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Sunday, 1 April 2012

Amberley's Lustful Bishop


A-Z Challenge 2012 - A

Amberley’s Lustful Bishop

Amberley Castle is located in West Sussex, England. It was built as a 12th century manor house by Bishop Luffa. It was fortified in 1377 when Bishop Reede received a license to crenellate it from Richard II. It then had a stonework enclosure with high curtain walls, towers, a hall and a massive gatehouse. The Bishops of Chichester used Amberley as a fortress.

The castle passed to the Crown and became a royalist stronghold in the English Civil War. Charles II took shelter there after his defeat at the Battle of Worcester in 1651 prior to heading for exile.

Amberley Castle
The castle remained in private hands after its purchase by the Duke of Norfolk. After 1989 it became a luxurious country hotel.

However you will find no mention in the hotel’s literature of the castle’s one time servant girl. Made pregnant by a lustful Bishop, poor Emily, deserted in her hour of need, died in childbirth. Her ghost is said to haunt the kitchens and to return to the top of the battlements from where she had leapt to her death.

Amberley Castle Walls



Attributions:
  • Amberley Castle, East Sussex; author Jonathan Day; Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike license 2.0 
  • Amberley Castle walls; author Colin Day; Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike license 2.0
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21 comments:

  1. David Robinson1 April 2012 at 08:32

    I'm tackling this challenge, too, Bob, and it's aleady driving me nuts.

    Great opening post. Good luck with it.

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  2. Jessica Bell1 April 2012 at 10:13

    Interesting! Will you be posting about historical monuments throughout the challenge? Nice to meet you. New follower :)

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  3. RHYTHM AND RHYME1 April 2012 at 11:01

    Lovely post I love castles and have visited many here in the UK.

    Good luck with the challenge.
    Yvonne.

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  4. Hilary Melton-Butcher1 April 2012 at 12:27

    Hi Bob .. no my A is not Amberley - interesting about the haunting - I expect there were many poor girls in this situation back then ... I didn't know about Emily .. but the story line around a lustful bishop is rather titillating ..

    Cheers enjoy the challenge .. Hilary

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  5. martine1 April 2012 at 13:10

    Hi, interesting post, but surely the young lady in question either died in childbirth or leapt to her death, she can't do both?
    visiting via the a to z challenge
    thanks for sharing
    martine

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  6. Stacy S. Jensen1 April 2012 at 13:29

    Amberly Castle seems like a great place to visit unless you are a servant girl. Good luck with A to Z.

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  7. Bish Denham1 April 2012 at 13:35

    Oh goody, looks like we're going to get another tour of places. Yes, please?

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  8. Rosalind Adam1 April 2012 at 13:49

    It looks amazing and that ghost story is begging to be written into a novel by someone.
    I’m doing the A to Z Challenge too at A to Z of Nostalgia

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  9. Tasha Seegmiller1 April 2012 at 15:37

    Ah! I want to go here so bad. Living vicariously through your blog - new follower :)

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  10. Tonja1 April 2012 at 16:42

    Castles are fascinating. Great post.

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  11. T. Powell Coltrin1 April 2012 at 16:45

    I'm in love with Castles.

    Teresa

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  12. Little Nell1 April 2012 at 16:50

    Perhaps it was the lustful bishop who leapt to his death, full of remorse when he heard that the poor girl had died - as if :)That Charles II got around didn't he?

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  13. k~1 April 2012 at 17:54

    Thank you for the journey into Amberley Castle. I would love to take a tour (maybe a year long tour heheh) of the castles across the "big pond" just for the sake of taking photos, and experiencing their magnificent history.

    A-Z 2012
    http://bloggitwrite.blogspot.com/

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  14. Bob Scotney1 April 2012 at 18:42

    Oops! A lesson for all researchers - don't take just one source for your material. I didn't, I used more than one for poor Emily. However thay had different versions of her death,
    She died in chidlbirth and her ghost haunts the kitchens OR her ghost is seen on the battlements from where she leapt to her death.
    Note to self: Must do better.
    Thanks to all who commented.
    More castles and ghosts to come.

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  15. S. L. Hennessy1 April 2012 at 19:00

    Uh, can I live there? May sound weird, but I love the idea of living in a beautiful haunted castle, kept company by sorrowful ghosts. Poor Emily.
    Great blog! Happy A-Z challenge!

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  16. Gail M Baugniet - Author1 April 2012 at 21:09

    Yes, poor Emily, but what a beautiful castle to haunt.
    http://gail-baugniet.blogspot.com Theme: A World of Crime

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  17. Joanne2 April 2012 at 03:21

    love this post - great pics and cool history. I'll check back. Very nice.

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  18. nutschell2 April 2012 at 05:44

    Wow! what a beautiful castle, and what an interesting history! Great start to the A-Z!
    Nutschell
    www.thewritingnut.com

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  19. N. R. Williams2 April 2012 at 15:29

    Hi Bob
    How did Emily die in childbirth and also leap to her death? Legends are strange that way aren't they?
    Nancy

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  20. Bob Scotney2 April 2012 at 16:34

    Nancy - I can't claim it was April 1st yesterday, See my earlier comment beginning Oophs!

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  21. Sarah Tokeley2 April 2012 at 18:27

    Poor Emily, however she died!

    I've visited a few castles in England, not this one though.

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