 odiam Castle is a spectacle of breathtaking beauty. It seemsto float atop the water-filled moat which surrounds it and separates the sandy brown structure from the broad expanse of enveloping greenery. Located in East Sussex on the border with Kent, along a minor roadway just off the A21 Tunbridge Wells-Hastings Road, Bodiam Castle is only one of a myriad of treasures to be explored in southern England.
  lthough today's castle is relatively youthful by some standards (being only 500 years old!), there has been some form of dwelling at Bodiam since before the Norman Conquest in 1066. In fact, the Domesday Book, written immediately after the Conquest, documents the existence of a Saxon hall on the site. However, in the aftermath of the Conquest, the hall was confiscated by a Norman family, the Bodehams, who took over control of the area. Most likely, the Saxon hall was occupied by the Bodehams and used for a time as their manor house. The presence of the hall precluded the construction of a typical Norman castle at Bodiam, the earth and timber stronghold known as the motte and bailey castle. For three centuries, the dominant structure at Bodiam was the hall, undoubtedly renovated and strengthened over the years but used primarily as the lord's residence.
 t was due to the impending invasion of French forces in 1385 that King Richard III granted Sir Edward Dalyngrigge a license to "strengthen and crenellate" the manor house, and "to construct and make thereof a castle in defense of the adjacent countryside and for resistance against our enemies". However, instead of fortifying the manor, Edward decided to build a new castle near the River Rother, where any attack would most likely have occurred. That was the castle we can visit today. Although the structure served more as an elaborate fortified residence than a castle in the true sense of the word (a military stronghold which also housed a lord and his family), Bodiam Castle was clearly built as an intimidating deterrent to an assault. Fortunately for Sir Edward, the forecasted invasion never took place and the castle's defenses were never put to the test.
t was due to the impending invasion of French forces in 1385 that King Richard III granted Sir Edward Dalyngrigge a license to "strengthen and crenellate" the manor house, and "to construct and make thereof a castle in defense of the adjacent countryside and for resistance against our enemies". However, instead of fortifying the manor, Edward decided to build a new castle near the River Rother, where any attack would most likely have occurred. That was the castle we can visit today. Although the structure served more as an elaborate fortified residence than a castle in the true sense of the word (a military stronghold which also housed a lord and his family), Bodiam Castle was clearly built as an intimidating deterrent to an assault. Fortunately for Sir Edward, the forecasted invasion never took place and the castle's defenses were never put to the test.
n the 1480's the castle was briefly besieged and surrendered to the Crown. The Lewknor family regained possession in the 1500's, and from 1639 to 1645 the estate belonged to John Tufton, the second Earl of Thanet. Like so many other castles in Britain, Bodiam was victimized by Parliamentary forces after the English Civil War, when Cromwell ordered virtually all the kingdom's castles to be "slighted". While the castle's interior was gutted, the Roundheads left the exterior almost completely intact.
 ven though ownership of Bodiam Castle passed through several hands during the next 270 years, the castle received little attention, repairs were neglected, and the once-sturdy structure continued to decay. However, in 1917 the Marquess Curzon acquired rights to the castle and began its restoration and rejuvenation. Upon his death in 1925, Bodiam Castle was bequeathed to the National Trust, which today maintains the site in excellent repair.
 oday, Bodiam Castle is so well disguised by its extensive parklands that the approach to the castle seems to aim in the wrong direction. But in an instant, the marvelous structure pops into view, luring you forward with a sense of excited anticipation, its embracing waters shimmering and thrusting the mighty castle walls majestically upwards!
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