Appleby Castle is in the town of Appleby

Appleby-in-Westmorland

Appleby-in-Westmorland is a town and civil parish in Cumbria, in North West England. It is situated within a loop of the River Eden and has a population of approximately 2,500. It is in the historic county of Westmorland, of which it was the county town. The town's name was simply Appleby, until...

, Cumbria

Cumbria

Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...

 overlooking the River Eden

River Eden, Cumbria

The River Eden is a river that flows through Cumbria, England on its way to the Solway Firth.-Course of river:The Eden rises in Black Fell Moss, Mallerstang, on the high ground between High Seat, Yorkshire Dales and Hugh Seat. Here it forms the boundary between the counties of Cumbria and North...

 . It consists of a 12th-century castle keep

Keep

A keep is a type of fortified tower built within castles during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars have debated the scope of the word keep, but usually consider it to refer to large towers in castles that were fortified residences, used as a refuge of last resort should the rest of the...

 which is known as Caesar's tower, and a mansion house. These, together with their associated buildings, are set in a courtyard surrounded by curtain walls. Caesar's tower and the mansion house have each been designated by English Heritage

English Heritage

English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...

 as a Grade I listed building. The uninhabited parts of the castle are a scheduled ancient monument

Scheduled Ancient Monument

In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a 'nationally important' archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorized change. The various pieces of legislation used for legally protecting heritage assets from damage and destruction are grouped under the term...

.

History

The castle was founded by Ranulf le Meschin at the beginning of the 12th century. In about 1170 the square stone keep known as Caesar's Tower was built. The castle was in Royal hands when the Scottish King, William the Lion

William I of Scotland

William the Lion , sometimes styled William I, also known by the nickname Garbh, "the Rough", reigned as King of the Scots from 1165 to 1214...

, invaded the Eden Valley in 1174. The constable

Constable

A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions.-Etymology:...

 of the castle surrendered without a fight.

In 1203 the castle was granted to Robert de Vieuxpont

Robert de Vieuxpont

Robert de Vieuxpont or Robert de Veteriponte was an Anglo-Norman landowner and administrator in the north of England.He was born the younger son of William de Vieuxpont and his wife Maud de Morville....

 by King John

John of England

John , also known as John Lackland , was King of England from 6 April 1199 until his death...

. In 1269 it came into the possession of Roger de Clifford and it remained in the ownership of the Clifford family for nearly 400 years. In the mid 17th century, Lady Anne Clifford

Lady Anne Clifford

Lady Anne Clifford, 14th Baroness de Clifford was the only surviving child of George Clifford, 3rd Earl of Cumberland by his wife Lady Margaret Russell, daughter of Francis Russell, 2nd Earl of Bedford...

 made the castle her home and she was responsible for the restoration of the castle. On her death the castle passed to the Earls of Thanet

Earl of Thanet

Earl of the Isle of Thanet, in practice shortened to Earl of Thanet, was a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1628 for Nicholas Tufton, 1st Baron Tufton. He had already succeeded as second Baronet of Hothfield in 1631 and been created Baron Tufton, of Tufton in the County of Sussex,...

. They were responsible for converting the hall block into a classical mansion house. The upper parts of Caesar's tower were altered in the 17th and 18th centuries.

The north wall of house and the west part of north wing with the round tower date from the 13th century. The eastern part of the house was built in 1454. The house was partly dismantled in 1648 and was restored by Lady Anne Clifford in 1651–53. The house was largely rebuilt in 1686 and the north-west wing was added in 1695. In the 19th century it was again restored and sash windows were inserted.

In 1972 the castle was purchased by Ferguson Industrial Holdings (FIH PLC) and become the primary residence of Denis Vernon the CEO of the company, and his family. The Vernons lived at Appleby Castle until 1990. During this period, Denis Vernon, a passionate conservationist established a Rare Breeds Survival Centre. Considerable improvements were made to the fabric of all the buildings, not least the 12th century Keep. During this period as the Head Quarters and Training Centre of FIH PLC, and for those running the Conservation Centre, meant that there was a thriving community. Documentary and Movie Director Susannah White featured Denis Vernon and Appleby Castle in her BBC documentary on the Gypsy Horse Fair Held Annually in Appleby.

Appleby Castle is now a private residence and is not open to the public.

Structure

Caesar's tower is built in grey stone rubble and ashlar

Ashlar

Ashlar is prepared stone work of any type of stone. Masonry using such stones laid in parallel courses is known as ashlar masonry, whereas masonry using irregularly shaped stones is known as rubble masonry. Ashlar blocks are rectangular cuboid blocks that are masonry sculpted to have square edges...

. It is about 80 feet (24 m) high and has four storeys. The main house is in two wings which are at right angles to each other. A semicircular round tower protrudes from the north wall of the north wing and a large square tower is at the south end of the east wing..

Other features

The gateway to the castle courtyard and two adjoining cottages are listed Grade I. The gateway is in grey stone and battlemented, dating probably from the 17th century. In the grounds of the castle is Lady Anne's Bee-house, which was built by Lady Anne Clifford in the middle of the 17th century. It is a square, stone building in two storeys with a pyramid roof and a door on the lower level. The upper level has a pointed arched window on each of three sides and a door on the fourth side. It is also listed Grade I. Two stretches of the sandstone outer walls to the castle dating mostly from the 18th and 19th centuries are listed Grade II, as is the battlement

Battlement

A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet , in which portions have been cut out at intervals to allow the discharge of arrows or other missiles. These cut-out portions form crenels...

ed North Lodge which dates from the 19th century. The grounds around the castle are listed Grade II*.

External links

• Other sources about Appleby Castle