Knaresborough Castle

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Ruins of the donjon at Knaresborough Castle

Knaresborough Castle is a ruined fortress above the River Nidd in the town of Knaresborough in English administrative unit North Yorkshire .

history

The castle was built around 1100 by a Norman baron on a rocky promontory over the River Nidd. Work on the castle that Heinrich I had carried out around 1130 is documented. Hugh de Morville and his followers found refuge there in the 1170s after murdering Thomas Becket .

In 1205 Johann Ohneland took control of Knaresborough Castle. He considered the castle an important north fort and invested £ 1,290 in fortification improvements. Between 1307 and 1312 King Edward I had the castle rebuilt for £ 2174 and his successor had the construction completed, including the great donjon . John of Gaunt acquired the castle in 1372 and added it to the extensive holdings of the Duchy of Lancaster .

In 1644 Knaresborough Castle was captured by the Roundheads in the English Civil War and largely destroyed in 1648 not in combat, but after an order from the English Parliament to dismantle all the royalist fortresses . In fact, many of the buildings in the city center were built from stones from the castle.

The remains of the castle are open to the public; a tour of the interior costs an entrance fee. The property now serves as a public recreational area with a bowling green and putting green that are open in summer. Music bands also perform there in summer. Often there are also events there, e.g. B. the FEVA instead. The property is owned by the British Crown as part of their holdings in the Duchy of Lancaster but is administered by the Harrogate Borough Council .

description

The fortress, which is now largely in ruins, consists of two enclosed moths , which are arranged one behind the other and have an outer courtyard on the city side and an inner courtyard on the river side. The surrounding wall was provided with solid towers along its entire length; a pair that has survived to this day formed the main gate. At the junction of the inner and outer courtyards on the north side of the fortress stood a high, pentagonal donjon , the eastern parts of which were later demolished. The donjon had a vaulted cellar, at least three upper floors and served as a residence for the rulers throughout the existence of the castle. The castle courtyards contained residential buildings, of which only the foundations have been preserved.

The upper floor of the '' Courthouse '' houses a museum with original furniture from the Tudor period and exhibitions about the castle and the city.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A History of Knaresborough . Knaresborough Online. Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  2. ↑ Allen Brown: A List of Castles, 1154-1216 in The English Historical Review . Issue 74. Number 291. Oxford University Press, Oxford April 1959. p. 256.
  3. ^ David James Cathcart King: Catellarium Anglicanum: An Index and Bibliography of the Castles in England, Wales and the Islands . Volume 1: Angelsey – Montgomery. Kraus International Publications, 1983. pp. 520 + 537.
  4. ↑ FEVA . Retrieved April 13, 2015.
  5. ↑ Knaresborough Castle . Knaresborough Online. Retrieved April 13, 2015.

literature

  • R. Allen Brown: A List of Castles, 1154-1216 in The English Historical Review . Book 74. Number 291. Oxford University Press, Oxford, April 1959. pp. 249-280.
  • Plantagenet Somerset Fry: The David & Charles Book of Castles . David & Charles, 1980. ISBN 0-7153-7976-3 . P. 249.
  • David James Cathcart King: Catellarium Anglicanum: An Index and Bibliography of the Castles in England, Wales and the Islands . Volume 1: Anglesey-Montgomery. Kraus International Publications, 1983.

Web links

Commons : Knaresborough Castle  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 54 ° 0 '25.9 "  N , 1 ° 28' 9.6"  W.