Bickleigh Castle is a fortified manor house that stands on the banks of the River Exe at Bickleigh in Devon, England. Once considerably larger, Bickleigh now comprises a group of buildings from various periods which together formed a water castle.
The main building was destroyed during the English Civil War, however other buildings, mostly arranged around a central courtyard survived. The castle is frequently open to the public by appointment, but it serves principally as a bespoke wedding venue. The River Exe runs through the grounds.
History
A Norman motte castle of the late 11th or early 12th century was dismantled in the mid 12th century. During this time a small stone chapel was built in the bailey. In the 15th century the Courtenay family built a mansion on the site and incorporated some of the earlier buildings. The Courtenay and Carew families then lived there until the English Civil War, and the Carews owned the Estate until 1924.
During the English Civil War Charles I's queen, Henrietta Maria stayed in the castle as a guest of Sir Henry & Lady Dorothy Carew in 1644, on her way to Exeter. Shortly after her visit she gave birth to Princess Henrietta Anne Stuart, who later married Le Duc d'Orléans, the bisexual brother of King Louis XIV of France; there is a plaque commemorating the birth of the Princess in Exeter, which is now displayed in the Princesshay Shopping Centre. The Queen then exiled herself in July 1644 from Falmouth, and did not return until the 1660s. Subsequently, at the end of 1645, Fairfax's Parliamentarian troops attacked the castle, after 'slighting' neighbouring Tiverton Castle. The bulk of the castellated structure was then demolished by Parliamentarian troops. The 'slighting' of Bickleigh was a response to the Royalist sympathies of the Carew family and its use as a stronghold during the conflict with the main manor house and inner keep being destroyed.
Following the Restoration, a typical Devon farmhouse of cob and thatch was added.
The buildings subsequently fell into disrepair, and became a farm store and cottage until they were restored early in the 20th century. The Norman chapel and a 12th-century gatehouse still exist, as does the 15th-century Courthouse and parts of the original Norman curtain wall. On a small hill behind the castle, encased amongst rhododendrons, are the remains of the Saxon 'motte' (watchtower).
Buildings
The west range no longer survives. A building now known as the "Old Court" is south of the courtyard. Along with the North range and gatehouse most of the buildings were arranged around a central courtyard. The chapel is east of the rest of the buildings close to the River Exe. Moat Cottage is north of the other buildings.
Gatehouse
The gatehouse dates from the early 12th century and is a Grade I listed building. It is a three-storey single-depth plan stone structure with an asbestos slate roof surmounted by turrets. A central carriage archway leads into a courtyard. The building was substantially altered in the 15th century by the Courtenay family, and restored in the 1920s and 1930s during the ownerships of Mr Francis Harper and Lt Col Jasper Henson.
The Sanctuary of the chapel pre-dates the Norman additions and alterations. The first documentary evidence of this building is circa AD600 probably before the Saxons arrived circa AD 660, with further documentary reference to it being a chapel circa AD800s. The Sanctuary is the oldest part no doubt altered during that time. There is archeological evidence of a wall at the west end of the Sanctuary with an arch, dividing it from the then nave. This was demolished when the nave was enlarged and replaced with a wooden Rood Screen. The current "wagon roof" dating from the 15th century. It is often cited as the oldest complete building in Devon. It was substantially renovated in the early 20th century. The rood screen was unfortunately lost during the 19th century when the Chapel was temporarily used to house cattle. The Chapel currently (2017) enjoys the benefit of a recently restored Estey organ dating from 1884.