THIS castle is on the market with a price tag of £3 million.

Caverswall Castle is currently the second most expensive property up for sale in Staffordshire – beaten only by a £4 million Burton mansion.

It boasts 18 bedrooms, nine reception rooms, 13 bathrooms, a moat, a library with a Wedgwood ceiling, a billiard room and an old dungeon.

Owner Robin MacDonald bought the Grade-I listed building for £2 million in 2006.

Now it is being offered for sale by Strutt and Parker.

Estate agent Belinda Hutchinson-Smith said: “The castle is on the market for £3 million due to its size and heritage.

“Castles are few and far between so don’t come up for sale very often.

“We have already had a number of inquiries from businessmen, including one from America, who wants to own a piece of English heritage.

“Although there are a lot of bedrooms, it is a very liveable house. It has got the gravitas of a grand house but the intimacy of a family home.

“I actually handled the sale of the property back in 2006 when the family who lived in the building decided to move abroad.

“It is on the market again because the current owner has decided to move onto another project. He has done a lot of work to the castle, including the turrets, so it doesn’t require any work to move in.” The castle – which is built on the site of an Anglo-Saxon manor – was bought by Matthew Cradock, a 17th century mayor of Stafford, in 1615 and rebuilt it as a Jacobean mansion around 1625.

The house was later occupied by the Wedgwood family during the 1880s when they added a decorative plaster ceiling in the library.

Mr MacDonald has proved to be a controversial owner after repeatedly being accused of breaching planning rules to hold parties and wedding receptions at his castle. The 42-year-old is currently awaiting sentence at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court after admitting breaching a planning enforcement notice from Staffordshire Moorlands District Council by hosting weddings and corporate events.

Residents hope the new owners will retain the castle’s charms.

Jean Stonier, aged 63, of The Hollow, Caverswall, said: “I have lived in the village since the age of two so I have always known about the castle.

“It is a lovely building and has a lot of history.

“It would be nice to see the castle being sold to someone who could keep it in its present condition rather than turning it into some sort of theme park.”

Web designer Matt Kilgariff, aged 29, of High Street, Caverswall, said: “I visited the castle again a few years ago because I was doing some work for a wedding party who hired it out and it hasn’t changed much from when I saw it as a boy.”