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Siege of Exeter (1068)

1068 in England11th century in DevonBattles involving the Anglo-SaxonsBattles involving the NormansConflicts in 1068
EngvarB from January 2017History of ExeterMilitary history of DevonNorman conquest of England
Old Exeter City wall geograph.org.uk 1286996
Old Exeter City wall geograph.org.uk 1286996

The siege of Exeter occurred early in 1068 when King William I of England marched a combined army of Normans and loyal Englishmen westwards to force the submission of the city of Exeter in Devon, a stronghold of Anglo-Saxon resistance against Norman rule following the Norman conquest of England. After a siege lasting eighteen days, the city surrendered to William under generous terms and allowed the Normans to consolidate their hold over the West Country.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Siege of Exeter (1068) (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Siege of Exeter (1068)
Castle Street, Exeter Newtown

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Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 50.725833333333 ° E -3.5297222222222 °
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Rougemont Castle

Castle Street
EX4 3PL Exeter, Newtown
England, United Kingdom
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Old Exeter City wall geograph.org.uk 1286996
Old Exeter City wall geograph.org.uk 1286996
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Rougemont Castle
Rougemont Castle

Rougemont Castle, also known as Exeter Castle, is the historic castle of the city of Exeter, Devon, England. It was built into the northern corner of the Roman city walls starting in or shortly after the year 1068, following Exeter's rebellion against William the Conqueror. In 1136 it was besieged for three months by King Stephen. An outer bailey, of which little now remains, was added later in the 12th century. The castle is mentioned in Shakespeare's play Richard III in a reference to that king's visit to Exeter in 1483. Devon's county court was located here from at least 1607, and the three Devon Witches—the last people in England to be executed for witchcraft—were tried and convicted at the Exeter Assizes in 1682. All the buildings inside the walls were swept away in the 1770s to make way for a new courthouse, which was extended by the addition of wings in 1895 and 1905. Because of its function as a court, the interior of the castle was not open to the public until the court moved to a new site in 2004. The entire site was later sold to a developer whose stated aim was to transform it into "the Covent Garden of the South West".The castle is named after the red stone found in the hill, and used in the construction of the original buildings, of which the large early Norman gatehouse is the main remaining feature. It is surrounded on three sides by the Rougemont Gardens and Northernhay Gardens, public parks now maintained by Exeter City Council.

Northernhay Gardens
Northernhay Gardens

Northernhay Gardens are located in Exeter, Devon, England, on the northern side of Rougemont Castle. They are the oldest public open space in England, being originally laid out in 1612 as a pleasure walk for Exeter residents. The gardens are Grade II listed in the National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens, and are maintained by Exeter City Council. The site was originally quarried in Roman times for stone for the city walls. The gardens incorporate a stretch of Roman wall and the only length of Saxon town wall to be seen in England. They form a crescent shape bounded to the north by the West of England Main Line and Exeter Central railway station, and to the south by the castle and Rougemont Gardens. Their eastern entrance is at the head of Northernhay Place and the gardens open on the west to Northernhay Gate. The early park was destroyed in the Civil War, in 1642, when large defensive ditches were dug outside the walls for the city's defence. Soon after the Restoration, in 1664, the city set about restoring the park, planting hundreds of young elms and laying out gravel paths. There has been a tradition of maintaining the park as a major city amenity since that time. The gardens underwent a major re-landscaping in 1860, and between 1860 and 1895 received an important group of monuments to major Victorian figures in the city's history. The Deer Stalker (1875) by E. B. Stephens (1815–1882), is a significant piece of Victorian art that was exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1876. Stephens also sculpted the statues of John Dinham, who was a local philanthropist, and Sir Thomas Dyke Acland, 10th Baronet, in the gardens. In the 17th and 18th centuries Northernhay Gardens were affectionately known by the familiar name "Norney".The statue of the Conservative politician Stafford Northcote (1887) is by Joseph Boehm. The Volunteer Memorial (1895), designed by S. K. Greenslade, commemorates the formation of the 1st Rifle Volunteers in 1852, and the Exeter War Memorial by local sculptor John Angel was constructed in 1923. The gardens also contain a bandstand. In the mid 1900s the mature avenue of elms lining the central walk succumbed to Dutch Elm Disease and were felled. Subsequent planting has sought to provide all-year-round colour and interest. The gardens offer views over large parts of the city, and events are hosted there throughout the year.