With historical re-enactment, archaeological excavation, an authentic Tudor garden and mediaeval herbery, the ‘haunted’ Great Hall and King’s Bedroom, and of course the tearoom, there’s something for everyone.General public opening hours are seasonal as given below
It is most famous for detaining Mary Queen of Scots on four separate occasions. From this Castle Mary was removed in 1585 to Chartley, and thence in 1586 to Fotheringay Castle, where she was beheaded.King James the First, in one of his tours through England, visited Tutbury Castle, the former place of his mother's confinement; and such are the strange vicissitudes of life, that those walls which had so long re-echoed the sighs and groans of an unfortunate Queen, were now shaken with the acclamations of a multitude assembled to greet her son, their Sovereign.During the Civil Wars in the time of Charles I. Tutbury Castle was fortified and garrisoned by the Royalists. Part of the arch of the window is beginning to moulder, but the entrance is in a state of perfect preservation.The Priory was founded by Henry de Ferrers in 1080, and amply endowed by him with lands and revenues. Here she continued many years a State prisoner, with sufficient time for contemplation, and to repent of her former levity and wantonness.The following account of the state of the castle at the time this unfortunate Queen was confined there, is extracted from the papers of Sir Ralph Sadler, the keeper. East Midlands airport is a 30 minute car journey.Tutbury Castle is known for its spectacular events. For more information please call us on 01283 812129, or If property is lost at Tutbury Castle, we make every effort to contact the owner of the property. Arthur Meverel alias Throwley, with eight monks, surrendered this Priory to the King's Commissioners on the 14th day of September, 1538, as appears by the original deed of surrender in the Augmentation Office. Unfortunately we are not yet in a position to open up inside. It was destroyed for the last time by Act of Parliament in 1647-48, after holding out for Charles I in the Civil War. The green park around the Castle-hill is now a pasture for sheep and cattle; the prospect from the summit of the hill is very extensive, and commands a picturesque view of Needwood Forest.Tutbury is a pleasant little town, containing about one thousand inhabitants. The principal entrance is an archway of exquisitely rich and beautiful Saxon architecture, and is perhaps the most perfect specimen of the kind in the Island. A considerable part of the gateway remains; and from the few vestiges of the castle, it appears to have been built of hewn freestone, with admixtures of gypsum.A round tower, intended to appear as a ruin, has been erected on a high mound by Lord Vernon, the present possessor, who holds the castle and circumjacent grounds by lease from the Crown. In the year 1250, it passed to the Earl of Lancaster, in consequence of Robert de Ferrers having joined Simon Montford in rebellion against Henry III. This entrance is a low semi-circular arch, with a similar arched window above it; it is partly composed of alabaster, richly ensculptured with a variety of grotesque figures; but no description can give an adequate idea of the beauty of the whole. The ruins of Tutbury Castle are located on a hill with a steep ridge on the northwest corner of the village of Tutbury in eastern Staffordshire. Tutbury Castle dates back to the late 11th century, possibly, as the element 'Burh' in the place-name suggests, occupying a site fortified by the Saxons. A largely ruinous medieval castle at Tutbury, Staffordshire, England, in the ownership of the Duchy of Lancaster. The elevated and commanding site of Tutbury Castle was occupied by a fortress in the time of the Heptarchy, when it was the principal residence of the Kings of Mercia, who dwelt here in security against any sudden attack of an enemy.But the first certain information on record respecting Tutbury is that immediately after the Norman Conquest in 1066; Hugh de Albrincis was in possession of Tutbury Castle, but was deprived of it by the Conqueror, who gave it to one of his greatest favourites and friends, Henry de Ferrers. The soil of this parish is generally rich, abounding with alabaster and marl; and the meadows are occasionally improved by the inundations of the Dove.Tutbury Church is a vicarage, dedicated to the Virgin Mary; it constitutes a portion of the ancient priory church, and is a large edifice, with an embattled tower, surmounted by four pinnacles.