Round Table & Great Hall


Winchester's cavernous Great Hall is the only part of 11th-century Winchester Castle that Oliver Cromwell spared from destruction. Crowning the wall like a giant-sized dartboard of green and cream spokes is what centuries of mythology have dubbed King Arthur's Round Table. It's actually a 700-year-old copy, but is fascinating nonetheless. It's thought to have been constructed in the late 13th century and then painted in the reign of Henry VIII (King Arthur's image is unsurprisingly reminiscent of Henry's youthful face).

This hall was also the stage for several gripping English courtroom dramas, including the trial of adventurer Sir Walter Raleigh in 1603, who was sentenced to death but received a reprieve at the last minute.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Royal Green Jackets Museum

0.06 MILES

The pick of Winchester's cluster of army museums, with its mini rifle-shooting range, a room of 6000 medals and an impressive blow-by-blow diorama of…

2. Winchester City Museum

0.2 MILES

A people-centred canter through Winchester's past with jewellery, mosaics, sculpture, coins and tobacco tins charting a narrative from the Iron Age, via…

3. Winchester Cathedral

0.32 MILES

One of southern England's most awe-inspiring buildings, 11th-century Winchester Cathedral boasts a fine Gothic facade, one of the longest medieval naves…

4. Jane Austen's House

0.37 MILES

A stone's throw from Winchester Cathedral is the house where Jane Austen, one of England's best-loved authors, spent her last six weeks before she died in…

5. Winchester College

0.42 MILES

Winchester College delivers a rare chance to nosey around a prestigious English school. It was set up by William Wykeham, Bishop of Winchester, in 1393,…

7. Wolvesey Castle

0.49 MILES

The fantastical, crumbling remains of early-12th-century Wolvesey Castle huddle in the protective embrace of the city's walls. Completed by Henry de Blois…

8. Hospital of St Cross

1.04 MILES

Welcome to the oldest charitable institution in the country, founded in 1132 by the grandson of William the Conqueror, Henry de Blois. As well as healing…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "england/southeast-england/winchester/attractions/round-table-great-hall/a/poi-sig/1217246/358957",
      "position": "superzone"
    }