Berkeley Castle Berkeley Castle Berkeley Castle ( ; historically sometimes spelt "Berkley Castle" or "Barkley Castle") is a castle in the town of Berkeley, Gloucestershire, UK (). The castle's origins date back to the 11th century and it has been designated by English Heritage as a grade I listed building. The castle has remained within the Berkeley family since they reconstructed it in the 12th century, except for a period of royal ownership by the Tudors. It is traditionally believed to be the scene of the murder of King Edward II in 1327. The first castle at Berkeley was a motte-and-bailey, built
Berkeley Castle from the Minstrels' gallery. His tomb is in St Mary's churchyard which stands besides the castle. Adjoining the Great Hall was the Chapel of St Mary (now the morning room) with its painted wooden vaulted ceilings and a biblical passage, written in Norman French. In the late 16th century Queen Elizabeth I visited the castle and played bowls on the bowling green. During the English Civil War, the castle still held sufficient significance for it to be captured in 1645 by Colonel Thomas Rainsborough, for the Parliamentarian side and after a siege which saw cannon being fired at point blank