Hartshill Castle in 1927*	Hartshill Castle from the North East. 1785. Drawn by J. Adkins and engraved by F. Cary.	A drawing of Hartshill Castle from 1808-09	A drawing of the ruins of Hartshill Castle By William Albert Green, a local artist (1907 - 1983)	An image of the Castle from 1908. It is referred to as an abbey here.*	Drayton's house at Hartshill, now demolished.*
Another view of Drayton's house.*	Faceplate of the Poly-olbion, or a chorographicall description of Great Britaine, digested in a poem by Michael Drayton, London, H.L. for Mathew Lowne

The remains of the original Norman motte and bailey castle can still be seen in woods below the centre of Hartshill village. The Elizabethan construction that was later built in its grounds is no longer standing. There may have been two baileys. A polygonal curtain wall overlies one of the baileys.

The fortified manor house was probably built circa 1567. The remains of the house occupy the north east angle of a C12th motte enclosed by the remains of a circa 1330 wall. The remains of a C14th chapel are also within the walls. The manor was founded by Michael and Edmund Parker and was a fortified, castellated, four-gabled timber-framed manor house in the north east angle of the bailey. The motte is not quite circular, measuring some 50m by 45m at the base, and tapering to 10m in diameter at the top. it is 9m high and surrounded by a ditch. The ditch is 5m wide and 1.5m deep.

Hartshill village itself was the birthplace of poet Michael Drayton in 1563, who is buried in Westminster Abbey. His house, pictured above, is now demolished. Between 1597 and 1602 Drayton worked with Philip Henslowe and the actors known as the Admiral's Men on about twenty plays. It was about this time that Drayton and Shakespeare may have been acquainted. Drayton's most well-known poem Polyolbion (1613) comprises thirty 'songs' which form a survey of England in verse couplets.

Sadly, the remains of the Manor House and Castle have suffered from years of neglect, despite being on English Heritage's "at risk" register, and the greater part of the manor house has collapsed. However, there are signs that the situation is finally improving for Hartshill Castle. A report in 2006 by Nuneaton & Warwickshire Council regarding Buildings at Risk in the County states that:

"This is another ruinous structure being the fragmentary remains of a 13th century castle built of Hartshill granite with sandstone dressings. It has been slowly decaying due to erosion, structural problems, and vandalism. The ruin is currently being consolidated in a two-phase programme of repairs with grant aid from English Heritage. The first phase is currently underway. The owner intends to establish a trust to look after the monument.

Conclusion: The owner is positively disposed towards the building and progress with consolidation of the ruin continues to be monitored."

This has led to the Castle being downgraded from a Category A on the risk register (at extreme risk) to a Category E (under repair).

You can read an interesting information booklet on Hartshill Castle, written by its current owner Mrs J Lapworth, by clicking here**.

 A full and fascinating account of the history of Hartshill Castle and its many owners can be found in the book: "HEARDRED'S HILL - A History of Hartshill and Oldbury" written by Joan Allen and published by Bethany Enterprises in 1982.

Photos marked * are © Warwickshire County Council, 2003

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