Belvoir Castle

Back in May we headed to Belvoir Castle in Grantham, Lincolnshire, for my birthday. Despite the fact that it’s only a half hour drive from Nottingham I hadn’t managed to visit until now.

There are several tiers of tickets depending on whether you want to visit the castle and gardens or just the gardens. We did both (the gardens will be a follow up post) and an adult weekday visit cost £18. Tickets are timed so I’d recommend booking in advance but you can also purchase them at the entrance gate on the day.

Belvoir Castle (pronounced Beaver) is the ancestral home of the Duke of Rutland and the family are still in residence. This is the fourth castle on the site dating from the early 1800s. Its creator was the 18 year old Duchess Elizabeth and the architect was James Wyatt, the same man who designed Windsor Castle which has similar structures.

The tour is self-guided from the entrance and the route is clearly signposted, first making your way up and then down into the cellar. Photography is allowed but not videoing. The exterior is very striking but the interior is just as impressive – some of my favourite rooms included the picture gallery with its stunning vaulted ceiling. The pictures range from the 16th to 20th century with the likes of Gainsborough and Holbein.

I was impressed too by the State Dining Room; as well as being beautifully decorated one point of particular interest is this punch bowl made from silver. Not only is it huge but that cloth it’s standing on isn’t actually cloth at all but marble carved to look that way by Matthew Cotes Wyatt. Because of its weight the floor beneath had to be reinforced.

I also liked the chapel particularly the stone coffin shown here of Robert de Todeni who was a standard bearer for William the Conqueror and built the first Belvoir Castle. He was buried at Belvoir Priory and the tomb was discovered years later by some workmen.

We really enjoyed exploring the castle and from here set out to explore the gardens (next post).