Boarstall Tower

Boarstall Tower is all that remains of the fortified moated house built here by John de Handlo in the early 14th century.

The three-storey tower with hexagonal turrets rising from each corner of the battlemented roofline was the only entrance to his carefully guarded property.

The surviving arrow loops give an indication of the formidable prospect the tower once presented.

Boarstall Tower is the only medieval military building left in Buckinghamshire and the only test of its defences occurred during the Civil War when it was garrisoned for the King. The building was besieged by Parliamentarian troops and surrendered on 10 June 1646.

Boarstall Tower was altered in the 16th and 17th century and today the Tudor and Jacobean windows and octagonal chimneys rising almost to the height of the turrets, give the building a delightfully domestic appearance. The beautiful room which runs the length of the third floor is lit by large 17th century windows. The room was probably once used as a dormitory for the men of the establishment but nowadays it is used occasionally for chamber concerts. The tower is now approached over a two-arched brick and cobble bridge.