John O'Gaunt's Castle

Out for a walk around the lower Washburn Valley today we passed by the remains of John O'Gaunt's Castle which was once a royal hunting lodge. The castle was considered to be the hunting lodge of John O'Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, who was Lord of the Manor of Knaresborough for twenty-eight years until 1399. Although there is not a great deal left today, the hunting lodge comprised a square stone tower, a chapel and a gatehouse. It was surrounded by a 2 metre wide ditch.