Cherie's Place » Etal Castle

Cherie’s Place – Thought for the Week

CherryPie — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 17:07:41 +0000

There are no dangerous weapons; there are only dangerous men.

Robert A. Heinlein

Flodden Field Battle Trail – Part 3

CherryPie — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:34:28 +0000

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.

*From the Etal Castle guide book.

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

PhotoHunt – Twisted

CherryPie — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 18:31:09 +0000

Just got back from a break in Northumberland, so I am busy catching up with everything and everyone. I managed to take over 400 photographs, so they are going to take a lot of sorting out!!!

Here is one to be going on with. It is from the ruined Etal castle, showing traces of its long gone spiral staircase twisting up into the sky. There will be a some more photos of the castle in due course with a little bit of background history.

For more of this weeks PhotoHunt pictures check out tnchick.