Orford Castle, Orford, Suffolk
This images is titled 'West view of Orford Castle in the county of Suffolk' by Samuel and Nathaniel Buck. They were brothers who, in 1724, set out around England to make prints of 'antiquities'. Orford is the earliest castle in England for which documentary evidence of its building survives. The Pipe Rolls, record its construction by King Henry II between 1165 and 1173 to a total cost of £1414 9s 2d. Orford Castle was a symbol of the King's power, strategically placed both to uphold royal authority in a region thickly planted with castles of powerful lords and to guard the coast against invasion. This property is now in the care of English Heritage (2010).
