[[File:Stansham Castle.jpg|thumb|upright=1.8|"But the fourth one stayed up. And that’s what you’re going to get, son, the strongest castle in all of England."]]
'''Stansham Castle''', also known as the '''Castle of Stenshame''', is a medieval castle in [[Stansham]], [[United Kingdom|England]]. It is now a museum with [[Roy Harker]] as the curator and [[George Cousins]] as an attendant.
'''Stansham Castle''', also known as the '''Castle of Stenshame''', is a medieval castle in [[Stansham]], [[United Kingdom|England]]. It is now a museum with [[Roy Harker]] as the curator and [[George Cousins]] as an attendant.
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==Fiction==
==Fiction==
===Marvel ''The Transformers'' comics===
===Marvel ''The Transformers'' comics===
After the [[Ark (G1)|Ark]] crashed on [[Earth]], the [[Autobot]] scientists at [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]] sent a rescue ship manned by [[Navigator (Autobot)|Navigator]] and the [[Man of Iron (Autobot)|Man of Iron]], which somehow ended up in a hill. Stansham Castle was built upon the hill millions of years later.
[[File:Man_of_iron_and_knights.jpg|thumb|left|]]
An old chronicle records that in [[1017|the year 1017]], as [[Godwin the Strongarm]]'s forces had just battered down the main gate of Stansham Castle, the ground shook and a giant "[[Man of Iron (Autobot)|man of iron]]" appeared amongst them. The soldiers were terrified, and their weapons did nothing against the apparition. The metal figure strode in the direction of a nearby abbey, firing warning shots at those who tried to follow him, until [[Aethelric|a priest]] put himself in his path and urged him to go back from whence he came. The figure turned and went off into [[Stanewood]]. As time passed, he was seen three times in total before the modern day, each occurrence preceded by an earth tremor.
In [[1017]], a force led by [[Godwin the Strongarm]] attacked the Castle of Stenshame and kept it in siege. In the meantime, they plundered the nearby village of its food and cattle. During a vicious attack on the castle, the Man of Iron appeared and frightened everybody, friend and enemy alike. Godwin's attack was quelled, but the abbey sent [[Aethelric]] to bless the Man of Iron and ask him to return from where he came. The Man of Iron acquiesced to the request for the time being, retreating into [[Stanewood]]. The Man of Iron would later be sighted two more times.
The humans had no idea that he was an [[Autobot]] from [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]], and that within his ship buried beneath the castle, his partner Navigator was beaming out a signal meant to contact the missing ''[[Ark (G1)|Ark]]''. For millions of years the signal had been broadcast, but it wasn't until [[1984|the year 1984]] that any of its intended recipients were awake to hear it. The [[Decepticon]]s were the first to take action, with [[Starscream (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Starscream]], [[Thundercracker (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Thundercracker]], and [[Skywarp (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Skywarp]] flying over Stansham Castle and dropping a bomb-like probe. The Autobots, meanwhile, made clandestine contact with [[Sammy Harker|the son of the castle's curator]]. And the regional human military, spooked by mysterious jets having strafed the castle, led an investigation that ended up unearthing part of the buried ship. At first the ship's occupants stayed hidden, but then one afternoon a telltale earth tremor struck, and the humans saw their legendary man of iron arise from a hillside in an elevator mechanism. He fired at a military truck that happened to be driving right toward him, blowing it up as its occupants ran to safety.
In the 1980s, the [[Decepticon]]s detected the Autobot ships's homing beacon and the Decepticon jets were sent to drop a probe underneath the castle. This was seen as a bombing run by the frightened tourists and George Cousins, the attendant at the time. An investigation was conducted by [[Peter Whitley]], which discovered the ship under the hill. The ship also attracted the attention of the Autobots from the Ark, who realized what the Decepticons were up to.
Then a [[Seeker (body-type)|Seeker]] suddenly appeared and barraged him with rockets, destroying him. This was followed by an all-out battle between numerous Autobots and Decepticons, ending with the Autobots victorious. [[Optimus Prime (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Optimus Prime]] immediately ordered the buried ship's destruction, and [[Jazz (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Jazz]] dutifully vaporized it in a massive implosion, not realizing he was killing Navigator within. After the Autobots departed, the ship's remains were removed by the authorities, and Stansham Castle became a tourist destination again, this time with UFO sightings and alien folklore. {{storylink|Man of Iron (issue)|Man of Iron}}
They were too late, as the Man of Iron again emerged from the ship, only to be killed by a Decepticon jet. In an ensuing battle, the Decepticons were driven away. Not realizing Navigator still being in the ship, [[Jazz (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Jazz]] destroyed it. After the Autobots departed, the ship's remains were removed by the authorities and Stansham Castle became a tourist destination again, this time with UFO sightings and alien folklore. {{storylink|Man of Iron (issue)|Man of Iron}}
==Notes==
{{spoiler|Transformers '84 issue 0|September 21}}
===''Transformers '84''===
*Thirty-four years after the initial publication of the story that Stansham Castle appeared in, several of the characters and circumstances surrounding it were [[retcon]]ned by the ''[[Transformers '84 issue 0|Transformers '84]]'' comic, including:
**Godwin's men were said to be [[Viking]]s from northern [[France]] whose siege was aimed at dethroning [[Canute|King Canute]] holed up in the castle.
**The Man of Iron and Navigator were said to be [[Fastlane]] and [[Cloudraker (G1)|Cloudraker]], respectively.
**Their ship was given the name ''[[Mantlo]]'' and said to have arrived on [[Earth]] in 1017, with the siege already underway.
**[[File:Mantlo_SecondCrash.jpg|thumb|right|]]The ship's presence under the castle is explained when the ship is shown ''crashing into it.'' This is seemingly meant to be the "great shaking" that preceded the Man of Iron's appearance in the chronicle, though the transition between the two stories isn't made very clear.
[[Category:Marvel Generation 1 locations]]
[[Category:Marvel Generation 1 locations]]
[[Category:United Kingdom]]
[[Category:United Kingdom]]
Revision as of 07:56, 5 September 2019
"But the fourth one stayed up. And that’s what you’re going to get, son, the strongest castle in all of England."
Stansham Castle, also known as the Castle of Stenshame, is a medieval castle in Stansham, England. It is now a museum with Roy Harker as the curator and George Cousins as an attendant.
One might see a giant robot walking around.
Fiction
Marvel The Transformers comics
An old chronicle records that in the year 1017, as Godwin the Strongarm's forces had just battered down the main gate of Stansham Castle, the ground shook and a giant "man of iron" appeared amongst them. The soldiers were terrified, and their weapons did nothing against the apparition. The metal figure strode in the direction of a nearby abbey, firing warning shots at those who tried to follow him, until a priest put himself in his path and urged him to go back from whence he came. The figure turned and went off into Stanewood. As time passed, he was seen three times in total before the modern day, each occurrence preceded by an earth tremor.
The humans had no idea that he was an Autobot from Cybertron, and that within his ship buried beneath the castle, his partner Navigator was beaming out a signal meant to contact the missing Ark. For millions of years the signal had been broadcast, but it wasn't until the year 1984 that any of its intended recipients were awake to hear it. The Decepticons were the first to take action, with Starscream, Thundercracker, and Skywarp flying over Stansham Castle and dropping a bomb-like probe. The Autobots, meanwhile, made clandestine contact with the son of the castle's curator. And the regional human military, spooked by mysterious jets having strafed the castle, led an investigation that ended up unearthing part of the buried ship. At first the ship's occupants stayed hidden, but then one afternoon a telltale earth tremor struck, and the humans saw their legendary man of iron arise from a hillside in an elevator mechanism. He fired at a military truck that happened to be driving right toward him, blowing it up as its occupants ran to safety.
Then a Seeker suddenly appeared and barraged him with rockets, destroying him. This was followed by an all-out battle between numerous Autobots and Decepticons, ending with the Autobots victorious. Optimus Prime immediately ordered the buried ship's destruction, and Jazz dutifully vaporized it in a massive implosion, not realizing he was killing Navigator within. After the Autobots departed, the ship's remains were removed by the authorities, and Stansham Castle became a tourist destination again, this time with UFO sightings and alien folklore. Man of Iron
Thirty-four years after the initial publication of the story that Stansham Castle appeared in, several of the characters and circumstances surrounding it were retconned by the Transformers '84 comic, including:
Godwin's men were said to be Vikings from northern France whose siege was aimed at dethroning King Canute holed up in the castle.
The Man of Iron and Navigator were said to be Fastlane and Cloudraker, respectively.
Their ship was given the name Mantlo and said to have arrived on Earth in 1017, with the siege already underway.
The ship's presence under the castle is explained when the ship is shown crashing into it. This is seemingly meant to be the "great shaking" that preceded the Man of Iron's appearance in the chronicle, though the transition between the two stories isn't made very clear.
