While the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in drastic social and economic impacts, the need for an escape through tourism remains steady. Heritage Tourism remains one of the industry’s most popular forms. Heritage Tourism can be as ‘travellers seeing or experiencing built heritage, living culture or contemporary arts’.[1] Encountering a site and its stories can transport…
A New Audio Trail for Herstmonceux Castle
…is the soundscape of the world an indeterminate composition over which we have no control, or are we its composers and performers, responsible for giving it form and beauty? Raymond Murray Schafer, The Soundscape: Our Sonic Environment and the tuning of the World (Rochester: Inner Traditions, 1994), p.136 On 16th February 2022, we introduced a…
This is the Life! (1918 Edition)
The picturesque Herstmonceux Castle and its estate have featured in many a glossy magazine over the years. In 1918, just a few years into Colonel Claude Lowther’s restoration project, the castle and its grounds were featured in Country Life. Country Life, which was established in 1897 by Edward Hudson, went on to become a household…
Herstmonceux Castle in the 1921 Census
On 6th January 2022 the 1921 census, which has been closed for a century, was made available to the public for the first time. The census is a survey which, usually, is taken every ten years to provide a snapshot of all the people and households in England and Wales. The object of a census…
Medieval Medicine at Herstmonceux Castle
In a fifteenth century castle in the heart of the East Sussex countryside, a small but dedicated group of students chop herbs, grind spices and carefully measure liquids into glass bottles. Their aim is simple, to offer relief to others suffering with various medical ailments. It may surprise you to learn that this scene is…
Peter the Sheep (1914-1928): Eccentric Pet and Much-Loved Military Mascot
Located just outside of the castle’s walled gardens is a small yet poignant memorial. Within the carefully enclosed area, amid the flowers and plants, you will notice a single stone slab with the name ‘Peter’ inscribed. But who was Peter and why do we have this memorial in the castle grounds? In August 1914, war…
Herstmonceux in the Domesday Book
In 1085 King William I commissioned a huge survey of land and landholding which resulted in the iconic Domesday Book. Domesday is the most complete record of pre-industrial society to survive anywhere in the world, making it an exceptional document which offers us a unique window into the Middle Ages. For the majority of places recorded within…
The Colonel and The Party Palace: Life at Herstmonceux Castle in the Roaring ‘20s
The decade known as the ‘roaring twenties’ is synonymous with glamour, exuberance and partying. As the world emerged from one of the greatest conflicts in our history, survivors looked to the new decade with hope and excitement, much as we are doing today as we emerge from our own global crisis. The 1920s is such…
Medieval Migrant Workers and the Building of Herstmonceux Castle
In 1441 Sir Roger Fiennes was granted a licence to ‘enclose, crenellate and furnish with towers and battlements his manor at Hurst Monceux’.[1] Along with wanting to show off his wealth and status, Sir Roger was following the wider consumer movement of investing a higher proportion of his income in his home. This trend was heavily…
The Fiennes Family, the Hundred Years War & Sir Roger’s Rise to Power
On 5th February 1441 King Henry VI granted Sir Roger Fiennes a licence which allowed him to ‘enclose, crenellate and furnish with towers and battlements his manor of Hurst Monceux co. Sussex’.1 Sir Roger was also given permission to ‘enclose 600 acres of his land’ adjoining the manor. This licence led directly to the castle and…