Elmley Castle

The ruins of an important Norman and medieval castle, from which the village derives its name, are located in the deer park, one kilometre to the south on Bredon Hill. The castle is supposed to have been built for Robert Despenser in the years following the Norman Conquest. After his death (post 1098) it descended to his heirs, the powerful Beauchamp family. It remained their chief seat until William de Beauchamp inherited the earldom and castle of Warwick from his maternal uncle, William Maudit, 8th Earl of Warwick, in 1268. Thereafter, Elmley Castle remained a secondary property of the Earls of Warwick until it was surrendered to the Crown in 1487. In 1528 the castle seems to have been still habitable, for Walter Walshe was then appointed constable and keeper. In 1544, however, prior to its grant by the Crown to Sir William Herbert and Christopher Savage, a survey was made of the manor and castle of Elmley, and it was found that the castle was completely uncovered and in decay.