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While
the most famous owner of Stokesay was Lawrence of Ludlow,
the leading wool merchant in the Welsh Marches, with
headquarters in nearby Shrewsbury, this fortified manor
house was named because it was the "stoches" (dairy farm) entrusted to the de Say family, who were tenants during the
first half of the 13th century. When the owner, Walter de Lacy, died in
1241, the
de Say's moved to Ireland, trading the estate to John de Verdon, husband
of one of de Lacy's two granddaughters for property in Ireland. The new owner may have begun
building the current castle as early as 1250, but it was
Lawrence of Ludlow who purchased the estate in 1281 and received the license to crenellate in 1291,
apparently when the building was complete. Lawrence had greatly expanded
the selling of fine wools of the Anglo-Welsh marches, and was one of the
wealthiest men in the British Isles. As he moved his family from
Ludlow to Stokesay, in an era when there were no banks, he needed to
protect his property and cash from potential vandals. So in addition to
the manor, tower and stone gatehouse, he constructed a 30
foot tall curtain wall around the courtyard. When Lawrence died in a
storm on
the English Channel in 1294, the castle and estate passed to his family,
who lived and thrived there until 1498, when Sir Richard Ludlow died,
leaving his estates again to two granddaughters!
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