Bungay Castle Views

General Goods

Bungay Castle is a gothic novel by Elizabeth Bonhôte. It was first published in 1796 and follows the fortunes of the De Morney family at Bungay Castle in Suffolk [1]. Two young members of the family, Roseline and Edwin, search for the source of strange, unearthly cries and discover a terrifying secret in the castle's bowels which will change their lives forever. The story combines the classic Gothic tropes of mystery, betrayal and a heroine in peril in suitably imposing surroundings and has been praised in modern times for its proto-feminist sensibility [2]. The young women in the story keep their fates in their own hands, rather than wait for some dashing hero to come to the rescue. The book was recently reprinted by Zittaw Press.

The introduction explains the authors long held desire to write on the subject of Bungay Castle. Castles are a popular setting in the novels of the time and Bonhote takes the opportunity, here, of remembering the ruins from her childhood in her work. She modestly expects condemnation of her work, but writes from a desire to please the reader, while steering clear of overt political reference.

As time passes Walter and Roseline begin to fall in love, but encounter a number of obstacles. The proud and ambitious Sir Philip has arranged a match between his eldest daughter and the wealthy Baron Fitzosbourne. Though she detests the Baron, Roseline bows to threats made by her father and eventually agrees to marry him. The couple reach the altar in the chapel of the neighbouring nunnery, before Walter bursts through a trapdoor (using a passage connecting St Mary

The family properties were inherited by Hugh Bigod in 1120. He became a bold and charismatic leader amongst the local barons, using Bungay as his power base. In 1136 he raised an army against King Stephen and seized the royal castle of Norwich. In order to subdue him, Stephen was obliged to march upon Bungay in 114O but in the negotiations which followed, Stephen found it expedient to reward Bigod with the title of Earl of Suffolk in order to win his future loyalty. This was an ill-judged decision, resulting in Bigod winning even greater respect and support in the region and he was soon raising an army against the King again.