About
The Castles of Shakespeare is a growing illustrated guide through the real, historical, castles that are mentioned by name in Shakespeare’s plays. This collection aims to catalog every castle mentioned in Shakespeare’s plays—at least 23 castles.
Every month, a new castle is introduced through a watercolor illustration and an accompanying history guide that explores the castle’s role during the year Shakespeare wrote about it, as well as the historical significance of the location that made it appropriate for the play in which it appears.
Castles of Shakespeare is an independent project created and maintained by Cassidy Cash.
Researching Shakespeare’s Castles
I use Open Source Shakespeare and Shakespeare’s Words along with independent research to identify castle names and trace their locations. From there, I select one castle each month for deeper historical investigation, exploring the story of the site and its place in Shakespeare’s world. To be included in the series, a castle must have some surviving visual source material—such as an illustration, drawing, photograph, or other representation—that can serve as the basis for my artwork. In some cases, I draw from several period images to create a composite reconstruction, imagining how the building may have appeared in its earlier form.
Each castle is presented alongside historical research that draws on maps, travel accounts, and scholarly sources to better understand how these places looked and how they were understood in the 16th and 17th centuries. The illustrations combine architectural study with Shakespearean and historical interpretation. Every castle is researched and rendered with close attention to period details, materials, setting, and the stories connected to the site. I rely on reputable scholarship, archival sources, historic images, and site-specific research throughout the process, and my bibliography documents the primary references used for each piece.
Artwork Medium and Dimensions
Each 8 x 10 print is produced on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta, a museum-quality cotton fine art paper chosen for its archival permanence, rich color, and elegant subtle gloss. Prints arrive matted and protected in a clear sleeve, ready for gifting, framing, or display.
Historical Preservation
Many of the castles named by Shakespeare still stand, but their stories can fade from public memory when we stop looking closely. Shakespeare’s choice to mention these places by name gives them a lasting importance within his works, anchoring his stories to real locations with histories of their own. Through illustration, we carry that importance forward by remembering the architecture, landscape, and historical memory these castles preserve. By highlighting the beauty of these places and the role they play in Shakespeare’s works, this collection reminds us that losing touch with the past is a cultural loss as well as a historical one.
About the Artist
I discovered a passion for buildings when I began drawing illustrated itineraries. As I paid close attention to the details of physical places, the stories held within them captured my imagination. While studying old illustrations and paintings—some of which are the only surviving records we have of buildings now altered or lost—I began to see that illustrating memorable and important places is its own small act of historical preservation. Each drawing contributes to the larger library of work that helps future generations remember the legacy of these storied walls.I chose to begin with castles because they are impressive, dramatic, and, let’s be real—they are just cool. Dragons, magic, witches, balls, celebrations, beheadings, imprisonments, weddings, and funerals all belong to the world of castles.
Some are centuries old. They have outlived their builders, their owners, major wars, and the people who waged them. They are inspiring, magical, and legendary places, standing as witnesses to the people, events, and stories that shaped the past.
In 2026, this project begins with castles, but I hope to expand each year into related themes: inns, taverns, churches, and other building locations found within Shakespeare’s plays. At the heart of the work is the idea that if these walls could talk, the stories they would tell us would astound us.
This collection is a product of my curiosity about Shakespeare, historic architecture, and the cultural memory preserved in remarkable places. By illustrating the castles Shakespeare chose to name, I hope to share in their magic, honor their place in his works, and help preserve their legacy.
I am Cassidy Cash, an artist, author, and host of That Shakespeare Life. You can learn more about my work at cassidycash.com.