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Dunster Castle, Somerset

There has been a castle on top of the tor at Dunster since before the Norman Conquest. In 1066, William the Conqueror granted Dunster to William de Mohun, whose family then owned the castle for three hundred years. Castles seem to build secure walls between friend and foe, but they are so often places where we see how ill-defined friend and foe can be. Following William the Conqueror's death it wasn't long before the Norman invaders were squabbling amongst themselves. The Conqueror's son Henry I didn't succeed to the throne of England without a fight with his brother Robert. And when Henry I died there was another power struggle, between Henry's daughter Mathilda, and Stephen, the Conqueror's grandson. The Mohun's of Dunster, supported Mathilda, and the castle was besieged and captured by King Stephen in 1138.

 

In 1376 Dunster was sold to Lady Elizabeth Luttrell - whose family owned the castle until the twentieth century. During the English Civil War internal disputes swirled in and around Dunster's walls once more. In 1650, following the war, Parliament ordered that all of Dunster's fortifications be demolished. The house itself survived, and by the 1680s Colonel Francis Luttrell was refurbishing Dunster. At this point Dunster is yet again linked to internal upheavals. In 1688 the Glorious Revolution took place, when in a confused sequence of events, the catholic king James II fled to France, and Parliament replaced him with the protestant William of Orange. Francis Luttrell raised a regiment to support William's landing at Torbay. This regiment became known as the Green Howards, named after its commanding officer Charles Howard. The Green Howards still form part of the British Army today, as 2nd Battalian the Yorkshire Regiment (Green Howards). It is one of the many ironies of national identity that an historic regiment of the British Army was actually formed to support an invasion of Britain. Muskets which are believed to have been used by men in the original Green Howards are on display at the castle. The present Green Howards continue to view Dunster as their ancestral home, and events involving the regiment still occasionally take place at the castle.

In the 1860s George Fownes Luttrell had the castle remodelled to once again give it the appearance of a medieval fortress. The 1860s were a time of huge change. The Industrial Revolution was in full swing, and Darwin had published Origin of Species in 1859. People were seeking apparent escape from the pace of these changes in idealisation of villages, the idealisation of childhood - children's literature dates from this period - and in the case of Dunster the romantic recreation of a medieval fortress. The last job of the castle walls was to symbolically stand against the passage of time.

The castle was handed to the National Trust by Sir Walter Luttrell in 1976. There is a restaurant and gift shop. Walks in the grounds give impressive views of Exmoor and the Bristol Channel.

 

Opening Times: opening hours at National Trust properties can be complex. Please use contact details below.

Address: Dunster Castle, near Minehead, Somerset TA24 6SL

Directions: Take the A39 towards Minehaead in Somerset. Turn off at the A396 and follow signs. Click here for an interactive map centred on Dunster Castle.

Access: There are many steep slopes in the grounds, and stairs in the castle. There is a wheelchair accessible transfer service from the car park to the castle, and a drop off point. A stair climber is available, but ring ahead. Accessible route maps of grounds, adapted toilet facilities, Braille and large print guides, are provided.

Contact:

telephone: 01643 823004

fax: 01643 823000

e-mail: dunstercastle@nationaltrust.org.uk

web site: http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-dunstercastle.htm

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