Riber Castle was built in 1862 by John Smedley for his own residence, the Castle stands 850 feet above sea level dominating the area around Matlock and Matlock Bath, the Castle was built from Gritstone from a local quarry.
 The castle in it's short history has been used as a boy's school, a food store during World War Two and in the early 1960's a group of zoologists created a Nature Reserve for British and European Fauna. The Nature Reserve closed in September 2000 and the following month the fixtures, fittings & animals were auctioned off. 
28/07/07

To see a map of the area click here

Riber Castle on the hillside overlooking the Derwent Valley, the cliff in the foreground is High Tor.

The Pictures below were taken on the 23rd of September 2000 shortly before the Nature Reserve closed.

Bird of prey

  Lynx

  Lynx

Waterfowl pond and other animal enclosures

  Wallaby

Meerkats

Snowy Owl and other Birds of Prey

Deer

Riber Castle just before the closure of the wildlife park

Riber Castle as it is today 27/07/07 almost seven years later

Riber Castle

This is where the car park area used to be

View from the castle down to Matlock

The Beacon was erected ro celebrate the beginning
 of the Single European Market

From the car park looking left is Matlock Bath

The grounds are now overgrown

The paths once walked upon by adults and children,
 the animal enclosures now stand empty.

The overgrown ruins of Riber Castle

The many archways are reminiscent of old Abbey ruins

Not much of the interior panelling remains

Interior walls of the castle

Riber Castle

A much photographed landmark once lived in and visited by many, Riber Castle and it's grounds are laid to waste with an uncertain future.

© Copyright John Beres 2003-2008