A team of archaeologists is at Sudeley Castle this October 2021, undertaking what it is calling ‘the most significant archaeological investigation in the castle grounds since Victorian times’.
After finding architectural stones, a garden, pottery, cookware and butchered animal bones in 2019, archaeologists are now hoping to uncover the remains of a Tudor banqueting house buried within the castle grounds, which experts believe to have been the site of a huge celebration for Queen Elizabeth I on the anniversary of the Spanish Armada in 1592.
The investigation of the site, which was put on hold during 2020, is taking place until Sunday 31 October 2021, where archaeologists hope to reveal 400-year-old remains.
Lisa Westcott Wilkins from DigVentures, the company carrying out the investigation, said: ‘We are absolutely delighted to be returning to Sudeley Castle to resume this important investigation. The remains of this banqueting house, which will be revealed for the first time in nearly 400 years, have the potential to tell us so much about an essential, but much less well understood, part of Tudor power and politics.’
‘Unearthing the remains of one of Elizabeth I’s biggest parties will obviously be exciting enough in itself, but it also gives us this huge opportunity to create one of the first archaeological footprints of one these sites. In turn, it could help us develop a much better picture of this ‘outdoor infrastructure’ that the Tudors developed, in which to conduct their politics and exert power.’
Visitors to Sudeley Castle and Gardens will be able to join a daily tour of the archaeological site and take part in the dig – with special ‘DigClub’ sessions for families too.
For more information, or to book tickets, visit sudeleycastle.co.uk/events.
