Chilham Castle

En un regard

Le château en bref

Chilham Castle overlooks the village of Chilham, in the Stour valley between Canterbury and Ashford. The estate brings together two separate Grade I listed monuments: an octagonal medieval keep, one of only two of this plan in England, and a large Jacobean mansion built in 1616 for Sir Dudley Digges. The keep, built of flint with Caen stone dressings, was enlarged in 1171-1174 for Henry II; it was restored in the early 20th century and is now used as a residence. The neighbouring red-brick house follows a hexagonal plan open to the south, rare in England, with corner turrets topped by ogee domes and tall clustered chimneys. Its traditional attribution to Inigo Jones is not accepted. Privately owned, the castle has belonged to bankers, planters and collectors, and since the 1960s has served as a setting for numerous films and television series. The park, overlooking the Stour, is now home to an equestrian centre.