"Norwich, England - May 17, 2012: A man walking past Norwich Castle keep and castle mound on a spring day. The stone keep was constructed by order of the King between 1100 and 1120 to replace a wooden structure which stood on the same mound dating back to the Norman conquest of 1066. The castle was used as a prison until 1887 and has been used as a museum since 1894."

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Norwich Castle

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Crowning a hilltop overlooking central Norwich, this massive 12th-century castle is one of England’s best-preserved examples of Anglo-Norman military architecture. Its superb interactive museum crams in lively exhibits on Boudica, the Iceni, the Anglo-Saxons and the Vikings. Perhaps the best bit though is the atmospheric keep itself with its graphic displays on the grisly punishments meted out in its days as a medieval prison. Guided tours (adult/child £3.70/3) around the battlements and creepy dungeons run at least twice daily.

The castle's art gallery houses works of the acclaimed 19th-century Norwich School of landscape painting founded by John Crome, and (drum roll) the world's largest collection of novelty teapots.


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