History

Oakham Castle was built in the traditional Norman motte and bailey style. The Great Hall of Oakham Castle is listed in Domesday Book and would have been a wooden building at that time. Walkelin de Ferrers built the stone-built Great Hall, which survives today between 1180 and 1190.

The Great Hall is constructed of ironstone rubble with ashlar dressings and maintains its medieval charm despite minor repairs through the centuries.

During the 13th century, the castle's fortifications were improved by adding a stone curtain wall against the existing earthworks, a gateway, and a drawbridge. Oakham Castle is the longest-running seat of Justice in England, first recorded as being used in 1229, and still functions as a Crown Court every two years. In 1264, the Great Hall was damaged by fire during the Second Baron's War.

Castle Highlights

Originally a motte and bailey castle, not much remains of the outer defenses of Oakham Castle other than earthworks that provide some sense of the external shape and size of the castle. However, the Great Hall remains intact and is one of Europe's finest examples of 12th century Norman domestic architecture.

The Great Hall is most famous for the collection of 240 horseshoes it proudly displays on the hall's walls. Royalty and Peers of the Realm donated the horseshoes as a tradition on their first visit to Oakham Castle. The oldest surviving horseshoe dates back to Edward IV's visit in 1470 after his victory at the Battle of Losecoat Field. As of this writing, the most recent was from the Dutches of Cornwall in 2014. The castle can be used for civil marriages. The Great Hall has several small sculptures inside, presumably carved by the same masons that built Canterbury Cathedral.

Oakham Castle can be thoroughly visited in an hour or two. If you wish to see another castle the same day, Rockingham Castle is less than 15 miles from Oakham Castle.