More than just a battlefield

This remote venue witnessed one of the most important battles in English history in 1485 with the demise of Richard III and Henry Tudor taking the crown of England.

However this venue has more history than you would expect, theories are that it was once a high profile roman site and there are also strong links with the Victorian engineering that took place nearby with the building of the canals and railway.

If you believe in the stone tape theory or residual energy, this place has held on to a lot.

Moira Furnace was an Ironworks Factory with a huge blast furnace, built in the reign of King George III. Located by the Ashby-de-la-Zouch canal in Moira, Derbyshire. In 1804, the Earl of Moira ordered for the construction of the furnace to take advantage of the amount of iron ore and coal that was present underground in the surrounding Ashby Woulds owned by him. However, it was during this period that the development in blast furnace design was ongoing, and so some of its features at Moira Furnace appeared to have been unsuccessful. In 1806, it was first opened and the blasting began. It would only last until 1811, not because iron became less valuable, but because it had experienced continual problems. Recorded documents state that bad design, bad construction, bad management and even bad raw materials led to the closure of the furnace, just 5 years after it first opened. The furnace was then left abandoned, with iron ore left inside, partially smelted.

Ashby is best known for its Castle, but did you know that the property began as a manor house in the 12th century and reached castle status in the 15th century. Built in the 15th century by the first Lord Hastings. The castle is an impressive ruin of a late medieval castle, dominated by its magnificent tower. It was here that Mary Queen of Scots was held prisoner for a time by Lord Hastings’s grandson first Earl of Huntingdon.

Many of the buildings in Market Street, the town’s main thoroughfare, are timber framed. Most of this structure is hidden by later brick facades.

The Ivanhoe Baths was an 1822 Neo-Grecian building with a Doric façade, it became derelict by 1960, and was demolished in 1962. The baths stood near to ‘The Royal Hotel, originally called the Hastings Hotel, was built in 1826 to accommodate visitors to the growing spa. The hotel closed in February 2018.