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Bolsover Castle project puts pioneering scientist Margaret Cavendish back into the story

A University of York and English Heritage project is working with local schools, artists and communities to give Margaret Cavendish a lasting place in the interpretation of Bolsover Castle.

By The TEA Editorial Desk · 28 August 2026

Margaret Cavendish heritage project at Bolsover Castle Image: University of YorkOriginal source

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A two-year project is working to put 17th-century philosopher and scientist Margaret Cavendish back into the story visitors encounter at Bolsover Castle.

The University of York and English are collaborating with local schoolchildren, community groups, artists and through the Margaret Cavendish Mind Lab, supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

Cavendish wrote about philosophy, science and imagined worlds at a time when women were largely excluded from formal scientific life. Yet of the castle has traditionally centred much more heavily on her husband, William Cavendish.

The project has already included a family-friendly MindFest with creative STEAM activities inspired by her ideas. Its longer-term aim is to shape permanent interpretation at the castle, so future visitors meet Margaret as a thinker in her own right rather than a historical footnote attached to somebody else.