The Manor of Saltwood was granted to the see of Canterbury in
1026.
Archbishop Lanfranc took Saltwood into his personal possession in 1086; it
apparently remained the property of the archbishops for much of the Middle Ages.
It is possible that a ringwork castle was constructed on the site of a manorial
establishment at the time of Domesday.
The square towers of the inner ward probably date from around 1160 and the round
towers of the outer ward or barbican are 14th century. The arms of Archbishop Courtney distinguish
the great gatehouse built when he made the castle his chief residence from 1382.
The castle gained notoriety as the refuge for the murderers of Becket before and
after his martyrdom. In 1540 the Saltwood Castle was conveyed to the Crown but it
soon declined into a farm.
There were restorations in the 1880s which added to the gatehouse to make it
into a dwelling, and the later hall was largely re-worked by Philip Tilden in the 1930s. The
battlements have been restored.
The Saltwood Castle is owned by the Clark family and it is not
open for visitors.
Saltwood Castle Map&Location
Saltwood Castle address: Castle Rd, Saltwood, Hythe, Kent CT21 4QU, UK. Get help
with directions using this map:
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