Curse of Nottingham Castle.

 

A terrible curse hangs over Nottingham Castle. One day, whilst King John was out hunting from his favoured place of residence at Clipstone, now known as King Johns Palace, he received news from his sister Joan (wife of Llewellyn, Prince of Wales), of a Welsh uprising. Interrupting King John when he was engaged in such leisurely pursuits was never going to be a good idea.

He summoned those barons and distinguished persons based either in the Palace, or residing locally, to assemble under the Parliament Oak. Once there, and in a state of some considerable rage, he demanded they consent to the immediate execution of 28 welsh hostages already being held in Nottingham Castle. All were the young sons of welsh noblemen, some merely children. The King then rode directly to Nottingham and ordered the Castle Governor to have the hostages bound and tied, before hanging each of them one by one, kicking and screaming in a row from the Castle walls. After which, King John rode back to Clipstone in time for supper.

It is said that, if one walks by the Castle Gatehouse, on a winter night when the wind is calm, you can still hear the pitiful cries of the Welsh boys, and their heels kicking against the old stone walls.

(Note: Internet sources dispute how many boys were hung, ranging from two in number to twenty eight).

Below: From "Robin Hood", 1922, depicting some of King John's punishments.

King John's Palace and Robin Hood, Clipstone

 

 King John's Palace is situated on a low hill beside the B6030 in Old Clipstone (a.k.a. King's Clipstone). Once surrounded by forests, the humble ruins of what had been an impressive Royal Hunting Lodge in the 12th century, are amongst the first buildings ever to be "listed" and protected in the UK. The fact that Richard the Lionheart chose Clipstone as the place for a meeting with King William of Scots in 1194, gives us some idea of just how favoured this Lodge and the hunting opportunities it presented, were by the Royalty of the day. Sadly, all that remains now is a shadow of its former self.

 King John, Richard’s brother, first acquired such properties in Clipstone while he was still the Earl of Mortain. They were then taken from him because he tried to usurp King Richard whilst Richard was away at the Crusades. However, after John succeeded in gaining the throne, he took back the property and made several visits there. According to legend, it was during one such visit that, rather than hunt for game in the surrounding forests, King John set out to hunt for Robin Hood in the caves at Creswell Craggs. But Robin heard of his intentions, and seized the opportunity to sneak into the palace whilst John was away, releasing all the prisoners from the dungeons there!

It was also from this palace that Prince John road out to Nottingham and mercilessly hung a band of Welsh prisoners to quell a Welsh uprising. An act which brought a curse down on Nottingham Castle.

Above: Prince John in "Robin Hood", 2010. Below: Prince John in "Robin Hood" (1922), and "The Adventures of Robin Hood" (1938).