Lincoln Castle in Lincolnshire, UK, has reopened following a £22m (US$32.5m, €30.2m) refurbishment, restoring the centrepiece of the city to its former glory and providing a new home for the historic Magna Carta.

The redevelopment includes a new high-security vault to house both the 1215 Magna Carta and the 1217 Charter of the Forest – the only place in the world that copies both rare documents can be viewed in the same location.

The castle walls have also undergone a restoration, with visitors now able to walk the entire length of the wall. Other new facilities include a new café, shop and an educational space with a widescreen cinema. The castle’s Victorian-era prison, which has been closed to the public for several decades, has also been refurbished and reopened. Several archaeological findings uncovered during the renovation – including a Saxon sarcophagus – have been placed on display.

The restoration – which took two years to complete but was in the works for nearly a decade – is part of the 800th anniversary celebrations of the signing of the Magna Carta, which reaches the historic milestone on 15 June this year.

In addition to £12m (US$17.7m, €16.5m) funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and £5.2m (US$7.7m, €7.1m) from Lincolnshire County Council, £5m (US$7.4m, €6.9m) was given by the European Regional Development Fund, while the remainder came from a selection of other public and private donations.

Lincolnshire County Council, which manages the 11th Century castle, has said it hopes the new vault will be exciting enough to entice international visitors. An independent assessment in 2013 concluded that the project could lead to a 29-55 per cent increase and a £68m (US$100m, €93.5m) boost to Lincoln’s tourism economy.

Lincoln Castle to get £20m revamp