The Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre held its 4th annual Open Day and the theme this year was the Medieval Period. Along with Broad sword demonstrations, helmet making and documents from the Archives set out on display, the Archaeology Service produced an exhibition on the medieval castles of Wiltshire.

The word Castle is derived from the Latin word castellum and before that castrum, meaning fortified place. The earliest examples appeared in the middle ages and were constructed from earth and timber, but these were soon superseded in stone. They acted as statements of might and force, compared to those of the later medieval era when fortifications and defence were replaced by opulence and comfort - a statement of wealth and power of a very different kind.



An 18th century drawing of the Marlborough Mount

Of the various types, Marlborough Mount is a classic example of a Motte and Bailey, becoming a royal residence during the reign of William the Conqueror. Little is known about the origins of the mound, or motte, with one theory suggesting it may yet prove to be similar in date to the nearby Late Neolithic Silbury Hill. Future research may unravel its mysterious past.

Old Wardour Castle, with its impressive surviving ruins, is situated three miles from Tisbury. Unique and unusual in its hexagonal design, it was influenced by the French chateaux of the time, and its purpose was as a lavish home more than a fortification. This was brought into sharp focus with the determined efforts of Lady Arundell to defend her home during the English Civil War.  In 1643, with just 25 men to protect her and her castle, she held out for three days against a Parliamentarian army of over 1000 soldiers, only surrendering once she had obtained guarantees of safe passage for her family and staff. Incidentally, that original surrender document is held here at the History Centre.

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Documents in WSA suggest that the famous Time Lord may have spent time in Malmesbury in the mid 17^th century.

A Dr Qui [the Latin for who] is mentioned several times between 1657 and 1675, and was an important person in the town. He was described as a surgeon in his marriage licence bond, when aged 40 he took a bride aged 26 from Wroughton. In Easter 1673 he signed a letter filed in the Quarter Sessions records as Alderman (Mayor) of Malmesbury.

He was buried in Malmesbury abbey church yard 1675, and his will was proved in the following year. However as fans of the TV series know only too well the Doctor has been re-incarnated at least ten times so evidence of his death may well have been exaggerated.

Alderton deeds saved for Wiltshire
Although most of the archives placed in our care are deposited on loan or outright gift, we do purchase material of particular importance. In August we were alerted to sale of about 150 medieval deeds relating to the estates of the Gore family of Alderton, a small parish in North West Wiltshire. Unfortunately in order to maximise the vendor’s profit they were broken up into many separate lots. Principal archivist Claire Skinner spent a stressful but exciting morning bidding by telephone at an auction taking place in Norfolk, and managed to purchase about half of the lots (95 deeds) which covered the earliest documents. This was achieved by a combination of our own budget and generous contributions from the Friends of the National Libraries, and Wiltshire Family History Society.

Close-up of the earliest Alderton deed purchased in 2009 – reference 3815/1/1
Grant by William Lycame of Alderton (spelt Aldrynton here) to John Bovetoun and Christine his wife, of the rent of a grain of wheat for a tenement, dated 1332. The deed is in Latin, which was the language of the law until 1733.

Many of the deeds have seals attached which illustrate the craftsmanship and vitality of medieval small scale sculpture. A good example is the punning seal of William Gore which has a bull’s head between his initials. To find out more and see if you can help us with identifying a family and church in some photographs dating back to the 1950s please 'read more'...

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