howards end

...after yesterday's dreadful weather, it was a delight to wake up to blue sky and sunshine. It appears that we are going through an alternating period of sunshine and rain!

This perfect looking castle at East Lulworth was built as a hunting lodge rather than any defensive purpose. The land it is built on was acquired by Thomas Howard when he married Elizabeth Marney, one of the last of the de Newburgh family, who were the owners of the Bindon Abbey Estate. In 1575, Queen Elizabeth I made him Viscount Bindon and, in the same year, Thomas built a large country house on the site of the original Bindon Abbey. Thomas' father was Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke or Norfolk, uncle to both Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, and husband to Princess Anne of York the daughter of Edward IV. To add to the wonderful web that the Howard family wove, young Thomas' sister, Mary was married to Henry FitzRoy, 1st Duke or Richmond and Somerset who, in case you need reminding, was the illegitimate son of Henry VIII and Elizabeth Blount.

Thomas was a wealthy and successful man who was responsible for protecting the county against smuggling and piracy as Vice Admiral of Dorset and defender of the Dorset coast. When he died in 1582, his son Henry succeeded him but, unlike his father, Henry associated with pirates and ill-treated his wife. Later the same year, Henry's aunt also died, which left him to inherit the rest of the Bindon Abbey Estates.

When Henry died, his brother, Thomas - yes, another one - inherited and it was he who was responsible for re-establishing the de Newburgh deer park and for building the castle between 1608 and 1610.

Lulworth castle and estate was purchased by Humphrey Weld in 1641. Humphrey was a property developer. The grandfathers of both Humphrey and his wife Frances had been Lord Mayors of London. The Weld family still own the estate today but, following a fire that gutted the castle in 1929, they were unable to finance their plans to restore and rebuild it. Consequently, a new house, Lulworth Castle House, was constructed in 1977 and the castle was placed in the hands of English Heritage, which has restored the exterior of the building. The interior has been beautifully refurbished as a banqueting suite and is a popular wedding venue for those with deep pockets...