Alston's bastle derivative houses

Alston's bastle derivative houses

Alston

Cumbria

Said to be the highest market town in England, Alston possesses a large number of unusual bastle type houses. In all there were originally around sixty of these buildings, typified by accommodation at the ground floor level for live-stock, with first floor accommodation for the owners.  Access to the first floor living quarters was by an external staircase, very typical of the Border, Cumbrian and Northumbrian bastle houses of the 17^th and 18^th centuries.  Bastle houses proper, were built for safety and defence, utilising removable external staircases, small barred windows, thick walls and sometimes barrel vaulted ground floor spaces. These buildings would have been used for holding livestock when perhaps a Reiver raid was under way, providing protection from the raiders for the owners in the first floor accommodation. Stone\tiled roofs would have protected the owners from the threat of fire from above, and stone floors or barrel vaulted ground floor spaces would have protected them from the threat of fire below. It’s most likely that the bastle building layout proved to be very useful in the areas in and around Alston….so much so that many of the surviving examples date from the 1800 and 1900s….much later than the true bastle houses at Annat Walls and High Lovelady for example, which are proper defensive buildings built in the true bastle tradition.

The original sixty or so bastle derivative houses in Alston has now been reduced to around a dozen examples, but where external staircases have been removed, many houses still bear the scars of bricked up first floor doorways.  The small collection photographed on my recent visit, probably represent the best surviving examples of this type of building.

Cross View Cottage, Market Place

This is a house very reminiscent of Scottish town houses, standing to four storeys, and dates from around 1697 when it was built as a pair of shops. 

There doesn’t seem to be any evidence that the ground floor was ever used for livestock in the particular instance, so it is likely that this is a building of a slightly different tradition than its neighbours.

Hamilton House, Kings Arm Lane

Hidden away down a narrow lane less than a hundred yards from Townfoot, Hamilton House has been recently renovated to a very high standard.

This building is also constructed of coursed rubble with what looks to be an original, albeit very repaired, stone slated roof. The most interesting point, and still visible above the hood moulded door, are the two blocked off first floor doorways.

Peter F. Ryder indicates that this building probably dates from the 19^th century as it does not appear on a map of 1775. This is therefore an excellent example of a much later house, being built utilising the bastle tradition of layout.

Jaycott, Back 'O The Burn

This was my favourite bastle house, and it has definitely held onto its original features. 

Jaycott is to be found just off Front Street at the start of Back O’ The Burn. Jaycott has retained its external staircase leading to a central doorway and blocked windows just beneath the eaves, as well as a blocked door on the first floor of the South wall.

Peter F. Ryder tells us that the ground floor walls are over half a metre thick.

The Old Cottage, Kate's Lane

A few yards along Kate’s Lane, and beautifully restored, is the Olde Cottage. The windows, as part of the restoration, have been enlarged, though it has retained its external stair to a door at first floor level.

The Old House, Kate's Lane

Kate’s Lane is access through a narrow yard on the West side of the market place. In the North West corner, is the Old House, no renovated and inhabited. 

This building has lost its external staircase, but retains the blocked door in the front wall at first floor level.

Town Foot, Front Street

Townfoot can be found on the North side of Front Street at the junction of Station Road. Probably built in the mid 18^th century, it is built of whitewashed coursed rubble with a typical slated roof.

The external stairway survives as does the external evidence of an oven, protruding where the house butts up against next door. This building is Grade II listed, and is one of the most easily viewable of Alston’s bastle houses.

There are obviously better examples of bastles in Cumbria….examples with real defensive features built into their fabic, such as the high status Townhead Bastle near Newbiggin, Bayles Hill House, Low Nest Bastle and Annat Walls (the latter three near Alston)…but as a group of buildings that have obviously been designed and built using the specific architectural features common to bastle houses, they are unique and worthy of study.

Penrith Town Walls

Penrith Town Walls

Penrith

Cumbria

Penrith was, during the 9th and 10th centuries, the capital of Cumbria....a semi-autonomous part of the country that paid homage to first the King of Scotland, and then the King of England. The town lies on a direct route from Scotland to England, and as such, was prone to attacks by the Scots. Most notably, in 1345, the Scottish army under Sir William Douglas, sacked the town. How much damage and the number of Penrithians killed in this attack is unknown. A few years later, a 3000 strong Scottish army raided Penrith again, clearing Inglewood Forest of all the live stock that could be found. By 1357, the situation was so bad, that the town of Penrith, and villages thereabouts, could no longer pay their rents to the King's agents. Luckily, Edward III sympathised with their perilous condition, and granted them unlimited rights of pasture in the forest of Ingelwood. A number of years prior to this, in 1346, a grant of murage was given to the people of Penrith. The grant gave a "licence for the good men of Penereth to crenellate their town." This licence was granted on the 10th of April in Westminster. The town's licence was renewed in again in 1391, most likely in response to a further raid by the Scots in 1389. Murage Grants were granted by the King, usually in response to a request, and gave those who received the grant, permission to raise and collect tolls to pay for the building or repairing of town walls and defences. However...it has to be remembered that documentary evidence of a grant, does not necessarily mean that a) the option to raise and collect tolls was carried out, and b) that the town walls or defences were built or repaired. This seems to be the case in Penrith. There's no evidence that the option to raise tolls and collect the dues was actually carried out, and there is certainly no evidence of any walls or earthwork defences being erected. Only street name evidence remains, with the survival of Middlegate, Borrowgate, Sandgate, Nethergate and Friargate. These streets form a rough and incomplete circuit around the centre of the town, encompassing St Andrews, but strangely missing the castle. M. W. Taylor, in his Old Manorial Halls of Westmorland and Cumberland, states that the circuit of narrow lanes, as named above, were probably built to resist attack and unwelcome entry by Scottish soldiers, using the gables of houses and some substantial walling. He goes onto say that some elements of the 'substantial walling' still exist, though having walked this rough circuit a number of times, I've been unable to find anything that looks vaguely medieval that would represent these walls.

 Above. Burrowgate.

144 metres in length. Runs from Middlegate to Sandgate, roughly West to East.

Above. Burrowgate from Middlegate. 

Above. Castlegate. 

313 metres in length. Runs from junction of Cromwell Road and Ullswater Road at its South West tip, to junction of Middlegate and King Street at its North Eastern tip.

Above. Castlegate, just around the corner from Penrith Castle. 

Above. Friargate (Friar Street)  

243 metres in length. Runs from junction of Benson Row and Folly Lane to the North, and the junction of Langton Street and Old London Road to the South.

Above. Friargate (Friar Street)

On an Ordnance Survey map of 1923, Friargate is shown as Friar Street, so can probably be ruled out of the search for Penrith's town walls. When, after 1923, the street became a gate, is unknown. Hutton Hall lays at the Northern tip of Friargate. This late 14th century tower may have formed part of the town's circuit of walls\defences, but it's difficult, if not impossible to say if it lay within, or without the town walls.

Above. Middlegate. 

261 metres in length. Runs from junction of Duke Street and Stricklandgate at its Northern tip, to junction of Castlegate and King Street at its Southern tip.

Above. Middlegate. 

Above. The wide open space of Sandgate. 

95 metres in length. Runs from the Eastern end of Burrowgate to the junction of Meeting House Lane and Benson Row at its North Eastern tip.

Above. Sandgate

The Penrith Town Trails leaflet tells us that Sandgate, the largest open space in Penrith, was once bounded on all sides by buildings, providing a protected space where livestock and people could safely congregate during an attack by the Scots. Quite where this story comes from, and how reliable it is, is impossible to say. 

The idea of a walled Penrith, obviously not as impressive as nearby Carlisle, is intriguing, and certainly deserving of more research and investigation.

Penrith Castle, North East Gateway

North East gateway

Penrith Castle

Cumbria

This gateway into the castle wasn't even the main entrance....and yet the defences built here would have been strong and difficult to circumvent. First off, the draw bar tunnel inserted into the four foot thick wall of the North East corner of the castle, would have provided the door with a strong barrier against which it could be shut. The draw bar tunnel is around 9 inches by 9 inches, providing space for a massive piece of timber.

Above. The right hand side of the gateway, showing the 9 inch draw bar tunnel. 

The thickness of the wall, along with the depth of the tunnel and the size of the tunnel, meant that this would have been a well defended entry\exit into and from the castle.

Above. Close up of the draw bar tunnel in the left hand side of the gateway. 

Above. All that survives of the draw bar tunnel in the right hand side of the gateway. 

The opposing side of the gateway has been much reduced, resulting in the draw bar tunnel on this side being exposed. In the photo above, the door jamb can also be seen.

Above. The stone lintel and the portcullis groove. 

This photo (above) shows what I think may have been the stone lintel upon which the portcullis may have rested when it was lowered. The groove now only exists on one side of the passageway, and only to a height of around one foot.

Above. Close up of the portcullis groove. 

Above. Modern bridge spanning the moat and the remains of the outer gatehouse tower.

Finally....outside of the castle, the moat would have provided a barrier that would have proved difficult to navigate, especially if it were a wet ditch or water filled moat. Standing in the moat, a gatehouse and tower was built, providing control over traffic entering and exiting the castle. The remains of the gatehouse and tower can be seen beneath the wooden footbridge that spans the moat.

Penrith Castle panoramas

Penrith Castle,

Penrith

Cumbria

February has seen me visiting Penrith again....better camera and more of an idea what I need to be photographing to capture the intricacies of this Royal castle. Consisting of three possible building phases, Penrith castle presents us with the fortified residence of a Bishop (William Strickland, Bishop of Carlisle), the home of a wealthy and influential land owner (Ralph Neville), and finally, a castle and home for future King, Richard, Duke of Gloucester.

Above.  The apartment buildings and remains of the North Eastern gate.

The apartments were built along the North Eastern walls of the castle, overlooking the small courtyard at the centre of the collection of buildings and walls. These buildings were built under the tenure of Ralph Neville, sometime between 1396 and 1425 and formed part of the original castle. They are contemporary with the curtain walls on all sides of the castle and the small bridge that would have spanned the moat on the North East side of the castle.

Above. The standing remains of the Red Tower at the Northern tip of the castle. 

The Red Tower, built at the Northern tip of the castle, dates from the tenure of Richard Neville, and would have been built between 1425 and 1460. Apart from some additional internal walls, this was one of the only parts of the castle to be erected during this time.

Above. View of the interior of the White Tower at the North West corner of the castle. 

The White Tower, at the North West corner of the castle, consists of external walls dating from Ralph Neville's tenure, and internal walling from Richard, Duke of Gloucester's ownership of the castle. This complex of smaller rooms occupied the whole of the South Western side of the castle, butting up against the external curtain walls. 

Above. Another view of the apartment buildings. 

Above. Interior wall...about eight feet thick. 

I think these are the footings of all that remains of an internal wall near the Western gatehouse. At this point, the walls are about eight feet thick, with large blocks on the exterior faces, and smaller rubble between them.

Above. Looking North East towards the vault of the Great Hall. 

All that remains of the great hall and the tower that overlooked the North Eastern gateway, is this square platform with a vaulted chamber beneath it. This tower would have been about a storey shorter than its neighbour, the Red Tower a few yards away. This tower was built during Ralph Neville's tenure of the castle, and appeared to have the thickest walls indicating that it was possibly regarded as the centre of the castle's defences.

Above. The North Eastern wall of the castle. 

The photo above shows the exterior walls of the Apartments that were built along the inside of the North Eastern walls. There is a single thick buttress in the centre of the external face of the wall, which may have had a small crenellated turret at its peak.

Above. Detail of the Southern corner of the Apartments. 

The photo above shows the Southern tip of the apartments. Here, a large window has been inserted, most likely at a much later stage in the castle's history. The small overhang near the far right hand side of the wall may have originally had some small open machicolations between the bosses. These are now blocked though.

Above. North East corner of the moat. 

Looking East towards Penrith town centre, the moat survives to a good depth and is very well defined. Unfortunately for us though, the moat only now survives on the North East, the East and a small portion on the Southern corner. 

Above. The castle from the East, inside the moat.

The moat here is about twelve feet deep with gently sloping sides. This would have been a formidable, yet compact castle in its day.

Penrith Beacon

Penrith Beacon

Penrith

Cumbria

High above Penrith, to the North of the town, peeping over the tops of the plantation, Penrith Beacon can just about be seen. The current pyramidal building dates from 1719, and is built on the site of earlier beacons erected to warn of impending attacks from across the border. 

Above. A view of the Beacon from Penrith Castle.

There has been a beacon on this site from as early as 1296, be that a structure holding a fire or a building. Documents from the mid 1400s detail the beacon being used to communicate with another at Dale Raughton near Kirkoswald, around 7 miles to the North. Penrith Beacon could also communicate with Carlisle Castle and a beacon situated on Orton Scar. These days the beacon would be pretty useless, as it is surrounded by trees that equal or exceed its highest point. When the beacon was in use, the hill side upon which it sits would have been treeless.....today, the Earl of Lonsdale has a plantation on the hill sides.

Detailed in this pamphlet, is information on walks around Penrith, together with a map of the walk to the summit of Beacon Hill. 

Millom castle Great Tower, Millom

Millom Castle Great Tower

Millom

Cumbria

Millom castle consists of two separate entities. Firstly there are the castle remains, which fall under Scheduled Ancient Monument protection, and secondly, the Great Tower, which is Grade I listed. The best view of the massive tower can be had from the church yard to the South of the castle remains. From here views of the tower are free from trees and other buildings. 

Above. View of the Great Tower from the church yard to the South of the castle.

The tower was built sometime around 1660, and sits at the South West corner of the castle ruins, surrounded by the ruined curtain walls and other buildings. 

Above. View of the Great Tower from the footpath to the church.

The roofless building to the left of the tower, shown in the photo above, may represent the remains of a 17th century gatehouse. Access to this gatehouse is through a well preserved red sandstone arched doorway. This can be seen in the photo above just behind the blue car.

Above. Another view of the Great Tower from the West.

As well as the numerous more modern windows, smaller, original windows can be seen on all four external walls of the Great Tower...some are still in use while others have been bricked up. The tower now has a double pitched roof, but would most likely have had a flat crenellated roof. A 17th century engraving shows the tower with a ruined or possible unfinished top floor. 

Above. The Great Tower from the churchyard, looking North.

It's most likely that the licence to crenellate, given to Ferdinand Huddleston on the 10th of March, 1622, relates to this portion of the buildings at Millom Castle, though it is now thought unlikely that this is in fact a licence to crenellate at all...a mistake possibly attributable to Curwen's writings in the 19th century. The wording of the 'licence' is as follows "Grant to Sir Thos. Metcalf and Dame Elizabeth, his wife of Nappa, Co. York, and to Ferdinand Huddleston, of Millom Castle and Nich. Curwen, of the Holme, both co. Cumberland, and others, of certain recognzances of 500l. each, forfeited by non-appearance of Metcalf in the Star Chamber; also of all fines in the Star Chamber, forfeiture of lands, &c., on account of the above recognizances" and doesn't really seem to represent a licence for Ferdinand to make any physical additions to his home!

Campbelltown Mote, Nr Twynholm

Arden Campbelltown Mote

Nr Twynholm

Dumfries and Galloway

Scotland

This small hill fort, about half a mile West of Twynholm, took me two visits to find, due to bad map reading and a general misunderstanding of the area. Once found though, I wasn't disapointed. What can be seen in the field by the road, is a small double ditched fort, measuring some 180 by 135 feet, with a summit of 95 by 55 feet. The views shown below, show the North side of the motte, quarried away and quite badly damaged.

Above. The North face of the motte, showing the quarry damage.

Looking at the surrounding fields, it's quite obvious why this site was chosen. It is built into an isolated hillock, with a height of around 22 feet. The summit has been fortified or strengthened with a stone wall or revetment, and there are at least two ditches providing further defence, though these have been quite badly eroded.

The motte is best viewed from the road side, where there is enough room to park your car. The gate was secured, so I'm not sure if access to the field is granted for viewing from other angles. To the North of the motte, and about a mile away, but visible from here, The Doon Hill can be seen.

The Doon Fort, Twynholm

The Doon Hill, 

Twynholm

Dumfries and Galloway

Scotland

The Doon Hill can be found to the West of Twynholm, overlooking Twynholm motte and also Campbelltown Mote to the South. The fort can be seen from both the A75, just West of Twynholm, and also from the Arden road to the South, especially when stood at the foot of the Campbelltown Mote.

Above. View of the Doon Hill from the South.

From a distance, the tree covered hill is fairly inconspicuous, however, when viewed close up, there are still the feint signs of terraces, banks and ditches at the summit. The fort occupies a great defensive position....some 300 feet above sea level, and is one of a number of forts that stretches from Trostrie to the North, Campbelltown, Compstonend Castle Hill right down to another Doon Hill on the Northern shores of Kirkcudbright Bay.

Above. A close up view of the fort.

The summit of the fort measures around 82 by 78 feet. It is crowned by a central disc, defined by a slight earthen bank and the eroded remains of a further double trench and a single rampart. Only from this side of the fort, ie, the South, are the ditches and banks still visible. I'm not sure what the access rights are to the fort, but it can certainly be viewed from certain points around the village.

Twynholm Motte, Twynholm

Twynholm Motte

Twynholm

Dumfries and Galloway

Scotland

It's taken three visits to this tiny village to find the motte, and now that I've finally discovered where it is, I can forgive myself for not finding it earlier. The motte is very badly damaged and so hidden from view as to be almost invisible. 

The motte lies to the North West of the church, hidden behind a line of cottages and shielded from view by a tin shed partially built into the side of the motte. A small wall has been built into the West side of the motte, to enable a path or track to circumnavigate the base of the mound.

Above. View of the motte from Kirk Brae.

The motte most likely dates from the late 1000s or early 1100s, and stands to a height of around 20 feet, and overlooks the Kirk Burn, for which it may have been built to guard a ford.

Above. Another view from Kirk Brae.

Above. View of the motte from across the gardens of the nearby cottages.

The motte summit measures around 47 by 38 feet, and has been truncated and damaged. In fact local documents tell us that the summit has, in the past, been used as a pet cemetery and a garden.

Above. View of the foot of the motte and the low wall built into the base.

The landlord family during the 13th century would have been the de Twynholms, headed by Walter de Twynholm, who was also Sheriff of Wigton and Chancellor and Clerk of Scotland in 1327 and was a confidante of King David of Scotland, regularly appearing in Royal records. 

Duke of Gloucester Inn
Penrith
Cumbria

A recent visit to Penrith prompted me to investigate the Duke of Gloucester a little closer, especially regarding the claims that the building contains the remains of a pele tower.

Above. The rear of the Duke of Gloucester.

Well, it appears that the remains of the tower are actually hidden at the rear of the inn, almost invisible from the road at the front of the inn. The tower has been heavily modified and incorporated into the later 16th and 17th century building at the front. It is of three storeys, and measures roughly ten feet by ten feet. As with other towers in Cumbria, all 'tower' characteristics have been removed.