Fotheringhay

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For the folk group, see Fotheringay.

Fotheringhay Church

Fotheringhay is a village in Northamptonshire, England. It is most noted for being the site of Fotheringhay (or Fotheringay) Castle which was razed in 1627. There is nothing left of the castle to be seen today other than the motte on which it was built that provides excellent views of the River Nene.

It was traditionally the home of the Dukes of York. Richard III of England was born there in 1452, and his father, Richard, Duke of York was re-buried at the nearby church in 1476.

Fotheringhay is also where Mary, Queen of Scots was tried and beheaded in 1587, and her body lay there for some months before its burial at Peterborough Cathedral and then its final burial in Westminster Abbey. Although it is often said that James I destroyed the castle because his mother was killed there, the facts are rather more prosaic - it fell into such disrepair that it had to be pulled down, and the stones were all taken to be used in other buildings. Local legend has it that the staircase from the Castle is now in the Talbot Hotel in nearby Oundle, and that the ghost of Mary can be seen walking down them to her execution.

The large Fotheringhay Church with its tall and distinctive tower is only part of the original structure which was constructed in 1434.

The Nene Way long distance footpath runs through the village.