Liverpool Castle

Upon the death of William de Ferrers in 1247, his son William inherited both Liverpool Castle and West Derby Castle. The heir to the title was Robert de Ferrers. He rebelled against King Henry III and was arrested and held in the Tower of London and then Windsor Castle. His lands and title were removed and taken back by the Crown. Henry III presented the land, along with Lancaster to his second son Edmund. Mary de Ferrers, wife of the forfeited earl and niece to the King, was ordered to surrender the castle in July 1266. The lands were then held by Edmund and passed onto his successor Thomas. in the same year Adam Banastre, Henry de Lea and William de Bradshagh (Bradshaw) banded together…

There are no surviving records that state when the castle was first constructed. In 1235, during the reign of Henry III, William de Ferrers, 4th Earl of Derby was issued a licence to crenellate with specific permission to "strengthen his castle" suggesting further work is to be carried out on an existing structure. In West Derby, the Earl already had a motte and bailey castle which was acquired by the Ferrers family in 1232. However, with the foundation of Liverpool through Letters Patent from King John in 1207, the military importance of West Derby Castle steadily declined and its garrison of 140 soldiers was transferred to Liverpool Castle in 1235. In 1297 West Derby Castle was completely…

The castle was built on top of a plateau, which had been specially constructed, and a moat measuring 20 yards (18 m) was cut out of solid rock. The main building of the castle consisted of the gatehouse flanked by two towers at the north-east corner which faced Castle Street; three round towers at the three remaining corners, one being added at a later date than the others, in 1442. Four curtain walls connected the four towers; the northern and southern walls were recessed to allow them to be commanded from the towers. Inside the castle were a hall and chapel, which were connected to the south-western tower, and a brewhouse and bakehouse. There was also a passage which ran under the moat…