Chiddingstone Castle Chiddingstone Castle is situated in the village of Chiddingstone , near Edenbridge , Kent , England , 35 miles south of London and in the upper valley of the River Medway . The castle itself dates from the early 19th century , but incorporates elements of earlier buildings on the same site . Since 1977 , the castle and its of grounds have been held in trust for the nation by the Denys Eyre Bower Bequest and both are open to the public . History . High Street House . The first significant building to occupy the site of the castle was a timber - framed dwelling , inhabited from the early 16th century by Richard Streatfeild , an iron master and wool merchant . Little remains of this first structure as , in 1679 , Henry Streatfeild ( 1639 - 1719 ) had the house rebuilt in red brick in the Restoration style . The building was known as High Street House or High Street Mansion since it fronted the village high street . Remodelling of the house ’ s grounds in the 19th century resulted in the current diversion of the road through the village . Chiddingstone Castle . In the early 19th century , Henry Streatfeild ( 1757 - 1829 ) , the son of Henry Streatfeild ( 1706 - 1762 ) and Lady Anne Sidney , commissioned William Atkinson to rebuild the house in the Gothic style however Atkinson ’ s design was not completed and , in 1835 , Streatfeild ’ s son , also Henry Streatfeild ( 1784 - 1852 ) , engaged the architect Henry Kendal to carry out further work . Although the Streatfields owned the house , now renamed Chiddingstone Castle , until it was sold to Lord Astor in 1938 , the family did not live there after 1900 . During the Second World War , the castle hosted members of the Canadian Forces before becoming Long Dene School until 1954 . Denys Eyre Bower . In 1955 , the castle was purchased by Denys Eyre Bower ( 1905 - 1977 ) , a former bank clerk and antiques dealer , in order to display his collections . Bower was born in Crich , Derbyshire and started collecting at a young age . Bower initially worked as a bank clerk before taking over Cavendish Hood antiques dealers in Baker Street , London in 1943 . The redevelopment of Baker Street led to Bower moving to Chiddingstone Castle where he intended to show his collections to the public . In 1957 , however , Bower was convicted of attempted murder of his girlfriend and attempted suicide and sentenced to life imprisonment . Released in 1962 after successful efforts by solicitor Ruth Eldridge to prove a miscarriage of justice , Bower returned to Chiddingstone Castle which , with the help of Eldridge and her sister Mary , he continued to open to visitors until his death in 1977 . Today . Bower left the castle and his collection to the nation and so upon his death the Denys Eyre Bower Bequest was formed . This trust continues to care for the castle and its collection , opening it to the public and providing a venue for weddings , and the current trustees include descendants of the Streatfeild family . The castle is a Grade II * listed building and the grounds , which contain further listed buildings including an orangery , are themselves included on the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens . Collections . Japanese . Bower ’ s decision to collect objects from Japan was inspired by his father ’ s own interest in Chinese porcelain . The collection of lacquer is considered to be one of the most important in a private collection , whilst displays at the castle also feature swords , armour and haniwa figures . Ancient Egyptian . The Ancient Egyptian collection spans the whole history of the civilisation and includes both grave goods , such as ushabti figures and amulet s , and items from everyday life , including food and drink vessels . In 2013 , items from the collection were lent to the Houston Museum of Natural Science for display in their Hall of Ancient Egypt . Stuart and Jacobite . In British history , Bower was most interested in the House of Stuart and Jacobitism and was a member of the Royal Stuart Society . His collecting in this area included portraits of members of the House of Stuart , swords , objects with hidden Jacobite symbols and royal manuscripts . Buddhist . As with other areas of his collecting , Bower ’ s interest in objects relating to Buddhism was driven by personal reasons ; Bower was a Buddhist . Despite this , the collection does not focus on any one particular school of Buddhist thought or on any particular country . Amongst items currently displayed at the castle are thangka s and images of Buddha . Local history . In addition to Bower ’ s collections , the castle ’ s 19th century kitchen still retains many of its original features , such as three cake ovens , and is used to display a collection of kitchen utensils and an ice chest , reflecting the fact that the castle once had an ice house . There is also a servants ’ hall and a servants ’ bedroom .