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According to the Domesday Book, Rockingham was wasteland when William the Conqueror ordered a castle to be ‘made’ there. Today, as in Norman times, the castle stands sentinel-like on the tree-clad slopes of Rockingham Hill - with the thatched and slated cottages of Rockingham’s wide main street spread out below. The castle was the country retreat and hunting base of medieval monarchs. In 1530, Henry VIII gave it to Edward Watson, whose descendants still live there. Among its famous guests was Charles Dickens - who wrote much of Bleak House while staying there in the 1850s. The castle is open from Easter until the end of September. Monuments to members of the family are in the mainly 17th-century Church of St Leonard, which stands below the castle’s north courtyard. From the courtyard are fine views of the Welland Valley, the River Welland, and the Eyebrook Reservoir, a trout-fisherman’s paradise. |
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