Bolsover Castle

Bolsover Castle Description

Bolsover Castle has dominated the landscape and caught the imagination of its visitors for four centuries. Part of the attraction for visitors today is finding the castle in such an unlikely position: towering over a motorway, in a former coal-mining area, and off the beaten track. Part of it is the surprise of going through the layers of architecture: the Outer Court, the Great Court, the secret garden, the winding passages of the Little Castle. But most of it is the way that Bolsover appears to have been untouched by time.

Mark Girouard, historian and champion of the castle, wrote that 'by an unlikely miracle the keep at Bolsover has survived into this century as an almost untouched expression in stone of the lost world of Elizabethan chivalry and romance'.

The house you see today stands on the site of a medieval castle built shortly after the Norman Conquest by the Peveril family. Sir Charles Cavendish bought the old castle and began the project of building the present 'Little Castle' in 1612, which, despite its embattled appearance, was designed for elegant living rather than for defence. Sir Charles Cavendish intended the house for retiring from the world to an imaginary golden age of chivalry and pleasure.

His son William, who later became a Duke, inherited in 1616 and completed the Little Castle, assisted by the designer John Smithson. William then added the stately rooms of the Terrace Range, and invited the Stuart court to a specially-written masque in 1634. Finally, he built another whole range for his horses. In the enormous Riding House he trained them in the continental art of manège, a kind of ballet for horses.

Opening Timings - 2012

• 1st April - 4th November: Daily, 10 am - 5 pm
• 5th November - 17th February: Saturday - Sunday, 10 am - 4 pm
• 18th - 24th February: Daily, 10 am - 4 pm
• 25th February - 28th March: Saturday - Sunday, 10 am - 4 pm

Closed: 24th - 26th December & 31st December - 1st January

Part of the castle may close for 1 hour if an event is booked - Please call before visiting

Admission Prices - 2012

• Adult - £8.00
• Child (5-15) - £4.50
• Concession - £7.20
• Family (2+3) - £20.80
• Groups (11+) - 15% discount
• Groups (15 - 25) - Guided Tour of Site: £4.00 per person + admission