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DUNSTER CASTLE.

DUNSTER Castle is situated a little to the N. E. of MINEHEAD, in the County of SOMERSET, 20 miles N. W. of TAUNTON, and 158 N. W. of LONDON. CAMDEN says, “DUNSTER Castle lies in a low ground, every way shut up with hills, except on that side which faces the Sea, it was built by the MOHUNS, from whom it came, by bargain, to the LUTTERELLS. This family of the MOHUNS was for a long time, very famous and powerful, and flourished from the days of WILLIAM the Conqueror (under whom the Castle was built) to the reign of RICHARD II. Of the same family were two Earls of this County, WILLIAM and REGINALD, who was deprived of that honour in the Barons' wars. From that time, their posterity were in the number of Barons; the last whereof, JOHN, left three daughters; PHILIPPA, wife of EDWARD Duke of YORK, ELIZABETH, married to WILLIAM MONTACUTE, second Earl of SALISBURY of that name; and MAUD, to the Lord LESTRANGE of KNOKYN. The mother of them (as the story goes) obtained of her husband, below this Town, so much ground for a Common to the inhabitants, as she could go about barefoot in one day.”

This Castle was one of the most magnificent in the West of ENGLAND, having a prospect from the windows over a Vale above two miles in length, bounded by the Sea. During the Civil wars in the reign of CHARLES I. it suffered considerably, for having been garri- soned by that unfortunate Prince; it was besieged by General BLAKE, who took it for the Parliament, and afterwards demolished great part of its fortifications. At present, there is little remaining, except two wings, which still convey some faint idea of its former grandeur. This Castle was remarkable for being the prison of the famous Mr. PRYNNE, who in the reign of CHARLES I. wrote a Book called