page_title: Kirby Muxloe Castle
section_title: Design
hierarchical_section_title: Kirby Muxloe Castle / Architecture / Design
caption_attribution_description: English: Based on original by Peers, 1917; cleaned up, adjusted, labelled etc. by Hchc2009
context_page_description: Kirby Muxloe Castle, also known historically as Kirby Castle, is a ruined, fortified manor house in Kirby Muxloe, Leicestershire, England. William, Lord Hastings, began work on the castle in 1480, founding it on the site of a pre-existing manor house. William was a favourite of King Edward IV and had prospered considerably during the Wars of the Roses. Work continued quickly until 1483, when William was executed during Richard, Duke of Gloucester's, seizure of the throne. His widow briefly continued the project after his death but efforts then ceased, with the castle remaining largely incomplete. Parts of the castle were inhabited for a period, before falling into ruin during the course of the 17th century. In 1912, the Commissioners of Work took over management of the site, repairing the brickwork and carrying out an archaeological survey. In the 21st century, the castle is controlled by English Heritage and open to visitors.
  The castle was rectangular in design, 245 by 175 feet across, and would have comprised four corner towers, three side towers and a large gatehouse, all protected by a water-filled moat; the centre of the castle would have formed a courtyard.
context_section_description: The 15th-century castle is rectangular in shape, 245 by 175 feet (75 by 53 m) across, similar in design to Farleigh Hungerford Castle in Somerset or Baconsthorpe Castle in Norfolk. Although incomplete, the surviving elements and the foundations show that it was designed with a square tower on each corner, with less substantial side towers on the north-east, south-east and south-west edges, and a large gatehouse on the north-western side. An inner range of buildings, 17 feet (5.2 m) deep, ran around the inside of the curtain wall, set back slightly from the wall itself and forming a central courtyard. The towers projected 6 feet (1.8 m) into the water-filled moat which surrounded the castle.
  The moat was supplied with water from a small brook, which also fed a suite of stew ponds for the castle. Two dams were constructed to create the moat, the first to divert water from the main stream, and the second to control the water level in the moat. The current sluices are modern, but the originals were made from wood and leather. The moat, between 45 feet (14 m) and 75 feet (23 m) wide, was crossed by an oak bridge.
  Only the gatehouse and the west tower still survive, partially intact. The gatehouse was originally protected by a drawbridge and a portcullis. The gatehouse was rectangular, built from brick with stone detailing, with four polygonal turrets. Had it been completed, it might have been 30 metres (98 ft) tall and have resembled the gatehouse at Layer Marney Tower. On the ground floor, two chambers, including the porter's lodge, flanked the gate passage. The first floor housed the portcullis mechanism and a garderobe. If the second floor was ever completed, it has since been lost. The west tower is 25 feet (7.6 m) across externally and 18 feet (5.5 m) internally, made of simple patterned brickwork, with three floors and two, slightly taller, turrets on the inside corners. Each floor had a single chamber, with a fireplace and an adjacent garderobe, which would have formed lodgings for senior members of the household.
  The castle was primarily built from bricks, with stone used for the detailing, such as doorways. The brickwork was decorated with patterns of darker bricks, called diapering, which was used to show symbols associated with Lord Hastings, as well as objects such as a jug and a ship. This style of decorative brickwork and stonework was popular across England at this time, but particularly so at Eton College, where John Cowper, the master mason on the project, had been an apprentice. Although the castle was not extensively decorated, the brickwork at Kirby Muxloe was skillfully executed, with the bricklayers cutting and shaping the kiln-fired bricks to produce spiral and domed vaulting.
  Gunports for early gunpowder artillery had begun to be installed in English castles during the 15th century. At Kirby Muxloe, six gunports were constructed in the ground floor walls of both the gatehouse and west tower; these were then temporarily filled with bricks, probably to prevent vermin and to limit the draughts. Several more gunports were built lower down in the gatehouse, presumably in error as they were ultimately below the waterline of the moat and permanently blocked up. The range of any guns at the castle would have been quite limited, as they were positioned relatively low to the ground. Historians are uncertain to what extent any guns at Kirby Muxloe would have been useful in a conflict. The gunports are of early design and may have been intended to be symbolic rather than practical; they were well positioned across the castle's defences, however, and might well have been intended to deter a serious attack.
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caption: Plan of the castle. Key: A – east tower; B – south tower; C – site of earlier manor; D – north tower; E – gatehouse; F – west tower; black, dark and light grey – 1480s buildings, foundations and intended design; dark and light yellow – earlier manorial foundations and possible design
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