The oldest and largest inhabited castle in the world, a working royal fortress on the Thames for very nearly a thousand years
Open to visitorscheck opening times and admission before you go
Standing remainssubstantial fabric survives to stand in front of
William the Conqueror raised the first castle here in the 1070s, a motte-and-bailey set on a chalk bluff to guard the western approach to London along the River Thames — one of a ring of strongholds a day’s march apart around the capital. The Round Tower still crowns that original mound; almost everything else grew around it. Edward III made Windsor the home of the Order of the Garter in the 1340s, and St George’s Chapel, begun by Edward IV, is among the finest Perpendicular Gothic buildings in the country and the burial place of ten sovereigns, from Henry VIII to Elizabeth II.
The romantic, heightened skyline is largely the work of George IV, who had Jeffry Wyatville recast the upper walls and towers in the 1820s. A fire in 1992 gutted part of the State Apartments; they were restored within five years. Through all of it the castle has never stopped being lived in — it remains an official royal residence and a working palace.
Visits are ticketed, with set hours and closures for state occasions, so check before making a special trip. Below the walls the Thames Path follows the river to Eton across the bridge, while Windsor Forest and Great Park and the Long Walk stretch away to the south.
More at the National Heritage List entry
