Coronation castles: hidden gems to celebrate the coronation

We’re lovers of historic architecture here at Tank, having worked closely with the heritage industry and even the odd castle over the years. From the celebrative to the macabre, fine details to faded ruins, it’s something we appreciate.

With our offices in a beautifully restored Victorian building, we know the character of old buildings is a precious commodity for somewhere to spend a lot of time. Yet nothing quite matches taking that to extremes: a castle.

As the coronation of King Charles III draws near, we’ve compiled a list of the best castles in England to visit over the bank holiday weekend and celebrate the occasion.

The most popular locations are well-known, such as our own favourite, Belvoir Castle, but we’ve concentrated on finding hidden gems — the more obscure wonders where the lesser number of other visitors will give you the freedom to explore.

To create the list, our mathematicians here at Tank — a leading digital PR agency — ranked each castle in England in an index system. Those with a greater percentage of five-star reviews across both Tripadvisor and Google scored higher in the index, which also ranks those with the fewest location tags on Instagram.

Hever Castle in Kent came out as our top hidden gem, with almost three quarters of its 13,000 reviews on Tripadvisor and Google being five stars, and having been tagged on Instagram posts only 1,000 times.

Arundel Castle in West Sussex was beaten into second place because, whilst slightly more of its reviews are five stars, it is five times more popular on Instagram and therefore less hidden. Similarly, Bewcastle Castle in Cumbria reached third place with only 100 Instagram location tags.

Compare that to the Tower of London, which is England’s most tagged castle with 831,000 posts.

We’ve discounted those with more than 5,000 tags from our list, in order to pick out the less familiar locations.

The top 20 castles to visit over the coronation bank holiday weekend are:

1: Hever Castle — Edenbridge, Kent

With sections from as early as 1270 and a Tudor home built within, this was the childhood home of Anne Bolyn and, later, Anne of Cleves.

• Index score: 567.82
• Instagram location tags: 1,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 13,364
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 74.62%

2: Arundel Castle — Arundel, West Sussex

This 11th century motte-and-bailey castle bears the scars of the English Civil War, having been extensively damaged and then restored in the 18th and 19th centuries.

• Index score: 567.42
• Instagram location tags: 5,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 12,619
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 75.37%

3: Bewcastle Castle — Bewcastle, Cumbria

The ruins of this medieval castle sit on the site of a Roman fort and was once owned by Edward IV. We have Oliver Cromwell to thank for its destruction, but its exposed condition makes it easy to look around.

• Index score: 553.81
• Instagram location tags: 100
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 35
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 73.21%

4: Berkeley Castle — Berkeley, Gloucestershire

Royal residences notwithstanding, this holds the record for the oldest continuously-inhabited castle in England, since the original building was constructed in 1067. It’s also where Edward II is thought to have met his grizzly end.

• Index score: 551.05
• Instagram location tags: 1,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 2,110
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 71.81%

5: Elsdon Castle — Elsdon, Northumberland

There might be almost no building remaining, but the earthworks of this Norman castle are some of the best examples of their type in the region.

• Index score: 546.76
• Instagram location tags: 100
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 28
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 75.93%

6: Goodrich Castle — Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire

The ruins of this 13th century castle are extensive. The building is another example of the force of the English Civil War, whilst the enormous mortar that pounded it is still on display in the grounds.

• Index score: 542.24
• Instagram location tags: 5,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 3,187
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 69.60%

7: Walmer Castle — Deal, Kent

This coastal fortress formed Henry VIII’s chain of defences to protect the south coast from invasion. At the time, they were the world’s most advanced defence architecture. Later, Walmer Castle was the home of the Duke of Wellington — this was where he died in 1852.

• Index score: 542.20
• Instagram location tags: 5,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 4,716
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 69.37%

8: Old Wardour Castle — Tisbury, Wiltshire

Once one of the most elaborate and innovative homes in England, this hexagonal 14th century castle-turned-manor took the brunt of both sides during the English Civil War.

• Index score: 539.15
• Instagram location tags: 5,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 1,739
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 69.07%

9: Raby Castle — Darlington, County Durham

This 14th century behemoth has been the home of the same family for 400 years. Its silhouette of a keep surrounded by eight towers, accessed via a narrow path, is certainly a formidable one.

• Index score: 538.51
• Instagram location tags: 5,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 3,404
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 68.63%

10: Leeds Castle — Maidstone, Kent

With what is surely the most impressive moat of any castle, this was the favourite residence of Edward I. Built in 1119, it has been added to several times in its history — not least by Henry VIII, who was also particularly fond of it.

• Index score: 533.45
• Instagram location tags: 100
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 15,565
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 66.98%

11: Kenilworth Castle — Kenilworth, Warwickshire

Originally built as a fortress in 1120, Kenilworth Castle was turned into a palace in 1575 by Robert Dudley to impress Queen Elizabeth I. Now, it’s yet another example of destruction during the English Civil War.

• Index score: 527.68
• Instagram location tags: 5,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 7,801
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 66.16%

12: Belsay Castle — Belsay, Northumberland

This 14th century castle had a manor house built onto it during the 17th century, turning it from a military building to a luxurious home.

• Index score: 524.71
• Instagram location tags: 1,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 2,447
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 65.38%

13: Clare Castle — Clare, Suffolk

Only a few walls may still exist of this medieval motte-and-bailey castle, but its raised earthworks mark what was once the home of one of England’s richest women.

• Index score: 523.95
• Instagram location tags: 100
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 176
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 63.74%

14: Warkworth Castle — Warkworth, Northumberland

A deeply impressive sight, this medieval beast of a castle was at the forefront of the Anglo-Scottish wars. It became a baronial seat of the Percy family until it was damaged during the English Civil War.

• Index score: 521.27
• Instagram location tags: 100
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 4,099
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 65.05%

15: Buckden Palace — Buckden, Cambridgeshire

The Great Tower, inner gatehouse and section of outer wall are all that remain of this late 15th century manor house. Inside the structure now sits an 18th century building.

• Index score: 519.39
• Instagram location tags: 1,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 224
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 64.70%

16: Nunney Castle — Nunney, Somerset

A French-style castle built by Sir John Delamare — a soldier who ironically destroyed several French castles during the Hundred Years War — the ruins of this 14th century building are certainly impressive.

• Index score: 518.73
• Instagram location tags: 5,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 515
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 64.54%

17: Lancaster Castle — Lancaster, Lancashire

Not a manor house, but a former prison, this foreboding Norman castle stands on the site of a Roman fort. A survivor of attacks during Scottish invasions and the English Civil War, it is still used as Lancaster Crown Court today.

• Index score: 518.18
• Instagram location tags: 1,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 6,889
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 65.43%

18: Whittington Castle — Whittington, Shropshire

This is the ruins of one of the huge castles that covered the Welsh Marches, sitting on England’s border to protect against raiders. Originally a Norman fortification, it was rebuilt in the 13th century.

• Index score: 517.03
• Instagram location tags: 1,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 291
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 63.05%

19: Longthorpe Tower — Peterborough, Cambridgeshire

It may not be the largest or the most regal of buildings, but this 14th century three-storey tower houses some incredibly well-preserved medieval murals. They were rediscovered in the 1940s after being whitewashed over, and depict moral, religious and secular subjects.

• Index score: 516.43
• Instagram location tags: 100
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 177
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 64.25%

20: Tamworth Castle — Tamworth, Staffordshire

First built as a Norman motte-and-bailey fortification, other buildings have subsequently been added between the 12th and 17th centuries, making this a patchwork quilt of architecture. For the past 120 years, it’s been a museum.

• Index score: 516.22
• Instagram location tags: 1,000
• Total number of Tripadvisor and Google reviews: 2,380
• Percentage of five-star reviews: 64.33%

Methodology

To find out which are leading the way in the UK, and which are lagging behind, Tank looked at eight key indicators:

• Instagram location tags
• Number of Tripadvisor reviews
• Number of five-star Tripadvisor reviews
• Percentage of five-star Tripadvisor reviews
• Number of Google reviews
• Number of five-star Google reviews
• Percentage of five-star Google reviews
• Innovate UK investment by £1 million

We gave every castle an index score for each separate data point with equal weighing, adding up each score over the seven data points to calculate an overall score out of 800.