Harbottle Castle

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Ruins of Harbottle Castle

Harbottle Castle is a ruined medieval castle on the western edge of the village of Harbottle , about 14 km west-northwest of the city of Rothbury in the English county of Northumberland . The ruin above the Coquet River is a Scheduled Monument and has been listed by English Heritage as a Grade I Historic Building.

It is believed that the earth wall on which the donjon stands today was already used by the ancient island celts and that there was a fortress there during the Angling times , held by Mildred , son of Ackman .

Castle

The present castle was built by the Umfraville family around 1160 during the reign of Henry II . The castle was built on land that was given to the family as a fief after the Norman conquest of England , presumably to defend it against the Scots .

Not long after its construction, the castle was captured by the Scots in 1174 and then rebuilt, more strongly fortified. In 1296 it was besieged by Robert de Ros and about 40,000 men, but not conquered. In 1336 it was restored, but in 1351 it was again in ruins. At the end of the 14th century it was repaired again and around 1436 it fell to the Tailleboys family . For a long time it was the residence of the Warden of the Middle Marches and served as a prison.

A child's poem, engraved in stone

In 1515 Margaret Tudor , widowed Queen of James IV of Scotland and sister of Henry VIII of England , came to the castle with her second husband, the Earl of Angus , after she was exiled by the regent , the Duke of Albany . At the castle Margaret gave birth to a daughter who was also named Margaret . This Margaret was supposed to be the mother of Lord Darnley , second husband of Mary Queen of Scots and grandmother of King James VI. of Scotland and James I of England . Further construction work took place from 1541 to 1551 and in 1563 the castle was repaired again.

In 1605, James I gave the castle and manor to George Home , Lord Treasurer of Scotland , but after that it fell into disrepair and much of its bricks were used for other buildings. A report from 1715 describes the castle again as ruinous. Today only various earthworks and part of the masonry are preserved. The property is managed by Northumberland National Park and entry is free.

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The confusion is caused by the fact that after the castle was abandoned as a residential building, the name Harbottle Castle was used elsewhere.

Mansion

Harbottle Castle is also a 19th century mansion at the east end of the village of Harbottle.

Bricks from the ruined medieval castle were used to build a mansion in the 17th century. The manor was given to Percival Clennell in 1796 and in 1829 Fenwick Clennell had the house replaced by a two-story house with five bays based on plans by the architect John Dobson. English Heritage has listed the mansion as a Grade II Historic Building. In 1890 the stables were converted into a separate residential building.

literature

  • Plantagenet Somerset Fry: The David & Charles Book of Castles. David & Charles, Newton Abbot [et. a.] 1980, ISBN 0-7153-7976-3 .

Web links

Commons : Harbottle Castle  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 55 ° 20 ′ 13.2 "  N , 2 ° 6 ′ 32.4"  W.