The Edison Project Item #94 – Visit A New Castle In The UK

We are now in May and I have only completed six items on my 2016 Edison Project list. I use the word ‘only’ as my progress is slightly behind pace to surpass my tally for 2015 (17 completed items). Whilst this may be cause for concern, I can assure you I have a lot lined up for my birthday month (3rd May for anyone wondering) to help correct any deficit. What better way to start than to complete an item on the 1st May over the bank holiday weekend? That’s exactly what I did.

The Edison Project item was to visit a new castle in the UK. I will start by pointing out the usage of the word ‘new’ in this sentence is not in reference to a newly built castle, but more so in reference to one I have never visited before. I love historical architecture, especially castles. Recent day trips have seen me and my girlfriend visiting Arundel Castle, St Michaels Mount, Windsor Castle, and the Tower of London. These are all large castles that still remain intact. The next castle to be added to that list was Warwick Castle.

This was not the first time me and Hana had attempted to visit Warwick Castle. It was, however, the first time we successfully made it there. Our first attempt failed as we got lost on the journey from Rugby (don’t ask). A few years later and we have finally ticked it off.

The journey from Hertfordshire took us about 1-hour and 45-minutes by car, and was straight forward. We bought tickets on the door and spent 4-hours exploring the castle and the surrounding grounds. Whilst the castle may not have been the most grandest we have visited, it was extremely well curated and organised. I think this is very important as too much historic detail can be overwhelming, and often boring for someone who is not a history buff. The best example of this at Warwick Castle was the Time Tower. They tell the story of the castles ownership in a fun and innovative manner.

Within the castle you are free to explore a number of areas including a Castle Dungeon Experience that I heard was pretty impressive. I imagine this is similar to London Dungeons, but with us expecting a child we decided against getting involved. There is also a lot to explore outside the castle walls including a maze, a birds of prey show, and a trebuchet demonstration among others.

In my opinion, visiting castles is a really nice experience to add to any Edison Project. There are many scattered across the country, and often there is one on your door step you just have not found time to visit. If you want inspiration on what castles to visit then take a look at the interactive map on the Historic UK website. They have done an excellent job on geo-tagging the castles across the country.