There was success for Okehampton Castle on Sunday (May 14) as visitors flocked to the heritage site to enjoy the castle’s annual Bluebell Sunday event.

The day’s entertainment included sword-fighting demonstrations from the West Devon Swords and even a chance for visitors to get involved in the medieval sword school.

Okehampton-based music charity Wren Music also serenaded visitors for half-an-hour in the afternoon with a range of traditional and newly-written springtime songs.

Okehampton Castle is particularly famous for its bluebells which bloom throughout the nearby woodland each spring.

The event has been a popular attraction since 1917 when local benefactor Sydney Simmons, who also founded Simmons Park, gifted the castle to the Okehampton Castle Trust for the inhabitants and visitors of the town to enjoy in future years.

Okehampton Castle was once the largest castle in Devon. It was built soon after the Norman Conquest in 1066 as a motte and bailey castle with a stone keep before being converted into a residential property for the Earl of Devon in the 14th century.

It fell into ruins when the last owner fell foul of Henry VIII in 1539.

Today it is run by English Heritage, which is responsible for maintaining over 400 historic monuments, places and houses across England, including world-famous prehistoric site Stonehenge.