Farleigh Hungerford Castle

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Farle Mountford; Farley Hungerford

In the civil parish of Norton St Philip.
In the historic county of Somerset (Modern Authority of Somerset, 1974 county of Somerset).

Castle built in 1370's, by Sir Thomas Hungerford, who was pardoned for crenellating without licence in 1383. Enclosure castle with round corner towers and square gate house. much ruined and only gatehouse, two towers and some curtain walling survive to any degree plus the chapel and priest's house. From the reign of William II to Edward III, Farleigh was held by the Montfort family and their original manor house was on the site of the castle. In 1369-70 the manor was bought by Sir Thomas de Hungerford who fortified the manor house and built the hall in 1380-90. His son, Sir Walter Hungerford, added the outer court in 1420-30 including the moat.

This site has been described as a;
Masonry Castle.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Certain.
Masonry ruins/remnants remains.

A Royal Pardon licence to crenellate was granted in 1383 Nov 26.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.
This site is a Grade 1 listed building protected by law*. (Images of England number 267186)

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is ST80095762

Modern Map from Good for landscape form and features	Modern Map from Good for general location
Air Photo from	1st edition OS Map from

Sources of information, references and further reading

PastScape number; 207732

County Sites and Monuments Record number; 23881

• Web site links
  • http://www.hungerfordcastle.freewire.co.uk/
    http://www.theheritagetrail.co.uk/castles/farleigh%20hungerford.htm
    http://www.castlexplorer.co.uk/england/far-hungfrd/far-hungfrd.php
    http://www.britannia.com/history/somerset/castles/fhungcast.html
    http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/conProperty.253
    http://webapp1.somerset.gov.uk/her/details.asp?prn=23881
• Books
  • Emery, Anthony, 2006, Greater Medieval Houses Vol3 (Cambridge) p553-7
    Salter, Mike, 2002, The Castles of Wessex (Malvern) p74-6
    Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p221-2
    Dunning, Robert, 1995, Somerset Castles (Somerset Books) p57-8
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol2 p443
    Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p230
    Pevsner, N., 1958, The Buildings of England: North Somerset and Bristol (London, Penguin) p190-91
    Oman, Charles W.C., 1926, Castles (1978 edn Beetham House: New York) p66-9
    Burrow, Edward J., 1924, Ancient Earthworks and Camps of Somerset (Cheltenham and London) p134-5
    Bothamley, 1911, in Page, Wm (ed), VCH Somerset Vol2 p523
    Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (Methuen and Co)
    Page, Wm. (ed), 1906, VCH Somerset Vol1 p362
    Mackenzie, J.D., 1897, Castles of England (Heinemann) Vol2 p57-62
    Jackson, J.E., 1879, A guide to Farleigh Hungerford (Chippenham) p9-48
    Turner, T.H. and Parker, J.H., 1859, Some account of Domestic Architecture in England (Oxford) Vol3 pt2 p339
    Anon, c. 1800, Picturesque Illustrations of the Antiquities of the Chapel of St. Anne with the castle of Farley Hungerford by a member of the Antiquarian family of Edinburgh
    Buck, Samuel and Nathenial, 1774, Buck’s Antiquities (London) Vol2 p258
    Grose, F., 1756, Antiquities of England and Wales Vol5 p25-8
• Journal Articles
  • Miles, T J and Saunders, A D, 1975, 'The chantry priests house at Farleigh Hungerford Castle' Medieval Archaeology Vol19 p165-94
    Wilcox, R., 1980, 'Excavations at Farleigh Hungerford Castle, Somerset, 1973-76' Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Vol124 p87-109
    Wilcox, R., 1977, ‘Farleigh Hungerford, Farleigh Castle' Archaeological Excavations 1976(HMSO) p31
    Morley, B.M., 1977, ‘Farleigh Hungerford Castle, Somerset' Archaeological Journal Vol134 p356-8
    1930, Archaeological Journal Vol87 p486-8
    Tipping, 1921, Country Life Vol50 p692-6
    Jackson, J.E., 1852, Somerset Archaeology and Natural History Vol3 p114-24
• Guidebooks
  • 2001, Farleigh Hungerford Castle Somerset (English Heritage)
    Anon, 1986, Farleigh Hungerford Castle (English Heritage)
    Anon, 1983, Farleigh Hungerford Castle (HMSO)
    Chettle and Reynolds, 1946, Farleigh Hungerford Castle (HMSO)
• Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents - This section is far from complete and the secondary sources should be consulted for full references.)
  • Calendar of Patent Rolls (1381-85) p340
• Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
  • William Camden, 1607, Britannia [http://www.philological.bham.ac.uk/cambrit/dorseteng.html#somerset21]
    Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p403-4
    Toulmin-Smith, Lucy (ed), 1910, The itinerary of John Leland in or about the years 1535-1543 (Bell and Sons; London) Vol1 p137,138