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, Gloucestershire 824 as "Berclea", from the Old English for "birch lea". Berkeley was a significant place in medieval times. It was a port and market-town, and the meeting place of the hundred of Berkeley. After the Norman Conquest, a Flemish noble named Roger de Tosny was appointed Provost of the manor of Berkeley by his brother-in-law (or perhaps uncle) Earl William FitzOsbern. His family took the name "de Berkeley", and it was he who began the construction of Berkeley Castle, which was completed by his son, also Roger. A younger son of the elder Roger, John de Berkeley, went north to