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Home The Plants

Creeping Cinquefoil

Creeping Cinquefoil (Potentilla Reptans)

 

Flowers: June to September. Height: 15cm (6in).

 

In French, ‘foil’ means leaf. Also called Five Fingers, the five-petaled Cinquefoil flower was a popular feature in church architecture, often used in windows and arches in Normandy and Brittany through the 15th century. The word Potentilla comes from Latin for ‘powerful’ and as an emblem in heraldry, represented strength, power, honour and loyalty. Only medieval knights who had achieved self-mastery were permitted to use the five-leaf emblem of the Cinquefoil on their shield as symbol of the five senses.

 

Medicinal: For all inflammations and fevers whether infectious or pestilential. Used in gargles and lotions for sore mouths, ulcers, cancers and running sores. Boiled in wine it was applied to painful joints and drunk as a cure for gout and sciatica.

 

Magic & Myth: In medieval times Cinquefoil was an ingredient in many magic spells in and love potions. It provided protection for any traveller, and, when hung at the door or on the bed, would ensure restful sleep. It is one of the herbs supposedly used in medieval ‘Flying ointment’, a hallucinogenic mix used by witches. Francis Bacon listed that other ingredients included smallage and wolfsbane mixed with the fat and wheat flour. He also wrote that frogs had a predilection for sitting on this plant whilst toads preferred to sit under sage.

Cowslip
Dame’s Rocket

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What our visitors say about the castle

Visitor August 2024
Excellent visit!
What a fabulous place the castle has a lot to offer both variety of complete rooms and scale. The grounds were lovely (boar family!) and the falconry display was excellent - led brilliantly by the staff member. The staff were all friendly and helpful and topped off with a pot of tea from friendly tea room staff.
The Axcell family August 2024
I'd just like to pass on our thanks for a lovely visit yesterday. We had a fantastic day at the castle; the falconry display was fun and informative, the archery demonstration was fab, and nicely rounded off with the wild boar feeding at 16:00. Kelly was brilliant, but very special thanks to Dave who helped make the past come alive; Eleanor and Joseph had a day they will never forget thanks to the generosity of your time and enthusiasm (the parents too)! It's hands down the best visit we've ever had to a historic property and we'd recommend it to anyone. We're happy for you to post the review on the website if you wanted.
Thanks again, and we'll definitely come back again if we're in the area.
Yorkshire Dales Classic Car Club
From all of us at YDCCC a huge thank you for Sunday. Please thank all of the staff at the castle for being  very kind and extremely helpful. Everyone  who attended was very happy at the location for our picnic as you can imagine. It was also nice to see visitors having a look around the cars. Sadly with the arrival of the rain we had to leave in a hurry and did not get to thank the staff in person. So please pass on my thanks to all who helped to make our day a very special one. Look forward to visiting again in the future.
Mike Cowan
A visitor October 2024
Awesome cafe awesome castle
First things first! The Cornish Pasties here are made by a lady (81 years old - originally from Cornwall) - they are the best pasties I’ve ever tasted. You must try them! Secondly the castle is brilliant Lots to see and do. Dave and his wife that run the Mary Queen of Scot’s room and the archery are super friendly and knowledgeable. Dave was lovely with our boy. Both went above and beyond.
Mrs R
I just wanted to say my husband and I visited the Castle and thought it the most splendid place!   From the staff, Tea Room, signage information so well presented, but one of my main reasons for contacting you was to say that Kelly, one of your members of staff excelled herself.   We joined her for a bit of archery, managed to hit the board, my husband 86 and myself 77 didn’t do too badly!  Her rapport and information with the Birds of Prey was second to none, she obviously loves her job, she is truly an asset to the Castle, thank you. Please pass on this email to the relevant source, thank you.

Download the Bolton Castle app

Download our new audio App from Apple's App Store or Google Play Store and hear the stories of the castle brought alive. Our easy to navigate App is a fun way to find out about our turbulent history, our castle incumbents and their way of life through the ages. There's an audio tour for each room of the castle, so you can dip in and out as much as you wish, with voices from our Living History team who know and love the castle. Find out about Mary Queen of Scots' captivity, how Lord Scrope's army prepared for war, and how the servants made sure life included some luxuries as well as day to day chores to keep this home functioning, amongst other sneak peeks on life in a castle. It's time to immerse yourself in our history and find out more than you ever thought you needed to know!  Free with entry, the audio App lets you unlock the stories behind the castle walls.

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Bolton Castle
Nr Leyburn
North Yorkshire
DL8 4ET

T: 01969 623981
E: info@boltoncastle.co.uk

School booking enquiries
E: dave@timetalks.org.uk

Bolton Castle

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