Photo: DeFacto / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
About this place
Founded in the 1120s, Kenilworth Castle in Warwickshire grew into one of the largest castle complexes in England.
It passed through royal hands for centuries, including a long period as a Lancastrian stronghold.
Edward VI granted it to John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland in 1553, and it was John Dudley's son Robert, Earl of Leicester, who transformed it in the 1570s into a palatial showpiece.
The nineteen-day entertainment Robert Dudley staged here for Elizabeth I in 1575 was a remarkable display of wealth and spectacle, widely regarded as one of the grandest events of the Tudor era.
English Heritage manages the site today.
Plan your visit
Open year-round, with extended hours in spring and summer; check the English Heritage website for current opening times and dates.