The Friends of Bolingbroke Castle
In the summer of 2001 a few residents from the village of Old Bolingbroke formed a group which regularly meet to find ways of raising the profile of Bolingbroke Castle and utilising the site for the benefit of the village.
For a small annual membership fee you can help.
The benefits of membership are:
Contributing towards the welfare and future interpretation of the Castle
Assisting the village and community to benefit from the castle as an asset
Newsletter on current issues and forthcoming events.
Occasional talks and guided tours relating to the castle site and rout yard
Free admission or concessions on some castle and village events
Attendance at the AGM and other appropriate meetings, including voting rights
Annual Membership fees are as follows:
Individual Adult £5.00 - Family £7.50 - Concession £3.50 - Children Under 16 FREE
Click the link for a membership form. You don't have to live in Old Bolingbroke to be a Friend - indeed, we welcome members from far and wide. If you would like to learn more about the group, why not contact the Secretary, John Owen on 01790 763766.
Local history group
Because our ‘Royal’ village is steeped in such a wealth of fascinating history, the ‘Friends’ are setting up their very own local history group. It is hoped that we will be able to publish various articles and pictures of a bygone era on our web site. Further details will be announced here later, but if in the meantime you have any old documents, photos, maps etc that you are willing to loan and share with us then please get in touch. We would also love to hear from you if you once lived here or have ancestors from the area and are able to share a few memories from the past. You can email or contact the Secretary as above.
The civil war siege of Bolingbroke Castle - education pack
The Heritage Trust of Lincolnshire's education pack about the siege is now available on line. Click for details.
Siege re-enactment on DVD and video
Order your copy of an excellent professional souvenir DVD and video of our 360th anniversary re-enactment of the siege of the castle and the subsequent Battle of Winceby in 1643, held on 10-12 October 2003, which featured top regiments of the English Civil War Society. The DVD version also features many photographs of the weekend. Whether you were at last year’s event and would like a copy as a memento to relive that great weekend, are new to the Village and want to find out more, or are interested in C17th history and would like to learn something of Bolingbroke’s important (albeit brief) role in the great Civil War, this excellent DVD or video is for you.
The price is £10.00 plus 50p postage (DVD) or £1.00 (Video). Please makes cheques payable to The Friends of Bolingbroke Castle. Please order from: Keith & Gina Harmsworth, 2 The Row, Old Bolingbroke, nearr Spilsby, Lincolnshire, PE23 4HD. Tel: 01790 763423.
Visiting Old Bolingbroke
The castle is situated in the heart of the pretty village of Old Bolingbroke, nestling at the foot of the beautiful Lincolnshire Wolds, about 25 miles to the east of Lincoln. It is a pleasant, quiet village of some 90 homes. A walk around the village takes about half an hour, and there are wonderful longer circular walks up to the surrounding hills. Allow at least half an hour to visit the castle, and don't forget to walk round the outside of the walls by the moat as this shows off the impressive the castle walls (up to 18 feet high) to best effect. Visiting the rout yard and earthwork will take another half hour or so.
Admission to the castle is free (except for occasional events) and it is open all year round. Old Bolingbroke Castle is administered by the Heritage Trust of Lincolnshire on behalf of English Heritage. The rout yard is owned by the Duchy of Lancaster but following a recent agreement is now administered by English Heritage and HTL. Plans are being drawn up to improve interpretation of, and access to, the rout yard & fort.
How to get there:
Grid reference TF 349 650.
Click here for a map of the village (published by CastleUK.net).
From the West: A158 to Skegness from Lincoln via Wragby and Horncastle. A few miles east of Horncastle, take the B1195 Spilsby Road, then turn right towards Old Bolingbroke at Winceby House (just past the famous battlefield).
From the East: A158 from Skegness to Partney, then A16 to Spilsby, where you turn right on the B1195 towards Horncastle. A few miles on, follow the sign left towards Old Bolingbroke.
From the North: A16 from Louth to Spilsby, then as above.
From the South: A16 from Boston via Sibsey and Stickney, turning West onto the A155 Coningsby Road at West Keal. Follow the brown castle sign to the right after a mile or so.
There are a couple of parking spaces next to the entrance to the castle, but if these are full there is more room in the village, near the church or at the Black Horse pub.
To visit the castle's earthwork, follow the brown signs to the castle first (where a couple of parking spaces can be found). Just inside the kissing gate a footpath on the left leads off from the castle into the rout yard. Sheep graze the rout yard during the summer, so please ensure any dogs are on a lead.
If visiting during the winter Wellington boots are recommended as parts of the rout yard can be very soggy. The ditch around the earthwork is so wide and deep that the only way into the interior or onto the bank is via the opening (shown on the right of the photo). Even so, it is very wet except in the driest of weather so don't try to do this unless you can leap quite a few feet and in case you miss, have wellies on and don't find getting muddy!
