England · Restored
Lympne Castle
Lympne Castle is a medieval fortified manor house in the village of Lympne, Kent, originally founded in the 11th century and rebuilt and expanded in the later Middle Ages. It served as the residence of the Archdeacon of Canterbury and underwent further additions and restorations in the 15th, 19th and early 20th centuries; today it is a Grade I listed property used for private events and accommodation.
First raised
1080
Its prime
1919
Today
Restored
As it stood in 1919
What Lympne Castle looked like in its prime.
A long paved approach runs between low stone garden walls and planted beds to a paved forecourt before a low, continuous stone range with a central pointed arch. The main block presents steep tiled gables and narrow mullioned windows, with several tall, rectangular chimney stacks rising above the roofline. Roofs are covered in clay tiles; walls are exposed coursed stone with dressed window surrounds. The setting is a village edge above Romney Marsh with enclosed ornamental beds beside the approach.
Its story
The story of Lympne Castle.
The Archdeacons' House Above Romney Marsh
Lympne Castle was built close to the former Roman Saxon Shore fort of Portus Lemanis — sometimes known as Stutfall Castle — on the site of Lympne Abbey, above Romney Marsh in Kent. The first castle on the site was erected in the 1080s for the Archdeacons of Canterbury. It was rebuilt and expanded in the 1360s, after which the structure included a tower at each end, and further additions followed in the 15th century. Described as a fortified manor house, it remained the residence of the Archdeacon of Canterbury until 1860; after the Reformation it was sometimes referred to as Court Lodge.
Tennant, Lorimer and the New Wings, 1906–1918
After the archdeacons left, the property was used as a farmhouse and had fallen into disrepair by the early 1900s. F.J. Tennant purchased it in 1906, and Robert Lorimer worked on the property in 1907 and again in 1911–12, restoring its medieval aspects and adding the West Wing. The East Wing followed in 1918 for the then owner, Henry Beecham.
Army Use, a Wings Recording and a 2023 Sale
By the end of the Second World War the castle was in poor condition, having been used by the army, and a series of restorations and modifications began in 1945. In September 1978 Paul McCartney's Wings recorded sessions at the castle for their 1979 album Back to the Egg. By the time it was listed for sale in the summer of 2021 the Grade I listed property — some 18,862 square feet — was described as containing self-catering accommodation and a restaurant, and hosted corporate events and weddings, though it was not generally open to the public. In February 2023 it was sold to Canadian owners, Ann Kaplan Mulholland and her husband Stephen Mulholland, who continue to run it as a wedding and event venue.
Step inside
8 places to explore in 1919.
The record describes 8 distinct spots at Lympne Castle, including the full exterior approach. Create your own photoreal reconstruction and explore every one, more scenes means more rooms, more angles, and more of the place to stand in.
Build Your Own Castle
Recreate Lympne Castle with AI to explore it.
The artist rebuilds it as it stood in 1919, a photoreal reconstruction that belongs to you alone. Pay with coins, no subscription needed.
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