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Colchester Castle
DATE: 1076
Traditional date for William the Conqueror ordering the building of Colchester Castle, on foundations of the roman Temple of Claudius
DATE: 1101
Castle of Rochester and town granted by Henry I to Eudo, Steward of Normandy, who is responsible for a second phase of building work
DATE: 1120
Eudo dies and Hamo de St Clair becomes Constable of Castle
DATE: 1132
Visit by Henry I, King of England and Duke of Normandy
DATE: 1153
William, Count of Boulogne, William de Warenne and Archbishop. Theobald de Bec negotiate at Colchester with the future Henry II
DATE: 1157
Henry II, King of England and Duke of Normandy visits Colchester
DATE: 1196
William de Lanvalei becomes Constable of Colchester Castle
DATE: 1203
King John visits Colchester and again in 1205, 1209 and 1212
DATE: 1204
Hawise de Lanvalei, widow of William, entrusted the Castle by John
DATE: 1211
William de Lanvalei, son of William, becomes Constable of Colchester Castle
Revolt of the barons and the Magna Carta
DATE: 1214
John removes William de Lanvalei because of his support of the Barons
DATE: 1215
Castle of Rochester occupied by a French garrison in support of the Barons ; King John besieges Rochester Castle which is held by the rebel Barons by undermining the walls. Custody of castle is regained by the Crown.
DATE: 1215
Following the signing of the Magna Carta with the Barons John forced to re-appoint William de Lanvalei
DATE: 1216
John besieges Castle of Colchester and retakes it from the French
DATE: 1226
First mention of Colchester Castle as a prison
DATE: 1454
Thomas Mallory, author of Le Morte dArthur, imprisoned in Castle of Colchester
DATE: 1557
Five Protestants imprisoned for their faith in the Castle and then burnt at the stake
DATE: 1600
Colchester Castle no longer defensible
DATE: 1629
Charles I grants Castle to the Earl of Carlisle and it ceases to be in royal ownership
DATE: 1645
Matthew Hopkins, the Witchfinder General, uses the Castle as a base for his interrogations of people suspected of witchcraft
DATE: 1648
Royalist commanders, Lucas and Lisle, held in Castle before their execution at the end of the Siege of Colchester during the English Civil War
DATE: 1656
James Parnell becomes the first Quaker to perish for his faith when he dies, aged 19, of injuries sustained during his imprisonment in Colchester Castle
DATE: 1683
John Wheely purchases Colchester Castle and starts to demolish parts of it.
DATE: 1727
Colchester Castle given to Charles Gray and Sarah Creffeild as a wedding present
DATE: 1746
Charles Gray starts to repair and restore parts of Colchester Castle
DATE: 1836
Colchester Castle ceases to be a prison
DATE: 1860
Castle of Colchester opens as a museum
DATE: 1934
Colchester Castle re-roofed
Second World War
DATE: 1939
Roman vaults under Castle of Colchester used as an air raid shelter
Norman Connections
DATE: 2009
Towns of Caen, Bayeux and Falaise, the Calvados General Council, the Calvados Departmental Committee for Tourism, the counties of Hastings, Colchester, Norwich and Medway Council collaborate within the framework of the Norman Connection project on the restoration and improvement of Norman châteaux.
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INTERREG IV A France (Channel) – England, co-funded by the ERDF.