Godric of Mappestone probably began Goodrich Castle after the Norman Conquest as an earth and timber fortification, and a castle existed by 1101. The stone keep dates from between 1120 and 1176, possibly, and the article names no builder. William Marshal added a towered stone curtain wall after 1203. William de Valence demolished it to build the concentric castle in the 1280s.
The concentric castle has three large towers with spurs against undermining and an asymmetrical gatehouse with portcullises, murder-holes and a drawbridge. The keep is light grey sandstone, and the 1280s towers are darker sandstone. Aymer de Valence added the outer barbican before 1324. The great hall measures about 66 by 30 feet (20 by 9 m).
Colonel Birch besieged the castle in 1646 with the mortar Roaring Meg, and the garrison surrendered. English Heritage cares for it, and it is a Grade I listed building.
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