Bees ton Castle. 143 



and although it changed hands more than once, while 

 yet a fortress, it was never gained by bond fide siege and 

 assault. The date of the building lies somewhere about 

 A.D. 1220, when it was undertaken by Ranulph de Blon- 

 deville, sixth Earl of Chester. He gave himself to the 

 work immediately on his return from Palestine, bringing 

 thence, with others of the Crusaders, the style of archi- 

 tecture that Beeston so well exemplifies. The area in- 

 cluded by the now crumbling and ivied walls is a mile 

 in circumference ; the grand old bastions, and the nar- 

 row gateway, with steep stone steps, are nearly intact ; 

 and by means of lighted paper, as it slowly settles down- 

 wards, we may get an idea of the famous well, which 

 sinks to the level of Beeston Brook, 366 feet below the 

 aperture ! Long reputed unfathomable, and believed to 

 be charged with immense treasures thrown into it on 

 the approach of the enemy, in 1842 the well was cleared 

 out to the very bottom, and found to contain nothing 

 but rubbish. 



The history of Beeston, subsequently to the feudal 

 times, corresponds with that of most old English castles, 

 Warwick being almost the only exception. In the wars 

 between Charles I. and the Parliamentary forces, the 

 latter early got possession, (February 21, 1643.) Subse- 

 quently it fell into the hands of the Royalists, but it was 

 afterwards retaken, and in 1646 it was dismantled. 



Pleasure-parties now find, on the broad green slope 

 that rises from the meadows to the foot of the walls, one 



