Framlingham Castle

Our View

The attractive, mellow-hued battlemented towers and walls of Framlingham Castle have had some notable owners. The Earl of Norfolk, Roger Bigod, built the castle somewhere between about 1189 and 1200 on the site of an earlier castle. The Bigods traditionally had tempestuous relationships with their kings – Hugh Bigod supported Henry II’s eldest son when he rebelled against his father in 1173, Roger Bigod II held Framlingham against King John in 1216, and Roger Bigod IV refused to go to Flanders to fight for Edward I in 1297. Framlingham Castle was also owned by the Mowbray family, one of whom was engaged to marry one of the unfortunate princes who ‘disappeared’ from the Tower of London, and the Howard family, members of which were Dukes of Norfolk in Henry VIII’s time. It was at Framlingham that ‘Bloody’ Mary learned that she had become Queen of England in 1553. Later, Elizabeth I used the castle as a prison for priests who refused to accept the new Church of England. Framlingham Castle has 13 towers, all connected by walls, and you can walk right round the castle. There are beautiful views over the mere. When the castle was no longer used as a ducal residence, it took on several different roles through the ensuing centuries, including as a poor house – the buildings for which survive in the courtyard – a parish meeting place, dance hall, courtroom, drill hall and a fire station.You can learn more about the castle’s colourful past from the on-site exhibition, entitled Framlingham Castle: From Powerhouse to Poorhouse.