After destroying Norham Castle the Scottish Army moved on to Etal castle which fell easily and was therefore left intact.

The castle was built in the early fourteenth century by Robert Manners, in a strategic position by a ford over the River Till.  As a border stronghold, Etal was vulnerable to attack from Scottish raiders, and in 1341, Robert was granted a licence to fortify his home, adding curtain walls, corner towers and a gatehouse.  In 1513,  Etal was suddenly thrust into the forefront of national events, as it was captured by the Scots during James IV’s attempted invasion of England.  The Scots were subsequently defeated at the Battle of Flodden, and Etal was freed.  The union of the English and Scottish crowns in 1603 ended the castle’s active role in history, and it fell into disrepair.  *

At Etal Castle there is an excellent exhibition that explains the Battle of Flodden. It is well worth a visit.

Gatehouse & Corbels

The Tower House

Enlightenment

*From the Etal Castle guide book.

***Index to my posts on Flodden.***

20 Comments CherryPie on Oct 22nd 2009

20 Responses to “Flodden Field Battle Trail – Part 3”

  1. The Economic Voice says:

    Oh My goodness!!!! The third pic is absolutely beautiful whilst the second is quite chilling!!!

    • CherryPie says:

      I was having a bit of fun with the second pic. I have a colour version which is a bit more friendly, but I thought the B&W version was much more dramatic and fitting for the theme ;-)

  2. The Economic Voice says:

    No I love the second pic as it stands……

  3. Denise says:

    Northumberland?
    If you ever travel North again give us a shout and we’ll meet up!

  4. jameshigham says:

    History is the place to be at this time.

  5. Phidelm says:

    More wonders! I, too, love the third pic – it’s a beautiful composition as a standalone; but as an illustration of a series about military architecture, it’s superb. What am I saying? They’re all superb! Turbulent history always, on borders …

  6. sally says:

    such wonderful photos :-)

  7. Just to let you know we are up and running…..now you can see my photos…all pics exce[t for one of a map are mine…even the one with talc powder pretending to be cocaine lol.

  8. Oh yes and the one of lovely Mr Griffin isn’t mine either but hey….Im getting there lol

    • CherryPie says:

      I spotted him as I made my way to the Fishguard post which I got half way through before my tea was ready. I am coming back to finish it off now I have done my tonights post :-)

  9. By the way it wasn’t me that put a not very nice image on our blog spot…that has been removed.

  10. Dragonstar says:

    I love the third photo. The light is excellent, and the colours of the stone are beautiful.