Experience Medieval English History in Leeds Castle

Just in case you are looking for Leeds castle in Leeds…. you will NOT find it there….

… Leeds Castle is actually located in Kent, south of England, not a long drive from London,  and is a spectacular place for a day visit for the whole family.

The visitor can experience not only the castle, its picturesque gardens and parkland…

…but also, if you happen to visit on one of those special weekends, you can get a glimpse into the English history complete with Grand Medieval Joust, fairs and period clothing.

The English seem to love their history and have an abundance of fight re-enactments, period fairs with all sorts of forgotten crafts on display – it’s a perfect history lesson for children and adults alike.

Only recently a taxi driver was telling me about a battle re-enactment he participates in regularly, period clothing he gets to wear and friendships he has forged while playing this game of history…

 

To me it’s fascinating that there seem to be quite a number of opportunities to actually experience a historical event as it happened. Apparently, these re-enactments of events past are also quite accurately recreated.

After you’ve experienced the events of Medieval England in the parkland, it would be a waste to give the castle and its gardens a miss.

So plan for a full day trip and take your time since there’s plenty to do and see.

Leeds Castle’s history stretches over a 1000 years and it’s been in the hands of many: a royal castle and,  seemingly, a popular gift bestowed by kings on queens – six queens were given Leeds Castle as a present and held its ownership.

It later was passed on to private ownership with the last owner Lady Baille creating a special Leeds Castle Foundation with the aim to preserve the castle for future generations to enjoy – and enjoy you really will!

So if you are visiting England, get out of London, go see a historical event re-enactment or simply visit Leeds Castle, it will be one of the highlights of your visit to Kent!