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Photo: nicksarebi, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The remains of this very grand castle are in the Frome valley just 3 miles out of Trowbridge. The castle dates from the 14th century and was occupied by the Hungerford family for 300 years. It contains some rare medieval wall paintings. The surrounding village is the epitome of rural southwestern English charm.
Farleigh Hungerford Castle, sometimes called Farleigh Castle or Farley Castle, is a medieval castle in Farleigh Hungerford, Somerset, England. The castle was built in two phases: the inner court was constructed between 1377 and 1383 by Sir Thomas Hungerford, who made his fortune as steward to John of Gaunt. The castle was built to a quadrangular design, already slightly old-fashioned, on the site of an existing manor house overlooking the River Frome. A deer park was attached to the castle, requiring the destruction of the nearby village. Sir Thomas's son, Sir Walter Hungerford, a knight and leading courtier to Henry V, became rich during the Hundred Years War with France and extended the castle with an additional, outer court, enclosing the parish church in the process. By Walter's death in 1449, the substantial castle was richly appointed, and its chapel decorated with murals.
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Stylish Italianate gardens. No tours of the Georgian manor.
A spectacular 14th-century monastic stone barn, 51 metres long, with an amazing timber cruck roof.
Widely regarded as one of the most complete surviving Anglo-Saxon churches in England, this small 10th- or early-11th-century building retains much of its original stonework and distinctive Anglo-Saxon architectural details.