Guidebook: Three Palaces Of The Bishops Of Winchester
In the Middle Ages the bishops of Winchester were the wealthiest in England. Their estates stretched from Somerset to Surrey and their number included two cardinals, ten lord chancellors and four treasures of England. Wolvesey, Bishop's Waltham and Farnham Castle were three of their many palaces. The buildings served a variety of functions: as showpieces for wealth and power, administrative centres for their vast estates, places of refuge in times of trouble, houses for rest and leisure, and accommodation for the large household that would have accompanied such an important member of the Church.