Shrewsbury Castle

I knew absolutely nothing Shrewsbury Castle before I arrived in Shrewsbury other than that it existed. I had assumed that visiting I would learn all about the history of the castle and why it was built, but I learnt basically nothing about the castle’s origins because the castle in fact houses The Soldiers of Shropshire Museum which spans the entirety of the building.

But let’s start with the castle itself anyway. Since I had arrived a bit before the opening time I was able to wander around the grounds beforehand. The motte and bailey timber castle was built in 1067, then built in stone in 1272 and refortified in 1642 when it stood for Charles I, though the castle and the town were taken by the Parliamentarians in 1645. It became the Council Chamber for the local government in 1926 and home to the Shropshire Museum in 1985.

The grounds are free to visit and you can wander around the gardens, walk up the tower walls to take in the views

or climb up Laura’s Tower. This tower was built and named for the daughter of Sir William Pulteney as a summer house. Some days its open so you can go inside, but not on the occasion I visited. You do get a good sense of how close the railway is to the castle from here.

Next, on to the museum. The price of admission for an adult is usually £8 but I happened to be visiting on a day it was open for free as part of Heritage Open Days (it was only by chance I visited on this day because although I had searched on the Heritage Open Day site for anything that might be happening in Shrewsbury, the castle never came up as an option).

The museum traces 300 years of the Shropshire Regiment between 1755 and 1968 and the Light Infantry & Rifles and Royal Shropshire Yeomanry Squadron. There was plenty on display from pictures to unforms to medals and weapons. I’m not much of a military enthusiast but there were a few things that caught my eye –

This cribbage board made from the butt of a rifle.

A lock of Napoleon’s hair.

A soldier’s pipe from the Boer war.

These lovely dodo ceramics.

This baton that was presented to Grand-Admiral Karl Donitz by Adolf Hitler. Platinum, gold and silver on velvet with an aluminum core it came into possession of the King’s Shropshire Light Infantry in May 1945 when they arrested Donitz at the end of the Second World War. He was put on trial at Nuremberg and imprisoned for his crimes remaining completely unrepentant and was released in 1956.

It’s an interesting place to visit, particularly if you enjoy military history.