GB Launceston Castle

New from English Heritage Guidebooks Title: Launceston Castle Author: Oliver H Creighton For over 900 years, the huge castle mound at Launceston has dominated the landscape. It was raised by the Normans soon after the Conquest in the late 11th century, at the heart of a motte and bailey castle, which formed the centre of the earldom (later the duchy) of Cornwall. Over the next century, its timber buildings were replaced in stone and the town grew up in the shadow of the castle. In the mid 13th century, Richard, Earl of Cornwall, the fabulously rich brother of Henry III, remodelled Launceston Castle as a symbol of his wealth and power, adding an imposing tower into the centre of the keep and renewing the bailey defences and gatehouses. When the centre of the Duchy of Cornwall moved to Lostwithiel in the late 13th century, however, Launceston Castle’s status declined and its main function was as a prison, with political rebels, religious dissenters and common criminals imprisoned and sometimes executed here. Excavations from the 1960s to the 1980s revealed a complex sequence of timber and stone buildings within the castle bailey, along with a wealth of objects. Some of these objects are now on display at the castle, helping to tell the story of the people who lived and worked here. Today, visitors come from far and wide to climb Launceston’s High Tower and admire the views from one of Cornwall’s most distinctive historic buildings. This new guide presents a complete tour and history of Launceston Castle, and through new site photography, reconstructions, maps, plans and features, it tells the story of the castle and its residents since it was first built in the 11th century. Published: June 2022 Price: £4.50 Product code: 506105 ISBN: 978 1 910907 51 1 Paperback: 190 x 220mm Extent: 40 pages