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Bodiam
The reaction on seeing Bodiam for the first time is almost always the same: sharp
intake of breath, followed by 'Now that's what I call a castle!' With its wide
moat, round towers and majestic gatehouse, Bodiam in East Sussex looks like something
out of a fairytale.
This, of course, is no accident. It looks the way it does because its builder
– an ambitious knight called Sir Edward Dallingridge – wanted a castle
that looked fantastic in order to show the world that he was fantastic too.
New money
Although today its beauty is unique, when it was built in the late 14th century
Bodiam was in many ways typical of its time. In the later Middle Ages, new castles
were built not by kings and earls (who already had lots of them) but by lesser
men with big ambitions. In this respect, Sir Edward is a typical late-medieval
castle builder.
Castles like Bodiam were funded by the huge profits their owners amassed by fighting
in the Hundred
Years War. Money obtained from ransoms, plunder and extortion was shipped
home and invested in spectacular dream homes. Sir Edward was a veteran of the
wars and this is precisely how he paid for his new castle.
Fort or show-off?
In recent years the castle has attracted a lot of debate: is it a serious military
fortification, or a dream home for a nouveau riche show-off? Personally, I think
that Bodiam should be considered a proper castle. Of course, Sir Edward was
showing off – take a look at the shields above both entrances at Bodiam
– but he also wanted to protect himself and his family. The castle was
built in the 1380s, and at that time the Hundred Years War was going so badly
for the English that it looked as if the French were about to invade southern
England. Since Sir Edward's estates lay just a few miles from the coast, and
the government was powerless to defend them, he had to look to his own protection.
Because of his active career in royal service, and his relentless rise, we know
quite a lot about Sir Edward. Regrettably, we know less about his wife, Lady
Elizabeth, because women feature much less in the records of royal government.
Career cut short
Having fought long and hard all his life, and risen relentlessly, Sir Edward died
in the late summer of 1393. He was in his mid-forties, and so died comparatively
young, even by late-Medieval standards. So he can have only enjoyed its splendour
for a few years at most.
Sir Edward and Elizabeth were buried in the abbey of Robertsbridge, just a few
miles from Bodiam, where they were later joined by their son John. Sadly, the
monastery was 'dissolved'
in the 16th century and nothing remains of their tombs except for the mutilated
trunk of John's effigy, which can now be seen in the museum at the castle.
The castle today
Although much of the interior of the castle is ruined today (it was probably
dismantled during and after the English
Civil War from the outside the castle appears largely intact and it serves
as a superb monument to the man who built it.
In 1917 Bodiam Castle was acquired by Lord Curzon and extensively restored.
He left it to the National Trust on his death in 1926.
Today Bodiam remains in the hands of the National Trust and is open to the public.
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