Visited June 2024

Location	Ruardean, Gloucestershire
Entrance Fee	No
Railway Station Nearby	No
Parking	Yes- roadside
Facilities	None
Map

A small fortified castle built on a hill in this Forest of Dean town, Ruardean Castle was thought to have been established before the Norman conquest, although the scant remains we see today probably date back to a 14th century rebuild.

Review

Early records show that the castle was owned by a family by the name of Averal. who derived their income from iron ore mines, which were widespread in the Forest of Dean. Then in 1310 a royal clerk known as  Alexander de Bicknor obtained a Licence to Crenellate at Ruardean. 

The new castle was built near to the previous fortification, which meant the approach to the castle ran through the raised earthwork of the earlier structure. Alexander de Bicknor's castle had a square courtyard which was entered via a gatehouse. It was surrounded by a curtain wall with the main living accommodation built into it. There was a tower which looked out over the estate. 

It would seem that the castle was in occupation until the 17th century, when it was abandoned and the stone used for other buildings in the town. All that remains today is a small part of the tower, sited on a hill behind the parish church in Ruardean.

Now for the practicalities. There is a lane next to the church which leads to the castle field. We parked on the roadside just by the church without any issue. There is a public footpath across the field which the castle lies in, but at first we couldn't even see where we were going as the field was so overgrown. We finally spotted the path to the castle, but after following it for a few moments, found the path disappeared and we were faced with a  field full of high stinging nettle plants and no obvious way through. We could see the castle but couldn't quite get to it. The only way to get any closer was to basically trample our own way through the nettles. Now we are a family of hardcore castle hunters, we have visited some wild and lonely spots, in all weathers, sometimes just to see a mound with no masonry. We don't baulk at much in our quest to visit castles. But taking on a whole field of stinging nettles? We decided that we had got as close as we could reasonably get without subjecting ourselves to a major stinging, and so turned back the way we came. 

This was a shame but we had got close enough to take some photos, and could make out the edge of the tower and a protruding piece of masonry which once formed part of an archway. In reality there is not much more to be seen if we had got closer. We still have it on our list for a possible return visit- maybe next spring before the nettles start to grow again, but the spring this year had been so wet we had delayed a visit until the weather was better- but by then the access was overgrown.

There are some lovely views from the public footpath as far as you can go along it, and it situated in a is very peaceful and unspoilt place. Our best advice if you are determined to visit is to try and go in the early spring, if the weather is conducive to traipsing in fields. For another example of a Forest of Dean castle you could also visit St Briavel's Castle which is in an excellent state of repair and open to the public on certain days.

More info: No Official Website