Riber Castle

Riber Castle is a 19th-century Grade II listed country house in the hamlet of Riber on a hill overlooking Matlock, Derbyshire. It is built of gritstone from a local quarry which was pulled up the 200 m hill by a series of pulleys.

History
Known locally as "Smedley's Folly" because of the difficulty of getting water to the hill summit, it was built by the industrialist John Smedley in 1862 as his private home. His wife lived in it until her death in 1892. After the death of Smedley's wife, the castle became a boys' prep school until this became financially unsustainable in the 1930s. The architectural historian John Summerson attended the school in the early 20th century. While he enjoyed his time at the school, the building's architecture had lesser appeal; he described the castle as "an object of indecipherable bastardy – a true monster". With the coming of World War II the Ministry of Defence used the site for food storage. The MoD left following the war and the castle remained unused until the 1960s.

From the 1960s to September 2000 it was home to a wildlife park, containing British and European fauna. The late 20th century saw increasing criticism of the treatment of animals at the zoo and it closed in 2000.

Plans to turn the shell of the castle into apartments have repeatedly failed in the 21st century. However, as of 2023, conversion work on the castle is ongoing and plans for enabling development in the grounds have been submitted.

In popular culture
The castle and the town of Matlock are key locations in the Shane Meadows film Dead Man's Shoes.