Theme 229 - Horseshoe

Whilst staying at the Spa (see earlier posts), hubby had a look through my blog theme list and noticed the horseshoe theme. He said that the best collection of horseshoes in the country (world?) were at Oakham Castle - only 20 miles from where we were staying. Needless to say, we just had to visit and get this blogshot.

There are 240 horseshoes hanging on the walls of the Great Hall. These represent the unique custom that every peer of the realm must give a horseshoe to the lord of the manor on their first visit to Oakham. The custom has been followed for at least 500 years and probably dates back to the 12th century. The oldest surviving horseshoe is said to have been given by Edward IV in about 1470. The most recent were given by HRH The Princess Royal in 1999, HRH The Prince of Wales in 2003 and HRH Princess Alexandra 2005.