit to Bodiam Castle

We decided to visit Bodiam Castle on a bright February morning. I had incorrectly thought the castle is in Kent and could not figure out why it took us so long to drive there. Turns out Bodiam is in East Sussex and closer to Hastings than Dartford, so that explains it. I love castles, so much so that I have a dedicated label on this blog especially for all my castle-hopping adventures. I prefer ruined castles slightly over intact castles and Bodiam is a very fine example of a moated-castle ruin.

Bodiam Castle was built in 1385 by Sir Edward Dalyngrigge. England was in the midst of the 100 Year War and Sir Edward built the castle (with the permission of Richard II) with the aim of protecting the area of East Sussex from a possible French invasion.

Unlike many castles in Britain, Bodiam was both completed and inhabited. It is reported that the Dalyngrigge lived in the castle for several generations before the male heir line died out and the castle passed by marriage to the Lewknor family.

By 1483, almost a century after the castle was built, Richard III of the House of York became king. Sir Thomas Lewknor had supported the House of Lancaster in the War of the Roses and so a force was sent to Bodiam and the castle surrendered. The castle was confiscated and only returned to the Lewknors when Henry VII of the House of Lancaster became king in 1485.

The Lewknor family owned the castle until the 16th century and by the start of the English Civil War, was in possession of Lord Thanet, a descendant of the Lewknors. Lord Thanet was a keen Royalist and he was forced to sell the castle to pay for fines brought against him following the Parliamentarian victory.

Bodiam Castle was purchased but dismantled and left to fall into ruin. It is only through the work of John Fuller (who bought the castle in 1829), George Cubitt and Lord Curzon that vital restoration work was carried out on the castle to deliver the ruin we know today. Lord Curzon left Bodiam Castle to The National Trust on his death in 1925 and the ruin has been open to the public since.

Bodiam Castle is unusual in that there was no keep built in the castle. Instead the castle was built in a simple quadrangle with chambers situated along the outer defensive walls and inner courts. A circular drum tower is located at each of the four corners of the castle and square central towers are located in the middle of three of four sides.

All of the towers are topped by defensive crenellations which highlight the castle’s defensive intent.

There are arrow loops in the walls and towers of the castle and impressive views of the surrounding countryside. The well in the castle has been preserved and possibly provided water for the castle inhabitants. They certainly weren’t using the moat as a water source for it is believed that is where waste water from the castle was diverted!

We were very lucky because the dark clouds that covered the sky for much of our visit did not break. It was also slightly warm in the sunshine but colder in the shade. By the time we exited to the castle to admire the sculptures, the sky was blue and the promise of spring was near!

Bodiam Castle
Bodiam, near Robertsbridge
East Sussex
TN32 5UA

Prices vary from £10 per adult and £5 per child off-peak. Click the link above for details.

I was chatting with my Mum the other day and she complained that I don't post often enough here. I've always been a bit shy of posting too often. What do you think? Should I post more often here?

Visiting the Tulip Festival at Pashley Manor Gardens

A year ago today, I saw a post on Instagram about the tulip festival at Pashley Manor Gardens in East Sussex and I knew that I absolutely had to go. After a year of planning and looking forward to it, we finally went today and it was every bit as exquisite as we expected.

The history of Pashley Manor is quite fascinating. The house above, with its original Tudor facade, was built in 1550. Almost a century before, Anne Boleyn's great-grandfather Sir Geoffrey Boleyn had owned Pashley. The original house was located on a moted island (which you can still explore) and was most likely a hunting lodge.

The tulip festival runs each year at the end of April and beginning of May. This year, the festival is running from April 19 to May 3 and an impressive 46,000 tulips have been on display.

Naturally, I lost all semblance of self-control on entering the grounds of Pashley Manor and tried to take photos of each and every single tulip.

The grounds at Pashley Manor Gardens are exceptionally well kept. We loved walking around, choosing hidden paths, crossing bridges and spotting new things to see.

This was one of my favourite views of the day, with the right pink tulips in the foreground and the fountain and Pashley Manor in the background.

While we were exploring, we were delighted to see a sign for the Bluebell Walk. I thought I'd missed bluebell season this year, so this was a big treat.

Pashley Manor is home to a large collection of sculptures and most pieces are for sale. The exhibition changes every year, which is exciting because Pashley Manor also has multiple festivals a year, including a rose festival every June.

Stephen had a lot of fun using the Picture This app to find out what many of the trees were. We tried it on a yew tree, with their bottle-brush branches, as well as on azaleas, camellias and other plants.

This was my second favourite view of the day: Pashley Manor in the background with tulips curving in front.

We'd walked around the walled garden, down the Bluebell Trail and alongside the stream but we finally came to the gates of the walled garden.

Our entire visit had been beautiful and life-affirming but the walled garden was something else entirely.

As I stood there, I realised how loud the birdsong was in the garden. It was really moving and beautiful to hear how the garden walls seemed to amplify their calls.

Pashley Manor Gardens
Ticehurst
Near Wadhurst
East Sussex
TN5 7HE

Tickets for the tulip festival cost £15 for adults, £6 for children aged 6-16 and children under 6 go free.

This is the part where I apologise for being scarce this year and I don't even know where to start! Work was super busy from January to mid-March and again since we returned from South Africa. It's been great for my career but not so great for my personal and social life. It seems to finally be calming down now and I can't wait to tell you about all the adventures we've been on in the past six months.

Hastings: The Beach, the Art and the Ducks

It's cold, windy and definitely autumnal now but today's post harks back to the blue skies and sunshine of summer. These are my favourite photos from Hastings beach and the Follow That Duck trail.

Murals in the Underpass (1)

Beach Huts and Hastings Pier

Murals in the Underpass (2)

Dining Huts at Goat Ledge Restaurant

Norman Longboat by Artist Leigh Dyer

Follow That Duck

We had a lot of fun tracking down some of the ducks in the Follow That Duck trail. Follow That Duck was a live art trail that ran from Hastings Old Town to Bexhill on Sea. The ducks will be auctioned on 7 October 2022 with the proceeds going to St Michael's Hospice.

Green Man Duck by Artist Susan Webber

The Bayduck Tapestry by Artist Anne-Marie Byrne

The Lucky Stone by Artist Jenny Pearce

Captain Duck by Artist Karis Viola

A Journey to 1066: The Battle of Hastings Battlefield & Abbey

Today is an auspicious day for I get to tell you all about one of my favourite days out. I’d wanted to visit Hastings for the longest time and a great part of that was due to my interest in the Battle of Hastings in 1066. I couldn’t believe that the whole fate of a nation could hinge on one battle but it was actually my visits to France that really piqued my interest in the events of 1066. Whereas we see many Norman and medieval structures and influences in South East England, French cities such as Boulogne have urban histories dating back to the 9th century and even earlier. It is clear that a lot of what we see now in England is post-Norman and that the conquering powers destroyed much of what was here already.

Of course, that is nothing compared to the destruction that Henry VIII rained down upon his own people, but more on him later.

The Visitor Centre

We began our visit in the superb visitor centre which provides a full audio-visual account of the key reasons for the battle as well a display of the various weapons and armour used by the opposing forces. We learned that Edward the Confessor died without a direct heir, that he appointed Harold Godwinson as protector of the kingdom but that William, Duke of Normandy disputed Harold’s legitimacy as King. William and his forces successfully invaded and defeated England’s army on 14 October 1066. Known now as William the Conqueror, he ended Anglo-Saxon rule in England, established Norman rule and changed the course of history forever on this little island.

The Battlefield

Armed with a lot of knowledge, we picked up our audio-guides and went for a leisurely 3 mile stroll around the famous battlefield. Note that there is some controversy as to whether this is indeed the site of the famous battle as no human remains have been found here but William famously built Battle Abbey ‘on a site overlooking the famous battleground’ and so this area is proclaimed to be it.

We were guided on the path by numerous statues on infantrymen, cavalry and archers. There was a large group with children up ahead and they were having the best time playing amongst the statues and shields. I must say that the audio-visual guides were excellent – it appears that there is more than one version out there as mine was different to Stephen’s, but mine had a man and a woman narrating, each presenting the view of the Norman and English armies respectively.

There are two types of shield depicted on the Bayeux Tapestry. We have no way of knowing definitively, but kite shields are associated with the Normans. Their tapered end would have provided greater protection for the body and lower torso than the round shields associated with the English army.

Looking over the shoulder of this kneeling Norman infantryman, you can get an idea of the scope of the ground and how hilly it is. Battle Abbey is just visible in the distance (and more so in the photos below).

The Norman army consisted of cavalry, archers and infantry whereas the English army was mainly infantry with a few archers. The English forces consisted of the King’s royal guard – the housecarls who were well-trained, paid and wore superior armour. The remaining English forces were not so lucky, known as fyrds they were largely conscripted to fight for the king and were expected to provide their own weapons and provisions due to the expected brevity of their service.

The full story of the Battle of Hastings is quite complex but ultimately the Norman victory was due to better formation, a well-equipped army and a healthy dose of good luck.

As our very informative walk around the battlefield drew to an end, we approached the ruins of Battle Abbey, built to honour the Norman victory and destroyed by Henry VIII.

Battle Abbey

Following the Battle of Hastings, Pope Alexander II ordered that the Normans should do penance for the amount of lives lost in the Battle of 1066. William the Conqueror vowed to build an abbey at Battle but sadly died before it was completed. The abbey became home to Benedictine monks.

Today the abbey lies in ruins, a victim of King Henry VIII’s notorious Dissolution of the Monasteries in 1538.

The high altar of the abbey is purported to be the spot where King Harold lost his life.

I couldn’t help but be impressed by this incredible building. At over 900 years old, it survived near destruction in 1538 yet still cuts an imposing figure on the horizon. What an incredible marvel of Norman architecture.

With one final look at the battlefield and a quick look at the Cloisters, our visit was over. We made our way over to Burton’s Tea Room located by the front gate of Battle Abbey and enjoyed some truly delicious English fare (and yes, it was another Ploughman’s lunch for me!)