On Thursday 3rd March, a bunch of avid young historians climbed onto the Slack coaches’ time machine and entered the wormhole that is the M1! Our intrepid Year 7 and 8 time-bandits, armed with only pen and paper, were not to be disappointed as they were transported into an enchanting world of medieval knights and castles!
Warwick has been established for over eight centuries and one can track the expansion of the fortification over those centuries by looking at the buildings and geography of the surrounding area. An imposing portcullis and 3-meter-thick walls stand as testament to the power of the barons who used the centre to develop their power, not least Richard Neville. Neville was the 16th Earl who was known as ‘The King Maker’ during the Wars of the Roses, when the castle was at the heart of this civil war.
Pupils were treated to a workshop on the development of medieval warfare and enjoyed shouldering the various weapons and gaining a deeper understanding of how the advent of gunpowder shaped the history of castles and fortifications. They then clambered up on the battlements and traced their way through dungeons and underground smithies, even peering down a long drop at one point!
A presentation on birds of prey and the ancient art of falconry rounded off the day, before our army retired to the bus for the long retreat home.
Tired, but elated by the day’s activity, the pupils returned, having developed a fascinating insight into life and war in a medieval castle nearly a thousand years ago!
