As a border county of the 'Marcher Lordships', Shropshirewas for centuries an active military zone. Its often turbulent past is reflected in the large number of castles in the county, in particular those lying along its western border with Wales. After outlining the history of castles in Shropshire - their origins and expansion under the Normans, their development during the middle ages and their subsequent fate or reappearance as county homes rather than fortifications - the authors provide a full, illustrated gazetteer of every visible castle (or castle remains) in the county. In particular they give details of many early castles that have never been covered in earlier works. This thorough but compact guide will prove an invaluable guide for residents and visitors alike.

This paperback edition of a book first published in hardback in 2002 is a fascinating and provocative study which looks at castles in a new light, using the theories and methods of landscape studies.

"This book is the result of two most interesting, if rather laborious, journeys, devoted to castle-seeking, one in 1924, covering Wales and the English counties along the Welsh border; the other in 1925, devoted to Somerset, Devon and Cornwall. [...] Of eighty castles described in full, all but six were carefully inspected, and recorded by my own note-book and my son's photographs. [...] The object of this book is to explain the historical and architectural interest of each castle, so that the visitor may appreciate its meaning." -- v, Preface.

In this book author John Shipley peels back the ravages of time as he explores the military heritage of this historic county.

This original and pioneering book examines the role of the castle in the Norman conquest of England and in the subsequent administration of the country. The castle is seen primarily as an instrument of peaceful administration which rarely had a garrison and was more often where the sheriff kept his files and employed his secretariat. In most cases the military significance of the castle was minimal, and only a very few ever saw military action. For the first time, the medieval castle in England is seen in a new light which will attract the general reader of history and archaeology as much as the specialist in economic and social history.