This ruined castle was situated next to a delightful tea-shop that we stumbled across on our way home from our Newcastle and Crookham holiday.
I have now come to the end of my Newcastle and Crookham posts and will be moving onto my recent adventures in Mechelen.
The name ‘Brough’ comes from ‘Burg’ or ‘Burgh’ meaning fort, as the castle stands on the site of a Roman fort.
In 1092, King William 11, nicknamed William ‘Rufus’, conquered the northern half of Cumbria for England. Around this time an earthwork castle was built here on the site of Brough’s ancient Roman fort. The earlier defensive ditches were deepened and banks were formed on the line of the Roman walls. These banks and ditches remain visible today.
This are of England was in constant danger of attack from Scotland and a stone keep and curtain walls were added to defend Brough’s inner bailey.
In 1203 King John gave Brough to Robert de Vieuxpont,, as part of much larger estates in the area. The Vieuxponts held it until 1268 when most of their Westmorland estates passed by marriage to the Clifford family. The Cliffords rebuilt the castle, maintaining it as a residence up to 1521. Lady Anne Clifford, last of her line, restored the castle in 1689-62. After her death in 1676 it fell out of regular use before finally being abandoned in 1713. *
*From a signboard next to the castle.
I love ruined castles. Thank you for those fabulous photos.
They are are inspiring and romantic and a little sad in some ways. What would they have been like before they fell into disrepair?
Next to a tea shop!?! That part totally boggles my mind, Cherry.
It was the teashop that attracted us. We only noticed the castle after we sat down to lunch
Great pictures of the ruined castle. Love the bottom picture with the two ‘blocks’ of stone.
I can just picture them falling of the roof….
I like the last photo too. I am glad I wasn’t underneath when those two pieces fell to the ground…
Such a pity it came to an end.
Things move on…
Cumbria is so lovely!
I need to explore more.
I’ve only been to Windermere…
I prefer some of the quieter places than Windermere