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Richard Prater became owner. Under this Prater the Civil War 
broke out between Charles I. and Parliament, and the Castle was. 
held for the King, but on General Sir Thomas Fairfax sending 
two regiments with three cannon, from Castle Cary, to besiege the 
place, surrendered on Sept. 20th, 1645, on bare quarter. There 
were taken in the Castle Capt. Turberville and 80 Irishmen, guns 
for 200, and two barrels of powder. With these were some 
refugees and “a good store of Papists, who were not poor until 
the soldiers left them.” 
The Standard taken on the Castle was “ red, and in the midst 
thereof a fair crucifix cross,” which was sent to be exhibited to 
Parliament, and which was the principal cause of the place being 
ordered to be slighted, and Col. Prater’s whole property 
being sequestered for treason, notwithstanding that his 
son and heir, George Prater, professed that neither his 
father, who died in 1651, nor he weve “ papists in arms.” The 
building remains to this day in the ruinous state to which it was 
reduced by order of Parliament, and after passing through several 
owners was purchased as late as July 10th, 1896, by Mr Harold 
Griffin, of Battersea, for £565, for what purpose remains to be seen 
hereafter. 
The Church of Nunney contains monuments to Sir Nicholas 
De-la-Mare, 1297, who built the Church ; to Sir Philip De-la-Mare 
and his wife, who endowed a chantry in the same ; and to Richard 
Prater and wife, who succeeded the Poulets in the property. 
Not being able to obtain access to the Church, the brakes were 
again mounted, and after a pleasant drive partly through the 
grounds of Mr. J. H. Shore, who on July 10th, at the sale of the 
Castle and other property of the Theobald family, purchased the 
Manor Farm of 264 acres, at Nunney, and 44 acres of arable land, 
the party were deposited at Egford bridges, at the entrance of the 
Vallis, through which it was proposed to walk to the Hapsford 
Mills. The beauty of this Vallis has been much damaged by the 
immense quantity of Carboniferous Limestone that has been 
