Imaginary Places

by Grobius Shortling

Poltruvanel Castle (Cornwall) An ancient hill fort of the Celts in pre-Roman days that was reconstituted in the so-called dark ages around the time of King Arthur. It was supposedly the site of the Virgin Castle of the Galahad legends, where he had a bit of trouble maintaining his holiness while searching for the Holy Grail and trying to keep his virtue. Ralph of St. Malo was given this castle by William the Conqueror in 1083 and built a motte-and-bailey on the site. It never became an important fortress in a military sense, although it was the center of a large manorial estate and was noted for its fine ashlar walls and kitchen accommodations in the Tudor period. Oliver Cromwell's troops sacked and burned it, and it never recovered from that, most of its stone having been stolen over the centuries since then to repair barns, etc. There is nothing left to see now except the earthwork embankments and the lines of the old curtains walls, at most chest-high, which now enclose farmyards. (One side of the farmhouse includes a truncated portion of the gatehouse tower, and the remains of the Celtic rath are used as a sheep pound. What is left of the kitchen range is now a popular pub, called "The Wholly Virgin," which is noted for its shepherd's pies and hard cider, brewed locally in the old castle stables.) Want to see a ground plan? And click here for the pub.

Here Is a Link List If You Can't Use the Image Map

• Marshmount Castle -- Monogram on the history, with a description, of an ancient Norman castle near Fenton-on-the-Marsh, Wotshire, England
• Guichardo's Folly -- The last of the Marshmounts built this peculiar dwelling/museum in the ruins of the castle
• Gwernogle Castle -- A 'serious' guide book to an Edwardian-era Welsh castle; it actually fooled somebody who lives in Gwernogle
• Upchuck Lodge, Scotland -- Another Guichardo folly, currently owned by a famous movie star
• Gloveburgh -- Old Saxon town, with town walls and castle, in North Yorkshire, now a theme park
• Lepidopter -- Braise was the Conan of this bronze-age kingdom and built the citadel
• Farnish -- Some notes on the geography, peoples, history (natural and humane) of the strange and wonderful island of Farnish
• Almondsey -- A large island located somewhere between Norway and Atlantis: Admiral Handleweave's voyage to the source of the River Lin
• Blenkinsop -- Some notes on the planet Blenkinsop in the solar system of Beta Pisces (Gogol), especially concerning the syndicate of Mallowfat & Fagg
• Upper Nutsthorpe Castle -- Near Stoke-on-Trent, not a place people visit much (except pottery fans), but quite interesting for its Victorian steeple
• Academy of Arts & Imbecility -- Why do hot dogs come in packs of ten and buns in packs of six or eight? Study profound questions like these at the Academy
• Bifurk Gate, Fenton-on-the-Marsh -- An unusual double gate tower shared by castle and town, now a miniature wax museum
• Cthulhu & Nosferatu -- These names may be familiar to some of you; did you know they now have a web-page business?
  
  Miscellaneous
  
• Aspidistra Castle, Denver CO -- Pauline Ponsonby, a close friend of Molly "Unsinkable" Brown, and the rich widow of a silver miner, built this dream house, not far from the notorious Columbine High School (but it was all open country then)
• Fisher's Roost -- A tiny (really tiny) tower house on a lake in the Catskill Mountains of Sullivan County NY