If there is one thing Northumberland has, it's castles, LOTS of castles. I suppose they've had a lot of defending to do in their time and clearly, they didn't want to get caught out. Other Mum really likes castles. Mum does too really, but she also likes having something to moan about. Thus I wasn't surprised to over-hear the following conversation:
Other Mum: Oh look, there's Warkworth Castle, lets stop and look.
Mum: What?!?
Other Mum: It's beautiful and of some historic significance (said in a somewhat patronizing manner)
Mum: Oh for god's sake, how many bl***y castles do I have to look at in one day?! Anyway, there's a nice little pub just over....
Other Mum: We're going to the castle.
Mum: But if you've.....
Other Mum: You weren't going to say," if you've seen one castle, you've seen them all", were you darling?
Mum: Humph!
Mum can be a bit of a Philistine when she chooses. Anyway, I thought my friends might be interested in seeing and hearing a little bit about some of the castles we visited, so here goes...
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Warkworth Castle
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Warkworth is a ruined, but well preserved castle in the village bearing the same name. First mention of the castle is made in a Charter of 1157 - 1164 by King Henry II. The Keep was built by the first Earl of Northumberland in 1377.
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Fishing boats with Warkworth Castle in background |
It began to fall into disrepair in 1572 and remained a ruin until mid 19th century when some preservation work was undertaken. It is now maintained by English Heritage.
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Alnwick Castle |
Alnwick castle is the second largest inhabited castle in England. A castle has been recorded on the site since the 11th century. It was built by the Baron of Alnwick in the classic Norman style. It is currently the home of the Duke of Northumberland.
If you think it looks familiar, many of the external shots of Hogworts School in the Harry Potter movies were filmed here!
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Bamburgh Castle |
Bamburgh is the largest inhabited castle in England and was known as the Royal Seat of the Kings of Northumbria. The original castle was Anglo-Saxon ( 5th - 11th century) The Keep is the oldest surviving part and was built in 1164.
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Bamburgh Castle from Seahouses harbour |
1610 saw the final Royal abandonment of the castle by James I. It has been privately owned ever since and is currently the home of the Armstrong family.
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Lindisfarne Castle |
The Holy Island of Lindisfarne is connected to the mainland by a long causeway, which twice a day is covered by the incoming tide of the North Sea.
In 634 Oswald became Northumbria's Saint King and it is he who laid the foundations for Bamburgh and Lindisfarne's worldwide fame as the cradle of Christianity.
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Lindisfarne Priory |
Oswald requested that the Abbot of Iona send him a Bishop to help convert his people to Chrstianity. Aidan was sent and was given land on Lindisfarne to build a Priory, which became the centre of learning for all of Europe.
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St. Aidan |
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Ruined church - Lindisfarne |
Follow the link to find out more about
The Holy Island Of Lindisfarne.
Well I hope you've enjoyed Deccy's Quick Guide to Castles. I have to say, I'm with Mum; they are quite interesting but I'd rather go to the pub.. hehe! Tales from the bits of my holiday that didn't involve castles will follow shortly.
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Even then, I was dreaming about castles..... |
PS. I am writing this blog from my sick-bed. Having been much better yesterday, Mum had to get up three times last night during which, much cleaning of the kitchen floor occurred :-( Mum is now talking about the possibility of a trip to the V-E-T. I am however perfectly cheerful in myself and so staying in bed isn't strictly necessary; I just like it.
10 comments:
Wow, what a lot of castles, Declan. I wonder if any of your ancestors lived in any of them?
Sorry to read you've had a bit of a relapse:( But I hope a trip to the V-E-T isn't necessary. Feel better soon, Deccy!
So many castles! I think I am more like your mum than your other mum and would prefer the pub.
Hope you are feeling better soon too, Deccy, but don't be afraid of the VET they are only there to fix you ;)
Thanks for quick castle tour. I think castles are pretty neat too. But pubs definitely have their pull. On our recent visit to Scotland, we had a good mix of castles and pubs :) Hope you feel better soon.
Beautiful castles and greyhound! Thanks for visiting my blog. You would probably get more comments if you didn't use "embedded below post". It does not recognize a lot of us as logged in and we have to comment anonymously. See this post for info on how to fix.
http://neversaynevergreyhounds.blogspot.com/2011/06/blogger-psa.html
Jen
Never Say Never Greyhounds
Thank you Jen; the problem has been sorted. Deccy x
Well, that was the pawfect amount of caltle-visiting for us! Very beautiful! Thanks for sharing them with us!!
-Gizmo, Bart and Ruby
Oh Declan, I am drooling over those castles! As you might know, Mom and I love history. I think I was born to be a princess living in a castle. We don't even have castles here and you're trying to run off to the pub? *gasp* I feel faint! Next time, you and your mom can come here and lead my boring little life and I'll trot off with Mom to the castles.
I am so sorry that your tummy is still so upset! Have your mums thought about giving you canned pumpkin or boiled rice and hamburger to settle your tummy?
Bunny
Great history there. I have to admit that I love castles:)
Glad you are feeling better and don't need the VET.
Wow! Those pictures made Mommy make some ooooo... and aaahhhh... sounds of amazement. I'm a little peeved though!
Mommy says she just has to take a trip to Europe someday soon, but I will have to stay here. A trip? Without me? How could that possibly be any fun?
Thanks for sharing your vay-cay with us, and you must feel better soon!
Puppy Love,
Jasmine
Well Bunny, Mum loves the US, so she probably would swap!! Hamburger we can probably do, but I don't think we can get canned pumpkin. Rice isn't great with me. Thanks for your concern. Deccy x
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