Post by Dave on Aug 23, 2023 16:44:36 GMT
Castle Drogo & Fingle Bridge 23rd August 2023
It must be at least fifteen years since I first visited Castle Drogo with my late wife Carol. Once again I saw a free offer on the Devon Live webpage to grab a free family ticket to a National Trust property as I did a few months earlier and visited Saltram House in Plymouth.
When you think of castles the name Oliver Cromwell may well come into your head. He along with his armies ended up destroying so many wonderful castles around the UK. Many of the ruined castles can still be visited today and I have been to a good number them.
Cromwell never got his hands on Castle Drogo simply because the castle was not around back then. Work started on building the castle in 1911 and took over twenty years to complete. It was build for Julius Drewe, the hugely successful founder of the Home and Colonial Stores, who remembers them? I do.
In 1974 his son gave to the National Trust not only Castle Drogo but also Whiddon Farm and several cottages in Drewsteignton.
From day one Castle Drogo has been plagued with water ingress and leaks into the building due to the materials used to construct the roof. The Trust decided action was needed to save the castle.
The work took nine years to complete and has not long been finished, another reason I decided not to visit the castle while all the work was going on.
The size of the flat roof is roughly equivalent to two football pitches. This needed a high-tech roof system to keep it waterproof. In order to lay the new waterproof system 3,500 granite blocks, weighing anything up to 1.4 tonnes each had to be removed and then reinstated. This involved moving and reassembling entire battlements and large sections of the castle walls.
There had also been a real problem with water penetration through the pointing and around the windows. The cement holding the windows and stones in place had cracked and was letting in water. To achieve a good seal the team needed to remove the cracked cement from around every stone. The new pointing was made from an improved lime based mortar. This new mortar allows the building to breathe and is frequently used in historic buildings. The sheer amount of new pointing required stretched to an impressive 60,000 metres. If this were laid in a line it would stretch all the way from Castle Drogo to Lundy Island off the North Devon coast.
The windows had been another major weakness for Drogo. In keeping with a medieval fortress, Julius Drewe had demanded that there were no windowsills. This feature that would have offered some protection from the fierce elements seen on Dartmoor. 913 windows have now been removed, refurbished and resealed.
In 2007 the windows were replaced in the chapel. This part of the castle had badly been affected by water damage. The large windows were restored and the new Bauder roof system installed. The chapel is now fully watertight.
The National Trust has once again done what it does best and saved Castle Drogo for future generations, if only they could do the same for Oldway Mansions in Paignton.
We set off nice and early and when we got there the car park was almost full. I felt the need to remind Lyn just what Castle Drogo is, the last castle build in England and a building only a 100 years old. Before she met me she had never been in a castle which I found strange as she grew up in Swansea. She was soon climbing the spiral staircases in castle turrets and going down in the dungeons.
I had to agree with her that on approaching Castle Drogo it looked like it was built out of Lego bricks. You are also not going to get that real historical feeling as you would from a castle from long ago.
But for what it is, it is a wonderful building in its own right and well worth visiting, especially viewing the inside. If you are the same age as us, you will discover many items you mum would have had in her house.
I love corridors and there were plenty to walk through and unlike my last visit, I was able to take photos of the inside. Around the other side of the building Lyn was saying it looked more like a prison building and I had to partly agree with her.
As with most National Trust properties the gardens are delightful to walk around and we were very glad to find a vacant bench to rest our bodies and tired legs.
We looked in the café but as is often the case only snacks are on offer and so we decided to head to the Fingle Bridge Inn. The last time I had been to the castle with my late wife, we walked all the way from the castle to Fingle Bridge and back again. We knew that was not possible for Lyn and I so we drove there.
It is such a beautiful spot and we were given a table right next to the river and the closest one to the bridge. Children were having fun playing in the river and the sun was shining brightly.
Its all waiter service and the prices are a bit high to be honest; we also both found the food rather tasteless. But we were out to have an enjoyable day and at least we now felt full up.
Time to head home and battle our way through the lanes that I know so well. Normal summer problems with visitors on the roads who never drive on country lanes. It’s lovely to have a nice day out, but lovely to get home and shut the door and put the kettle on.
