My Arrival At Dunheved…. Launceston !
“ yes, I was summoned by my Lord, William, and I fought with him. He is a loyal man and has promised to give financial and land gains to those of us who followed his banner to England.
We won a great victory at Hastings and it was a wonderful day when he was crowned King of England…… the Duke had also become a king ! I don’t think any of us will have thought too much on that four years ago.
But here I am.
This place is known as Dunheved ( now known as Launceston), and although a bleak and desolate spot, it is a good place to built fortifications, and I have decided to enhance the mount that overlooks the river. From there we shall control the river and moors, once a keep and bailley are constructed. There is plenty of timber available to us and the construction shouldn’t take long.
To the West of the river are the Cornish… and to the East are the menfolk of Devon. All are hard people and they will at first be difficult to control, but I will achieve the tasks that my ‘King’ has given unto me. I know that he will give us protection….. and of course the taxes raised in this good farming and fishing region will enable my family and I to live a good life.
I expect the Saxon noblemen and landowners to be a thorn in my side, but we have either killed them or chased most of them off of this island. The few that remain will be nothing more than ‘difficult’, and no longer a military threat.”
Successive generations of Norman Earls, strengthened Launceston Castle until it became a formidable bastion.
When crossing from Devon into Cornwall, take the time to pay it a visit, you’ll be impressed by it and the views that it gives you over the small town.
#seymourtravels #tourguide #tour #smallgrouptours #travelblogger