Castle Bytham

Castle Bytham, eight miles south west of Bourne, has the attractiveness of all hillside villages: a little stream in the valley, flowing to the River Glen, the houses on one side climbing to the hilltop church, and on the other side the great earthwork remains of a castle built by Norman lords but long since vanished. The huge grassy site is still an impressive spectacle and it is not difficult to picture a strong fortress standing here, dating back to the Norman invasion of Saxon England. The Saxon owner of this site was Morcar, a Northumbrian earl who vainly tried to resist William the Conqueror and died in prison while his stronghold, finished by the Conqueror's own half-brother Odo, stood until it was swept away in the Wars of the Roses and today the site is occupied only by the sheep.

St James' Church (left) and the village pond (right).

The duck pond at Castle Bytham is much photographed and presents one of the most attractive village views in South Lincolnshire. In past times, before the village had a piped water supply, it was used by farmers for cleaning their equipment and livestock. Sheep and cows would be driven into the water and washed down followed by the heavy horses with their hay wains and other carts. The bottom is now thick with mud and in dire need of dredging, a move that is being resisted by the parish council who fear that it may be environmentally damaged. The tiny stone building on the edge of the pond is 300 years old and was originally the water keeper's cottage. He was paid by the parish to ensure that the level of the pond was maintained to avoid flooding the main street. It is now privately owned and used only for storage purposes and is part of Brooklyn Cottage, the creepered property of similar age that can be seen fronting the main street. Standing on the very edge of the village pond is one of the prettiest small cottages in Castle Bytham and on a summer's day it presents a picture of rural charm and tranquillity.

St James' Church has a sturdy tower with 13th century lancets, 15th century battlements and an 18th century sundial inscribed with the old pun Bee in Thyme. The nave is part of a Norman church and has an arcade of three round arches on octagonal pillars, built when the Norman style was waning. There is a fine brass candelabra made just after Waterloo and in the corner of the nave is a ladder which once played a part in the customs of Merrie England, an inscription stating that This ware the May Poul, 1660. In the churchyard is a stone bench, a modern addition, where mourners can place flowers against engraved plates that remember their loved ones who have been cremated and do not therefore have a traditional tombstone. By the side of the church porch are two mediaeval stone coffins, covered with undergrowth and, because of their antiquity, deserving of a tidier and more prominent site.

This short stretch of road immediately below the village High Street is Heathcote Road, one of the most attractive in Castle Bytham and is named in memory of the Heathcote family who were landlords here in centuries past. Their interest in this village dates back to the 18th century when they had already become major landowners in the parish. A map of 1858 shows that Robert Heathcote had by that time bought out most of the smaller landowners but when he died in 1917 his entire estate was sold at public auction, a total of 46 lots comprising 1,285 acres of land, several farms, the lime quarry, the Post Office, two inns and many private houses, cottages and woodland. The sale led to the slow but inevitable demise of the landlord and tenant relationship and to the situation today in which the majority of these properties in the village are now privately owned. 

A colourful display from flowering window boxes greets summer visitors to the Castle Inn at Castle Bytham while further up the main street, but on the opposite side of the road, is another historic inn called the Fox and Hounds. The Manor House can be found on the main road up on the hill, partly hidden by a stone wall, and is said to be 17th century but may be a little later. It has a symmetrical three-bay front and there are lights to the windows on the left and right of the doorway. 

The 19th century Wesleyan Church at Castle Bytham has been restored as a family home, retaining many of the original features including the bell-cote although a modern weather vane has been added and its new name of The Old Chapel adorns the side wall in wrought iron. The four stone tablets incorporated in the gable end when it was opened on 13th July 1899 have been preserved. They record the names of the church worthies who laid them, Mrs AW Squires, Mrs Fred R Bell of Stamford, Mrs William Smith of Langley Mill and Mrs W Hudson Smith of Scarborough. This was very much an occasion for the ladies and one wonders where their husbands were on this occasion.

Glen House, once a farmhouse and designed in the manorial style, dates from the 17th century and is an elegant addition to the street scene in Swayfield End. It has an associated circular dovecote with 400 roosting holes, no longer used but still in good repair. The house built of dressed stone and Collyweston slate, is currently the home of a local doctor.

The village has been prone to flooding over the years but the worst such disaster was in the summer of 1922. It started raining on the Saturday evening of the August Bank Holiday weekend and continued through until Monday when the village was flooded from end to end. Only those houses raised above the level of the road escaped and Castle Hill Farm was one of them where the waters stopped two yards from the back door. Villagers helped farmers rescue their livestock, hens, chickens and pigs, while tree branches and other debris sailed down the main street where a group of youngsters had managed to find a boat to help rescue anyone who was trapped. The top of the marquee that had been erected for the holiday fete could be seen protruding above the flood water on Castle Hill field. The water subsided quickly when the rain stopped but most houses suffered serious damage and some had thick mud three feet high on the walls while carpets and furniture in downstairs rooms were ruined.

The village pump at Castle Bytham was a gift from Mr Robert Bowder, a local shopkeeper and baker, to commemorate Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1887, and anyone could draw water provided they paid one penny per year each for using it. Thereafter, it became known as the Victoria Well and a plaque was mounted on the nearby wall to commemorate its installation. 

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