Tonbridge Castle (Tonbridge)
Tonbridge Castle was a Norman castle at Tonbridge in Kent, of which only a fragment remains.
It was built by Richard Fitzgilbert shortly after the Norman Conquest, utilising a mound that was already there when the Romans arrived.
The castle held out against William Rufus, but surrendered after Fitzgilbert was wounded.
Richard de Clare added the Gatehouse in the 13th century.
During the Civil War the castle was held by the Parliamentarians.
Thomas Hooker of Peckham bought the castle in 1793 and promptly demolished it, apart from the Gatehouse and a small part of the bailey wall.
He constructed a Gothic building beside the Gatehouse, and this is now used as council offices.
The whole complex now stands in landscaped gardens.