Aerial view of Maxstoke Castle*	An engraving of Maxstoke Castle. 1820	Maxstoke Castle gateway and Dead Mans Tower. 1920s*	Dead Man's Tower, Maxstoke Castle. 1920s*	Maxstoke Castle, Tudor House from entrance towers. 1930s*	Drawing by William Green 1940s
	**	**	**	Pigeon loft at Maxstoke Castle, 1930s*	Engraving of distant view with part of Maxstoke Castle park and approach road. 1800s
Maxstoke Castle and lake. 1823	Interior of the entrance hall to Maxstoke Castle. 1930s*	Drawings of Maxstoke Castle, east front and south view. 1800s	The Tythe Barn at Maxstoke Castle. 1930s*	View from Maxstoke Park gates. 1900s*

The historical account of Maxstoke Castle below is taken from "Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales: Volume II" by John Timms and Alexander Gunn published by Frederick Warne & Co. 1872.

"On a plain, in a sequestered spot surrounded by trees, above a mile north of the village of Maxstoke, and three miles from Coleshill, stands this Castle, which has its history, chequered with the fortunes of its owners. This ancient structure was built by Sir William Clinton, eldest son of John Lord Clinton, in 1356, and is one of the very few remaining buildings of that interesting period. The Castle came into the possession of Humphrey Stafford, Earl of Buckingham, by exchange with John, fifth Lord Clinton, for Whiston, in Northamptonshire, and became the favourite residence of the Earl; but upon the decapitation of his son, Henry, Duke of Buckingham, for his attempt to dethrone Richard III, in 1483, the Castle was seized by the King, who visited it on his progress to Nottingham Castle, previously to the battle of Bosworth, when he ordered all the inner buildings of Kenilworth Castle to be removed here. After the death of King Richard III, Edward, the son of the last Duke of Buckingham, was restored to his father's honours and estates. He fell a sacrifice to Cardinal Wolsey, and was beheaded in 1521; upon which event the Emporer Charles V exclaimed, "A butcher's dog has worried to death the finest buck in England." Then sunk forever all the splendour and princely honours of the renowned family of Stafford.

"A frightful succession of calamities befel both the ancestors and descendants of Humphrey, Earl of Buckingham, as well as himself. His grandfather was murdered at Calais, his father killed at Shrewsbury, his son at St Albans, and himself at Northampton; his grandson, and great-grandson were both executed as traitors, and he had to relinquish the rank of Lord Stafford, to which he had become entitled, and his sister was at that time the wife of a carpenter.

"To return to Maxstoke. The year after the beheading of the son of the last Duke of Buckingham in 1521, the estate, again forfeited, was granted to Sir William Compton, ancestor of William, Lord Compton, who, in 1526, disposed of it to the Lord Keeper Egerton, who, two years afterwards, sold it to Thomas Dilke, Esq., in whose family the property still remains. The plan of the Castle is a parallelogram, with a hexagonal tower at each angle, inclosing an area containing the dwelling, which was partly destroyed by an accidental fire; but a great portion of the ancient edifice yet remains, and is a fine example of the architectural style of the age in which it was erected. The gatehouse in the centre of the front is approached by a stone bridge over a moat, which encompasses the Castle walls; above the entrance are sculptured the arms of Humphrey Stafford, Earl of Buckingham, impaling those of his Countess, Anne Neville, daughter of the Earl of Westmoreland, which are supported by two antelopes, assumed in allusion to the Earl's descent from royal blood, his mother being the daughter of Thomas of Woodstock, Duke of Gloucester. The badges of the burning nave of the Stafford knot are also sculptured on the gatehouse, which was built by the Earl of Buckingham previously to his being created a Duke in 1446. The great gates put up by this nobleman are still in their original state, and are covered with plates of iron; the groove for the massive portcullis is also to be seen.

"In the neighbourhood of the Castle are the remains of a Priory, founded by William Clinton, Earl of Huntingdon, in 1331, for canons regular of the order of St. Austin; it was dedicated to the Holy Trinity, the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Michael, and All Saints. The endowment of this Priory was ample, for it was valued in 1534 at 129/. 11s. 8d. per annum: it was granted in 1538 to Charles, Duke of Suffolk. The ruins are rendered mournfully picturesque by the varieties of evergreen foliage that environ them in every direction."     

The Castle was bought by Sir Thomas Dilke in the 1500s and the Fetherston-Dilke family still live in it today. It is open to the public for one day a year in June.

Photos marked * are © Warwickshire County Council, 2003                                                                       Photos marked ** are © 2001/02 Robert Courts