His widow briefly continued the project after his death but efforts then ceased, with the castle remaining largely incomplete.

They are constructed with decorative brickwork and stone detailing, in a fashionable late 15th-century style, and have various symbols built into their walls using darker bricks.

Twelve gunports for early gunpowder artillery were built into the walls of these two buildings, although historians are uncertain whether these defences were intended to be practical or symbolic.

[1] Kirby Muxloe Castle was built by William, Lord Hastings, the chamberlain of the royal household and a favourite of Edward IV.

[12] Lord Hastings was unwilling to support the deposition of Edward V and, as a consequence, Richard summarily executed him that June, ahead of his own coronation.

[15] After a short pause, Katherine continued some work on the site until the summer of 1484, focusing on making the corner tower and partially finished gatehouse habitable, before the project was finally halted.

[19] The castle continued to be owned by the Hastings family until around 1630, when it was purchased by Sir Robert Banaster, and then by William Wollaston.

[26] By 1911, the owner Major Richard Winstanley was unable to pay for the upkeep of the castle and, concerned about its deteriorating condition, proposed placing the property into the guardianship of the Commissioners of Works.

[27] Following a survey by the architect Sir Frank Baines, which showed the ruins to need immediate repairs, the Commissioners took over the castle the following year.

[29] He stripped away any remains of the farm, cleared the vegetation from the walls and repaired the brickwork, re-cutting the moat and reconstructing a replica of the medieval bridge.

[29] There had been hopes of finding additional remains during Peers' archaeological investigations but, although the foundations of the original manor house were uncovered, few other items were discovered.

[30] The complete financial records of the castle's construction, however, were found in the archives of the Hastings family by the historian Thomas Fosbrooke while he was investigating Ashby by de la Zouch castle, who passed them to Peers; they have since provided what the historian John Goodall describes as "a fascinating insight" into medieval building operations.

[49] The brickwork was decorated with patterns of darker bricks, called diapering, which was used to show symbols associated with Lord Hastings, as well as objects such as a jug and a ship.

[50] This style of decorative brickwork and stonework was popular across England at this time, but particularly so at Eton College, where John Cowper, the master mason on the project, had been an apprentice.

[51] Although the castle was not extensively decorated, the brickwork at Kirby Muxloe was skillfully executed, with the bricklayers cutting and shaping the kiln-fired bricks to produce spiral and domed vaulting.

[53] At Kirby Muxloe, six gunports were constructed in the ground floor walls of both the gatehouse and west tower; these were then temporarily filled with bricks, probably to prevent vermin and to limit the draughts.