I’ll be honest; we mostly planned our last family staycation based on the number of castles we could visit in one week.
I’m such a castle geek, and having visited most of the castles in the UK I was excited to discover I’d never been to any in Northumberland. Fortunately, my partner shares my love of history, and our daughters are so laid back they’re happy to romp around some ramparts for a while as long as there’s an ice cream at the end of it.
It’s a double win for me. I’m an amateur photographer and it’s a great excuse to get out my ‘big’ camera and shoot some interesting pics for the family album and my inspiration files.
Northumberland didn’t disappoint. I’m going to sound like the Tourist Board here, but it’s a beautiful part of the country, rich in history and packed with places to visit. Plus – bonus – no one was travel sick on the journey.
Lindisfarne
No trip to Northumberland is complete without a trip to Holy Island. Historically, it’s a fascinating place, and its limited accessibility adds to its mystique. The causeway road can only be crossed during certain hours when the tide out, so it varies daily. Lindisfarne Priory on the island was one of the most important centres of early Christianity in Anglo-Saxon England.
Here’s the history bit:
St Aidan founded the monastery in AD 635, but St Cuthbert, prior of Lindisfarne, is the most celebrated of the priory’s holy men. After his death, people came to pray at the grave and claimed miracles of healing occurred after their visit. To the monks of Lindisfarne this was a clear sign that Cuthbert was now a saint in heaven and as the saint’s community, they should declare this to the world.
They decided to allow 11 years for his body to become a skeleton and then ‘elevate’ his remains on the anniversary of this death (20th March 698). To their surprise, when they opened the coffin, they found a complete and undecayed body.
The cult of St. Cuthbert began, and pilgrims began to flock to the shrine.
From the end of the 8th century, the isolated island with its rich monastery was easy prey for Viking raiders. In 875 the monks left, carrying Cuthbert’s remains, which after long wanderings were enshrined in Durham Cathedral in 1104, where they still rest. Only after that time did Durham monks re-establish a priory on Lindisfarne: the evocative ruins of the richly decorated priory church they built in c. 1150 still stand, with their famous ‘rainbow arch’ – a vault-rib of the now vanished crossing tower.
Lindisfarne castle is a distinctive landmark and can be seen on its loft crag from miles away. Following the dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII, the Castle was built in the 1550s using stones from the demolished Priory.
Alnwick Castle
The second largest inhabited castle in the UK, Alnwick has served as a military outpost, a teaching college, a refuge for evacuees, a film set, and remains a family home. You might recognise it from the Harry Potter films, and on the day we visited there were broomstick ‘flying’ lessons and other Harry Potter themed activities happening throughout the day.
The castle construction began around 1096 and it became home to the Percy family (who still live there today) in 1309. The library is simply stunning with – cue book envy – over 14,000 books on its multi layered shelves. Because it’s still a family home, visitors are asked not to take photos inside, but this pic from the castle’s Facebook page shows the library in all its beauty.
Bamburgh Castle
Bamburgh Castle has stood guard above the spectacular Northumberland coastline for over 1,400 years. Spanning nine acres of land on its rocky plateau, it’s one of the largest inhabited castles in the country.
There’s been some kind of defensive structure at Bamburgh since at least the 6th century and it’s regarded as the ancient capital of the powerful kingdom of Northumbria.
Bamburgh, or it’s ancient name of Bebbanburgh, is mentioned extensively throughout the TV series ‘The Last Kingdom’. The series was filmed mostly in Hungary, but some of the battle scenes from season three were filmed on Bamburgh beach in the shadow of the famous castle. Both Robin of Sherwood (TV series) and the movie Robin Hood Prince of Thieves also used Bamburgh as a set.
Dunstanburgh
Well worth the walk, Dunstanburgh, is an iconic castle ruin and was once one of the largest and grandest fortifications in Northern England. It was built by Thomas, the Earl of Lancaster, between 1313 and 1322, a powerful English baron and the second richest man of his time, after the king of England.
It’s a stunning ruin, and although it lacks the grandeur of Alnwick and Bamburgh, I enjoyed it the most. I like the honest simplicity of a ruin and how a ruin challenges your imagination. I’m always drawn to windows and doorways. Where did they lead to? What did the occupants see and what were they thinking as they looked out across the beautiful landscape? Some of the more manicured castles fill in those precious gaps too much for me.
There are 70 castles in Northumberland, and we managed to visit three. In our defence, we were distracted by the gorgeous beach near our cottage and hindered by a couple of days of good old British rain.
Which castle provided the inspiration for Broadstone?
Although Broadstone is fictitious and an amalgamation of all the beautiful castles I’ve visited over the years, Kenilworth castle can probably take the credit for inspiring me the most. I first went in my late teens and I remember feeling a profound spiritual connection to it that I still can’t really explain. It’s mostly a ruin, but it blew me away.
The image of the keep (right) is the closest visually to how I imagine Broadstone castle.
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See you soon.
Wendy
Wendy Turner-Hargreaves 