Leeds Castle is a castle in Kent, England, 5 miles (8 km) southeast of Maidstone. It is built on islands in a lake formed by the River Len to the east of the village of Leeds.

A castle has existed on the site since 1119, the first being a simple stone stronghold constructed by Robert de Crevecoeur which served as a military post in the time of Norman intrusions into England. In the 13th century it came into the hands of King Edward I, for whom it became a favourite residence; in the 16th century, Henry VIII used it as a dwelling for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon.

The present castle dates mostly from the 19th century. It has been open to the public since 1976.

From 857 the site was owned by a Saxon chief called Led or Leed who built a wooden structure on two islands in the middle of the River Len. In 1119 Robert de Crevecoeur rebuilt it in stone as a Norman stronghold and Leeds Castle descended through the de Crevecoeur family until the 1260s. 

In 1278, the castle was bought by King Edward I's Queen, Eleanor of Castile. As a favoured residence of Edward's, it saw considerable investment. The king enhanced its defences, and it was probably Edward who created the lake that surrounds the castle.

Richard II's first wife, Anne of Bohemia, spent the winter of 1381 at the castle on her way to be married to the king.  In 1395, Richard received the French chronicler Jean Froissart there, as described in Froissart's Chronicles.

Henry VIII transformed the castle in 1519 for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. A painting commemorating his meeting with Francis I of France still hangs there.

The castle escaped destruction during the English Civil War because its owner, Sir Cheney Culpeper, sided with the Parliamentarians. The castle was used as both an arsenal and a prison during the war. 

Robert Fairfax owned the castle for 46 years until 1793 when it passed to the Wykeham Martins. Sale of the family estates in Virginia released a large sum of money that allowed extensive repair and the remodelling of the castle in a Tudor style, completed in 1823, that resulted in the appearance today.

The last private owner of the castle was the Hon. Olive, Lady Baillie, daughter of Almeric Paget, 1st Baron Queenborough and his first wife, Pauline Payne Whitney, an American heiress. Lady Baillie bought the castle in 1926 for £180,000 (equivalent to £10,524,500 in 2019). She redecorated the interior, first working with the French architect and designer Armand-Albert Rateau, who oversaw exterior alterations and added interior features such as a 16th-century-style carved-oak staircase, then with the Paris decorator Stéphane Boudin. During the early part of World War II the castle was used as a hospital where Lady Baillie and her daughters hosted burned Commonwealth airmen as part of their recovery. Survivors remembered the experience with fondness. Upon her death in 1974, Lady Baillie left the castle to the Leeds Castle Foundation, a private charitable trust whose aim is to preserve the castle and grounds for the benefit of the public. An estimated £1.4 million (equivalent to £14.7 million in 2019) was invested and a further £400,000 (£4.2 million in 2019) was retrieved from the sale of the furniture to make improvements to the Castle and attract paying corporate conferences. However, it was quickly understood that it could not support the ongoing costs of running the Estate, so in 1975 the gardens were opened to the public, and the following year the Castle was also made available to visitors.

On 17 July 1978, the castle was the site of a meeting between Egyptian Foreign Minister Muhammad Ibrahim Kamel, Israeli Foreign Minister Moshe Dayan and US Secretary of State Cyrus Vance in preparation for the Camp David Accords. The castle also hosted the Northern Ireland peace talks held in September 2004 led by Tony Blair.

The castle was a location for the 1949 Ealing Comedy film Kind Hearts and Coronets, where it stood in for 'Chalfont', ancestral home of the aristocratic d'Ascoyne family.

It also appeared in the films The Moonraker (1958) and Waltz of the Toreadors (1962).

On the small screen, the castle and grounds provided all the filming locations for a Doctor Who serial, The Androids of Tara, in 1978. Sir Cliff Richard, filmed a live concert here, with Leeds Castle as a backdrop, titled, "Castles in the Air"

The castle has been recreate manually from various photos and videos from the internet. It comes with its own lights and POI.

This mod is not intended for sale or resale.

Complementary mods:
 -Rochester Castle and Medway towns landmarks: https://flightsim.to/file/12296/rochester-castle-and-medway-towns-landmarks
-Bodiam Castle: https://flightsim.to/file/11873/bodiam-castle

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Leeds Castle

Explore the historic Leeds Castle in Kent, England, with this meticulously recreated add-on. Dating back to the 12th century, this castle has served as a residence for kings and queens throughout history. Immerse yourself in its rich heritage and stunning surroundings, complete with lights and points of interest.

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