The deadline for grant applications passed on 1 December. We’re going through the various projects now. Altogether the 10 projects, coming from England, Scotland and one from Turkey, are asking for over £70,000. They cover not only a wide period of history but also a broad range of topics.
https://donate.kindlink.com/castle-studies-trust/2245.
In a little more detail here are the applications we’ve received:
3D Non-Destructive Chemical X-ray Imaging of Clay and Salts in Stone, Mortars, and Masonry: This ground breaking project aims to non-destructively map the distribution of clays and salts due to their significant roles in historical construction and preservation challenges. Clays and salts are commonly found in construction materials like stone and mortar, integral to understanding the original building processes of castles. The project will examine a number English Heritage sites including, Dover, Richmond and Conisbrough. It aims to contributes to the conservation of historic structures and enhance the broader understanding of historical architecture and its preservation.
Great Torrington, Devon: To provide interpretation boards for this early Norman earthwork castle using the results of the excavations being carried out at the site in late 2023.
Hereford Castle: To co-fund Friends of Castle Green to work with local community, historical societies, artists, creatives and technology providers, our goal is to uncover the hidden history behind (and underneath!) Castle Green and its environs through semi-traditional interpretation boards and interactive smartphone technology.
Higham Ferrers, Northants: To provide a geophysical survey of this now completely destroyed (by Henry VIII) former Duchy of Lancaster castle. The castle has extensive accounts dating from the thirteenth to fifteenth centuries but nobody knows what it looked like. The survey would be the first step to being able to do that.
Kozkalesi, Turkey: To fund a season of field work of this 12th-13th century castle south-east of Antioch (Hatay) primarily focused on surveying the site and the surrounding area. Kozkalesi was an important Crusader site since it belonged to the Antiochene patriarchate throughout the 12th and 13th centuries and it’s a rare example of such a castle.
Leybourne, Kent: Architectural survey of the gatehouse which is of great importance to the understanding of gatehouse development, both nationally and, perhaps, internationally. It is often cited in studies of gatehouse development, but is far from fully-understood: its date and affinities are open to question, while there has been no up-to-date survey or recording.
Lowther Castle, Cumbria: Following on from last year’s excavations funded by the Trust, to see if this earthwork castle and village was an example of early Norman colonisation in the late eleventh century. In the second season, the aim would be to carry out excavations to see if there was a ditch and gatehouse and look for finds within the interior.
Newhouse, Lincolnshire: Excavation of possible ‘Anarchy’ period castle located near an abbey founded at a similar time. The aim is to try and find some dating evidence for the site to see if it was one of the many unrecorded ‘Anarchy’ castles
Penrith, Cumbria: Reconstruction of Penrith Castle as it would have been in the fifteenth century placing the viewer within the castle courtyard and replicating a human perspective. The castle was first built and then modified throughout the century, including by Richard Duke of Gloucester (Richard III) and part of the work behind the reconstruction will involve a full review of the architectural evidence.
Tinnis, Peebleshire: To produce three reconstruction drawings of this Scottish Borders castle through its three periods of occupation: Iron Age; Early Medieval Fort; Castle.
We will not be able to fund as many of these projects as we would like. To help us fund as many of these projects as possible please donate here: https://donate.kindlink.com/castle-studies-trust/2245
The applications have been sent to our assessors who will review them. You can see how the assessment process works from our blog back in January 2016: https://castlestudiestrust.org/blog/2016/01/17/how-the-castle-studies-trust-selects-its-projects/