+4 photos"In 1312, Piers Gaveston — the favourite of Edward II and, by most accounts, his lover — was dragged from Warwick Castle and beheaded on Blacklow Hill by the Earl of Warwick. The King never forgave the castle, but the castle never apologised."
About
The Avon curls around Warwick Castle like a moat drawn by a storyteller. Caesar's Tower and Guy's Tower rise from the trees like something between a fairy tale and a siege manual, their silhouettes so perfectly medieval that when Canaletto painted them in 1752, he barely had to embellish a thing.
William the Conqueror raised the first motte here in 1068, but it was the Beauchamp earls who made it formidable — rebuilding in stone, adding the gatehouse barbican, and turning the castle into one of the finest examples of 14th-century military architecture in Europe. Richard Neville, the "Kingmaker," held court here during the Wars of the Roses. The dungeon still bears graffiti scratched by Civil War prisoners. In 1978, Madame Tussauds took over, and the Great Hall's wax figures in their period tableaux walk a strange line between museum and haunted house.
Today it's unapologetically a showman's castle — jousting tournaments, trebuchet firings, and a dungeon attraction that makes children scream with delight. But climb to the ramparts at closing time, when the crowds thin and the Avon catches the last light, and you'll understand why the Earls of Warwick held this rock for nine hundred years. The view hasn't changed since the Conquest.
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Getting There
Terrain & Accessibility
Grounds and main areas are largely accessible with paved paths. The towers and rampart walk involve narrow spiral stairs. The Dungeon attraction has limited accessibility. Wheelchairs available free of charge. Merlin operated venue with good facilities.
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