Designed to help turn the head of a Queen, the gatehouse at Kenilworth Castle was part of an expensive statement of intent from the castle’s then-owner, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester.

Dudley was convinced he could impress Queen Elizabeth I with his wealth and taste on her first visit to the castle, but it was not to be. Carrying on the modernisation work of his father, Dudley commissioned William Spicer to build accommodation fit for the royal court.

Today, the iconic castle in the heart of England is under the care of English Heritage. As with all buildings of this scale and heritage, it has complex and constant conservation needs. The Gatehouse, known as the Leicester Gatehouse after the ambitious Earl, is today set up as it might have looked in the 1930s and tells the story of the on-off romance between Dudley and his Queen.

To ensure the gatehouse is practical and comfortable for those who work within it, as well as visitors, we were commissioned to install 38 secondary glazing units into stone surround windows. Working with Treasury & Son Contractors and Caroe & Partners Architects, both of whom specialise in conservation and heritage projects, we worked hard to ensure schedules could align in a productive way to advance the project to completion.

The colour chosen for the units was dark grey, which works beautifully with the stone surround windows. The secondary glazing will provide robust protection for the beautiful leaded windows while making the gatehouse a warmer place to work in and visit.

Castles present a range of conservation challenges but it’s always a privilege to carry out work on them. We can now add Kenilworth Castle to our growing list of castle projects that already include such iconic sites as Lindisfarne Castle and Powis Castle.

To find out more about the benefits of our secondary glazing units, please click here.