L I T T L E B E A R W O L F
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T W E N T Y S I X T E E N
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S N A P S H O T
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Aloha - Ahoy
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T W E N T Y S I X T E E N
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S N A P S H O T
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Aloha - Ahoy
I was on a train to Brighton when I first ever saw the Market town of Arundel.
I was staring out of the window when upon the horizon appeared the most beautiful cathedral; as I was glancing toward the town to better my view of the skyline, a towering castle appeared also.
I had no idea at the time of where this town was, what it was called but I knew I had to make the journey there.
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| Arundel Castle - Arundel - West Sussex - England - With Spring finally upon us; the open road & a blank page waiting for a story, I decided today would be that day that I would climb the hill to the castle & explore the historic market town. - As the road twists among the countryside of the Sussex downs, driving East towards Brighton; the town appears on the left. On the hill right where I first saw it, was the ancient Castle. I was excited to finally roam around this magical place. - Arundel Castle has been restored (which I have to say is so wonderfully done, it's lovely to see this ancient place being preserved), though originally the medieval castle was established by Roger De Montgomery on Christmas Day (25 December) 1067. Roger De Montgomery was the first to hold Earldom of Arundel - (graces of William The Conqueror.) - Upon entering the grounds to the castle, you will see literally thousands of daffodils all over the banks of the castle. The castle towers in beauty and splendor above you, my favourite part of ancient castles (ever since I was a kid) is the cross shaped windows. - |
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| Arundel Castle - West Sussex - England |
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Raven Tor living history group were at the castle today to provide spectators with demonstrations, performance & interesting facts about the history of the castle, weapons, people & fashion.
All the way from the Norman beginnings as a wood and Earth fortification to the stone castle visible today.
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| Arundel Castle - The Keep |
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First up on my venture was The Keep for a combat display.
I climbed the many steps up from the entrance of the castle, practically giddy with excitement at the medieval display.
Round the narrow winding steps of the tower to The Keep.
The views from the keep across the South Downs are unspoiled and unrivaled.
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| Arundel Castle - View from The Keep |
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Raven Tor performed brilliant battle scenes between warriors with swords and battle shields with archers from the top of The Keep.
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| Raven Tor Living History |
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After the performance, the guys talked us through the weapons, the armor and the strategies of the soldiers of Medieval England.
I love a good opportunity to learn about history, especially through experiencing it. I love Archery but surprisingly today my attention was drawn towards the maces, swords and shields.
I loved learning about how these were utilized in war and how the group train to execute their performances.
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| Raven Tor teaching the crowd about Maces and tactics of battle |
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Probably my favourite part of the day was getting to experience the weaponry by trying it for style.
I have to say I've played a lot of Skyrim in my time and while holding the shield and sword felt perfectly empowering - I would not like to march into battle.
(Though I have decided Archery and combat are skills I'll be leveling up in the near future!)
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| King Kage - Arundel Castle |
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After the display and realising I may have unearthed a hidden passion, the castle remained to be explored.
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| Arundel Castle |
I must recommend the castle rooms and in particular the castle bedrooms.
I've been to a number of stately homes, palaces and castles but the rooms at Arundel are perfectly splendid.
The queen visited and wrote 'The rooms are small but bright' I think that the imagery those words portray are perfect. Though I can advise that small may be a strange description as most were larger than all of my bedrooms added together.
We must remind ourselves that royal visitors would be used to a certain level of luxury.
While we're on the topic of royalty there are a number of paintings in the castle that took my attention, but perhaps even more inspiring were the photographs of the Queen herself.
I've always admired the queens style but seeing images of her when she was younger I realised how beautiful a woman she is.
Rich velvet robes, beautifully carved furniture & Eastern pieces decorate the richly colored, exquisitely kept rooms.
The library deserves special mention - enough leather bound books to keep you entertained for life. I can only dream of creating a library of such stature or of ever reading those books.
The books were kept in beautiful cases surrounded by rich drapes & interesting treasures.
I would have loved to have shown you images but there are strict rules against photography & video inside the castle rooms.
I can understand why and for once actually it was great to wander round a place without any desire to look for the angle of the perfect shot.
Besides the rooms are perfectly beautiful and I hope you'll be inspired enough to go and explore the rooms for yourself.
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| Fitzalan Chapel |
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The castle was damaged during the Civil War. The castle was remodeled & restored during the 18th and 19th centuries.
The castle has served as a home since the 11th century to the family of the Duke of Norfolk.
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The gardens are exquisite, I love the different flowers, the landscaped space provides a serene space for wandering the grounds of the castle. I would certainly recommend the Collector Earl's Garden, The Stumpery & The Fitzalan Chapel.
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The gardens are exquisite, I love the different flowers, the landscaped space provides a serene space for wandering the grounds of the castle. I would certainly recommend the Collector Earl's Garden, The Stumpery & The Fitzalan Chapel.
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| Castle Gardens |
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| Castle Gardens |
Lunch was a huge slice of salted caramel cake and a latte - tasty to say the least.
The restaurant provide a lovely menu of hot dishes and cakes.
If you pay the gift aid upon entry you will even receive a discount to use in the restaurant or gift shop.
Talking of gift shops, the store at the castle has all manner of gifts, books, tapestries (in particular the tapestries), shields, armor and swords - of which I may have purchased (you're never too old for wooden swords!)
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| Arundel Castle |
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I loved exploring Arundel Castle, the gardens were spectacular. the rooms were perfect. The keep and castle were magnificent & the Raven Tor history group were wonderful.
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| Garden Wildflowers |
I loved learning about the history of the castle, the families & the artifacts held inside.
I highly recommend a day trip - why not check out the official castle site, their social pages & remember those Gold Plus tickets are worth the extra pennies.
Don't worry if you missed the living history as in May there is the 'Castle Under Seige' an event I'll be sure not to miss.
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| Raven Tor History Group |
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Pop back soon for more adventures.
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Love & Peace
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- L I T T L E B E A R W O L F - KG Ⓒ 2016 -
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