oakham castle

quin88

Whilst a small manor house rather than a castle it contains horseshoes donated by royalty and nobility on their 1st visit to the county town. It was interesting to find those given by royalty through the ages and find the oldest horseshoes. There is also a court house used every other year I think. A very enthusiastic man gave us history but also left us to explore. It is not a long visit but one worth doing.

mbutty2015

Not very big but well worth a visit. Full of horseshoes donated to the Lord of the Manor. Free entry, but small shop and option for donations. Lovely gentleman gave us information about the building's history.

moink37

i remember going here as a child, so went in the school holidays with the family. it was lovely to see that it hadnt been changed in all those yrs. and my children enjoyed looking for the eldest and the newest horse shoe and trying to work out which one was the wooden one. the gentleman on the desk was were informative, and was happy to help answer questions.

shadowbluex2

We were staying in Oakham for two nights. Our expectations of the castle were not great to be honest, but as it is one of the main attractions in Oakham - we paid a visit anyway - we were wrong!GoodVery friendly member of staff - really nice guy.The horseshoes (which quite frankly I expected to be very boring) were fascinating because we spent time hunting for people we had heard of - a lot of royalty both past and present for exampleIt is free to enter - well worth a visit I promise.BadThe grounds are a bit grotty, but it was February, and I understand they were doing some work on them anyway.Being a nosey person - I would have liked to have looked around some of the smaller rooms such as the old cells.I would have liked to have had more information about the people who added the horseshoes - some of the names we didn't recognise - or if the information was there, it might need to be more obvious maybe.All in all, well worth seeing.

susanbR7710DD

Hello Susan B. Thank you for reviewing Oakham Castle. We agree that at present there is much more potential for the Castle and grounds to interest visitors. With the help of a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund we will be upgrading our displays and exhibitions this year, and we'll be improving our visitor facilites, so hopefully you'll be able to explore more in 2016. Thank you, Oakham Castle.

TEF

Do not be put off by the exterior. The Castle is well worth a visit: a very interesting history and impressive inside.

guyr826

Hello Guy RThanks for your review, and apologies you didn't think there was enough to see. We will be upgrading our displays and exhibitions this year, so hopefully you'll be able to explore more in 2016. We are not quite sure about your overpriced comment - the Castle grounds and Great Hall are free to enter!Thank youOakham Castle

michaelj5

Very good museum based venueStaff very helpfulRun,it would appear by donations and sales of booklets

diddydi-do

We visited the Castle last week and was greeted by a most helpful young man, he told us so much about the history of the place and plans for the future. It is a little difficult to find but find the market cross and it just round the corner. Well worth a visit

WendyW830

Popped in yesterday. Expected to pay, but it was free! A bonus! Interesting to walk around a really old building and the horseshoes were unusual to see.

LoonyLoo

The building that stands is the Great Hall of the Norman castle, set in a lovely green surround which housed the original castle and associated buildings. The encircling remains of the embankments on which the castle walls stood help make this a peaceful place inside the bustling market town - a red kite coasted overhead when we visited. The enormous collection of horseshoes covering the walls of the hall are fascinating.

angelaj842

I went to oakham castle with my young niece she was disappointed that it wasnt a traditional castle but the horseshoes are fantastic and the grounds are lovely

340beverleyg

quirky castle holding lots of horseshoes from all sorts of dignatories. Was once used as a court, and heaven knows why it isnt now. A cute piece of our history

DCDP

This Great Hall, that once stood within fortified ramparts and hence a castle, has been the centre of Oakham's civic life since the 12th century and is still home to occasional County Court sittings, complete with cell. Entrance is free and a very knowledgeable and helpful guide is on hand to answer any questions. If you are passing through it is definitely worth the visit. If you are a peer of the realm you will need to leave a horseshoe-shaped gift to adorn the walls. Edward IV was the first to do so in 1470, Camilla Duchess of Cornwall the most recent two months ago. I'm am told they have just been awarded a £2m grant for improvement works and restoration of some of the curtain wall which may give a greater sense of this building in its role as 'castle'.

Donna656

love the history of the area, but most of all like the people of the area. Just have to return as much as we can.