On August 11, 1573 Queen Elizabeth I, along with her whole court, visited Rye, then the most important port in Sussex. To mark the 450th anniversary of her visit, Rye Castle Museum has devised a trail of 45 objects from both the castle and 3 East Street comprising things that Queen Elizabeth would have known or known about in the course of her military and naval responsibilities and in her leisure activities.
Items in the trail at both sites are marked by a trail icon, and an accompanying booklet, written by historian and Rye Castle Museum chair, Jo Kirkham, that explains the significance and background of each object.
In the castle, fascinating objects include cannon balls found in land around the castle, a crossbow that would have been familiar to Queen Elizabeth as she used one for hunting, and models of ships including The Revenge, Sir Francis Drake’s flagship in the Armada of 1588 which had sailed into Rye in 1588. The Medieval herb garden and still room, used to process the medicinal and culinary herbs, are delightful parts of the castle and Queen Elizabeth was known to love perfumes of lavender, thyme, mint and roses.
Objects in the East Street site that relate to the time of Queen Elizabeth include hop tokens; clay pipes and two rare wooden carved tobacco figures used to advertise where tobacco was sold; and a painting of the town, looking much as it would have done in Elizabeth’s time, and of Camber Castle, built by her father, Henry VIII.
The Queen Elizabeth I Rye Royale trail will be announced by the town crier outside the castle on Friday, August 11 at 11:30am followed by a special afternoon opening at 3 East Street.
On Saturday, August 12 there is a re-enactment of the visit 450 years ago. Click here for more details.
Castle / Ypres Tower is open daily throughout the year. March 30 to October 31 from 10:30am to 5pm. November 1 to March 29 from 10:30am to 3:30pm.
East Street is open at weekends from April to October from 10:30am to 4:30pm (subject to availability of volunteers).
Image Credits: Rye Castle Museum .