Codnor

The village of Codnor has been a major crossroads for over a thousand years: roads meet on the market place from Ripley, Codnor, Langley Mill and Heanor. The village itself probably dates back to Saxon times, and is mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Cotenovre. Following the Norman Conquest, the land around Codnor fell under the jurisdiction of William Peveril.

The surrounding fields and woods make it easy to forget the coal and iron which made this part of Derbyshire famous. Once it was a great park of nearly 2,000 acres, the centrepiece being the mighty Codnor Castle, the scant ruins of which still stand. The castle itself was a stone ‘keep and bailey’ fortress, with a three-storey keep and a strong curtain wall and ditch, flanked by round towers. It was the home of the influential de Grey family, the most famous member being Richard de Grey, who was one of Henry III’s loyal barons. Edward II visited another Richard de Grey here after fighting the rebels at Burton-on-Trent. All that survives of the castle today is a length of the boundary wall from the upper court, parts of the dividing wall and the defending towers, as well as the odd doorway, window and fireplace.