Donnington Castle (and Farleigh Hungerford Castle)

Is Donnington Castle worth an excursion from the Kennet & Avon Canal to visit? Well, it all comes down to how ruined you like your castles. Me, I like a castle that’s still lived in, but with a ruined wing or tower. I want to pay my £10 and have a nice tour of the various rooms, held in check by velvet ropes and admire the tapestries and the gigantic portraits of dead white guys. When I’m done, I want a gift shop where I can also get a cream tea. My friend Lee, however, prefers mouldering ruins that are still accessible in that you can climb some towers or walk along the walls. A perfect example of my kind is Chirk Castle in Wales; for Lee Caerlaverock Castle in Scotland or Carreg Cennen in Wales.

Donnington Castle was built in the 14th century and was at one point owned by Thomas Chaucer, son of the famous poet, and Henry VII and Elizabeth I were visitors. It’s your standard sort of castle with a curtain wall connecting a number of towers—according to English Heritage four round corner towers, two square wall towers and a substantial gatehouse—with a number of timber buildings in the courtyard. I don’t know if there was a central keep, but I doubt it. The walls of the castle have been restored to a height that gives an indication of it’s size … and it’s pretty small.

The castle sits on high ground looking toward the River Lambourn to the south and is just north west of Newbury. Unfortunately I doubt there’s a view of the castle from the canal, even though the castle is just 1.33 mi/2.13 km in a straight line north of the K&A. There’s considerable woodlands and a golf course between the canal and the castle that block the view.

Not that there’s much to see anymore. Royalist forces held the castle during the last of the English Civil War and only quit the castle after Charles I surrendered to Scottish forces. Afterward, Parliament voted to demolish the castle, leaving only the twin towers of the gatehouse that remain today.

Seen from the right angle, the gatehouse remains impressive and there’s a J.M.W. Turner watercolor that makes the castle look terribly romantic, and there’s some impressive drone footage of the castle on YouTube, but realistically there’s not much to do at the castle. You can still admire the earthworks that were raised by the Royalist defenders, but that won’t take long. Of course it’s only about a 2 mi/3.2 km walk to the castle from the canal, so it may be worth it.

Other castles

Sadly there aren’t many castles worthy of the name convenient to the canal. An exception, of course, is Highclere Castle where the series Downton Abbey was filmed. It’s about six miles south of Newbury and is spectacular and well worth a visit. You can even stay at two lodges on the estate or at a number of nearby hotels. It is, however, a 7 mi/11.3 km drive (or slightly shorter bike ride) to the castle from the canal.

The present-day building dates to the 17th century and the surrounding grounds were landscaped by Lancelot “Capability” Brown. Highclere is the home of the Earls of Carnarvon, and the fifth earl is justly famous for financing Egyptologist Howard Carter. In 1922, the earl was with Carter when they opened Tutankhamen’s tomb and you will see Egyptian artifacts at the castle.

There is a castle in Devizes, but it’s actually a Victorian recreation atop the remains of a Norman castle. It’s a private property and came up for sale in 2019 for £3.25m. And then there’s the Sham Castle in Bath, but it’s an 18th century folly and basically just a castle facade. It’s on the grounds of Bath Golf Club and I doubt you should wander onto the course to admire the folly.

Farleigh Hungerford Castle

Farleigh Hungerford Castle is just south of the K&A from Avoncliff Aqueduct. I’d say the crumbling 14th century remnants look like a proper ruined castle with two towers still mostly standing and curtain walls high enough that you can’t see over them with, I am guessing, restored or recreated crenellations. You can actually drive through a gatehouse to the car park.

There’s quite a bit to see and do, which is surprising given the history of the castle. It was the home of the Hungerford family for three centuries, but the spendthrift ways of later generations and the fact the castle changed hands between Parliamentary and Royalist forces during the Civil War, led to its decline. After it left the hands of the Hungerford family, the castle was robbed of it stone for other purposes.

Half of the castle has been reduced to the foundations, but the central courtyard remains identifiable thanks to the parish church that the first Lord Hungerford enclosed within the curtain walls. The house built for the priest of the now castle chapel also survives, thanks to it being used as a farmhouse into the 20th century. These buildings now serve as ticket office, gift shop and museum. You can also see tombs and anthropoid (human-shaped) lead coffins in the chapel. You can enter the two towers but the stone spiral staircases are long gone.

I don’t know if you can get a satisfying cream tea at the castle; English Heritage only lists vending machines for hot and cold drinks and food. There are accessible toilets and some activities to keep kids entertained. I’m sure on a bank holiday there are Civil War re-enactors on site.

Basic adult admission is £5.70, which includes an audio guide. I believe in the winter months the castle is only open on weekends.

Unfortunately we won’t be traveling the canal between Bath and Devizes on this trip, so Lee may have to be content with Donnington Castle. I may do a quick bike trip to at least get some pictures for my guide book.

Westwood Manor

While en route to the castle, you can also visit Westwood Manor, a National Trust property. Open days are limited to Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday from April to September and adult admission is £9. There is a resident caretaker and the 15th century manor house reflects the furnishings and tastes of the last owner, Edgar Lister, a diplomat who died in 1956.

Architectural historian Nicholas Pevsner called it “a perfect Wiltshire manor house” in his book The Buildings of England: Wiltshire. This is more my sort of thing, a stately home with silly topiary and even an adjacent parish church to visit.