Castle Keep Ruins

Twynham was listed in 1086 in the Domesday Book with a value of £10.00 plus it's possessions in the forest valued at £12.10 shillings.
Fourteen years later Henry 1st granted the castle to his cousin Richard de Redvers. Richard's son Baldwin lost Twynham during the "Anarchy" of 1136 but were later restored. Walter de Pinkney snatched the castle and badly mistreated the towns people and prisoners. He was later axed to death in the church yard. 1149 saw Baldwin de Redvers now 1st Earl of Devon organise his possessions, now being Lord of the Manor and granted the town it's first charter. This charter granted the burgessesa number of tolls of the market on behalf of the townspeople. The market was situated below the castle motte at the junction of, what is now the High Street and Castle Street and expanded down to the Bargate.The towns market continued until 1871 but was reinstated in 1976.

In 1149 Baldwin de Redvers brought in 26 Augustinian monks to the Priory certainly because they were virtually self sufficient and therefore cheap to have around. Of course, setting up a monastery would be valuable on your journey to the Hereafter plus gained some favorable friendships too especially as the church was the "civil service" at the time. The lay canons were evicted from the Priory and the celibate Augustinians installed. They continued to rebuild the Priory Church. See photo 1. The Priory did have a central tower around this time but it collapsed. The Priory went without a tower until the sixteenth century. At around this time the Constables House or Hall was built with the luxury of a round chimney and later a "garde-robe" (toilet) installed in 1210 which emptied into the Millstream. The "Gin Door" a little way down the stream was built around 1240 which adjusted the flow of water to flush the "garde-robe" and to control the water to the Place Mill further down stream. The castle Motte and Keep were upgraded, the Keep being 3 floors high with nine foot thick walls splayed out the corners as a defence against mining. These castle works were probably done around 1190 but it is suggested possibly as late as 1330 when the castle passed on to William de Montacute, later to become Earl of Salisbury.

The town was served well by it's landlords. Richard de Redvers, his son Baldwin, his son another Richard who built the Constables house and the Earl of Devon. The last De Redvers was Isabella, Countess of Devon sold the lands Isle of Wight, Hampshire and Dorset to King Edward 1 for £4000 and Christe Churche became a Royal Manor. The Medieval period was relatively good for Christchurch until the Reformation. The King intended to pull down the Priory and monasteries but relented on the Priory and gave the church and grounds to the inhabitants of the town to be used as a parish church. In 1612 King James 1 confirmed this grant.

North Porch

The north porch was started when Edward I's, Queen was Lord of the Manor. This large porch was used as an early town hall. It was also used for weddings; the monastic church not wishing to involve its celibate monks in wedding ceremonies. About 1350 the Jesse Screen was carved in the Great Quire. The Lady Chapel, at the east end of the church, was completed about 1390 and vaulted about 50 years later. In 1460, the tomb of Sir John and Lady Chideoke was installed. The west tower of the church, with its defensive characteristics, was built in the time of Edward IV, a monarch who was also a Lord of the Manor.
The last Prior of Christchurch was John Draper elected in 1520. Co-operating with the Dissolution and giving up the Priory and it's wealth he was granted a favourable pension and given the Grange at Somerford. He died in 153 and buried in the knave in front of the altar. His tombstone later was moved to lie in front of the Draper Chantry.

Draper, elected in 1520. Draper was described as 'a conformable man' by Commissioners who visited the Priory. He appeared to co-operate with the dissolution and to surrender the Priory and its wealth. He was granted a huge pension, and given the Grange at Somerford to live in. He died in 1553 and was buried in the nave in front of the altar. His tombstone has been moved to lie in front of the Draper Chantry. Above the Lady Chapel is St.Michaels Loft, used as the towns Grammar School for boys. It is now the Priorys museum.

One of the most important events in the history of Christchurch was the dissolution of the monasteries in 1539. As a result the monks had to leave, and the monastery and all its property was seized for Henry VIII, who gave the church to the town. The ownership of the church and its churchyard, was confirmed in the 18th century, when parishioners successfully prosecuted a vicar for keeping his cattle in their churchyard.

One of the Lords of the Manor was Margaret, Countess of Salisbury, and governess of Princess Mary - the daughter of Henry VIII. Henry's divorce caused the Church in England to split from Rome. However, Margaret remained faithful to the Roman Catholic Church; one of her sons became a priest in Rome and wrote a book calling for a united Church. She and her other two sons were arrested: one son was executed and the other exiled. The old countess was held in The Tower, where she was executed. She refused to kneel for the headsman and stood while an executioner's sword was used. The Pope appointed her son Cardinal Pole, Archbishop of Canterbury, in the reign of Queen Mary.

The Civil War

Cromwell 1644 - unkown artist

On 15 January, 1645, Goreing made a determined attempt on Christchurch. However, the garrison had made preparations: gun platforms were erected on the north and south sides of the motte, which was raised to command the town and the quay. In order to give a clear field of fire, houses were pulled down. Goreing's men drove the Parliamentary troops out of the external defences, into the priory, churchyard and castle, where they stood a three-day, close siege. Claims for damage were being argued for many years after the war. A ghost in a Bridge Street garden has been reported as wearing Civil War armour.

The defenders lit a beacon on top of the keep to attract help from Poole. The garrison commander loaded his surplus gunpowder into a boat, and sent it by night to Yarmouth, on the Isle of Wight. The cavaliers found the castle too hard to take and drew off into the New Forest. In the meantime, the commander at Yarmouth sent a force to Lymington where, reinforced by the troops there, they marched to Christchurch and its relief. The cavaliers narrowly missed being cut off and made good their retreat. The Parliamentary commander at Christchurch was rewarded by promotion.

By 1650, the defences were an embarrassment, the castle had canons but there was no garrison, so the guns were removed. The castle was not mined, as an explosion in the town centre would have wrecked the place. About 1656 the north and south walls of the keep were pulled down. See photo 2.

After the Parliamentary capture of Christchurch, the Church of England vicar was put out of his living until the English Restoration in 1660. The Puritan vicar installed until then was now removed.  Charles II was invited to return and assume the thrones in what became known as the Restoration. Charles II arrived in England on 25 May 1660 and entered London on his 30th birthday, 29 May 1660. Charles was crowned King of England and Ireland at Westminster Abbey on 23 April 1661.

Now Nonconformists met in secret on St Catherine's Hill and in private houses, until things became calmer. The stoning of the Sheriff (Shire Reeve) in 1663, and threats to the life of the mayor demonstrated the violence of the times. Such unruly behaviour may have given rise to the use of instruments of public punishment. These included: stocks, pillory, ducking stool, whirlygig, manacles, and the gibbet at Parley on the old county boundary..

The person who held the castle held the manor, which was governed by the Manorial Court; this would have been held in the hall.. The Prior was lord of a church manor. The Malmesbury family holds the manor of the borough and the Meyrick family holds the manor of Christchurch, which includes the castle keep. The church land, governed by the Prior, was confiscated in 1539, hence the Priory manor ceased to exist.

The Hundred Years War

In 1336 the Hundred Years War began, which saw many French raids on the coast.  A series of conflicts and is usually divided into three or four periods.  Edwardian War (1337–1360), Caroline War (1369–1389), Lancastrian War (1415–1429), and including the decline of the English fortunes after the appearance of Joan of Arc (1412–1431). The "Hundred Years' War" was a term created by historians to describe the series of events.

The troubled times may have prompted the reconstruction of the Bargate, which was later removed in 1724. However, it gave its name to the road 'Bargates' which continues from the High Street north to the railway bridge today.

War of the Roses

In 1455, the War of the Roses - began. The castle was held for the Duke of Salisbury and Warwick, at a rent of one red rose (House of Lancaster) a year. He was killed in 1471 and Christchurch passed to the Duke of Clarence (George Plantagenet). He played an important role in the dynastic struggle known as the War of the Roses.  Clarence, who had made the mistake of plotting against his brother Edward IV, was imprisoned in the Tower of London and put on trial for treason. Following his conviction, he was  "executed" in the Tower on 18th February 1478, and a rumour grew up that he had been drowned in a butt of Malmsey wine.   Christchurch was then held for a white rose (House of York) until the victory of Henry VII.