Elsdon Castle is a castle in the village of Elsdon

Elsdon, Northumberland

 Elsdon is a village and civil parish in the English county of Northumberland about to the southwest of Rothbury. The name is derived from the Old English meaning Elli's valley....

 about 10 miles (16 km) to the southwest of Rothbury

Rothbury

Rothbury is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England. It is located on the River Coquet, northwest of Morpeth and north-northwest of Newcastle upon Tyne...

, in Northumberland

Northumberland

Northumberland is the northernmost ceremonial county and a unitary district in North East England. For Eurostat purposes Northumberland is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "Northumberland and Tyne and Wear" NUTS 2 region...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, and also known as Mote Hills. The site is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

It is the best preserved mediæval

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

 motte and bailey

Motte-and-bailey

A motte-and-bailey is a form of castle, with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised earthwork called a motte, accompanied by an enclosed courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade...

 castle site in Northumberland. It was built by Robert de Umfraville

Umfraville

Umfraville, the name of an English baronial family, derived from Amfreville in Normandy. Members of this family obtained lands in Northumberland, including Redesdale and Prudhoe, from the Norman kings, and a later member, Gilbert de Umfraville , married Matilda, daughter of Malcolm, earl of Angus,...

, not long after the Norman Conquest

Norman conquest of England

The Norman conquest of England began on 28 September 1066 with the invasion of England by William, Duke of Normandy. William became known as William the Conqueror after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on 14 October 1066, defeating King Harold II of England...

 and stands on a natural spur of a hill. Impressive earthworks remain.

Elsdon Castle is thought to have been abandoned after it was superseded by the nearby Harbottle Castle

Harbottle Castle

Harbottle Castle is a ruined medieval castle situated at the west end of the village of Harbottle, Northumberland, England west-north-west of Rothbury overlooking the River Coquet...

.

Legend has gathered around the castle. According to one tale a Danish giant lived on the hill and terrorised the neighbourhood. It is tempting to rationalise this as a memory of Siward the Dane, earl of Northumberland in the reign of Edward the Confessor.

Elsdon Tower

Elsdon Tower

Elsdon Tower is a medieval tower house converted for use as a Rectory situated at Elsdon, Northumberland. It is a Grade I listed building.The property was first recorded as a Vicars Pele, a pele tower in the occupation of the Rector of Elsdon in 1415....

 is nearby: a pele tower

Peel tower

Peel towers are small fortified keeps or tower houses, built along the English and Scottish borders in the Scottish Marches and North of England, intended as watch towers where signal fires could be lit by the garrison to warn of approaching danger...

dating from the late 14th or early 15th century, which was also built by the de Umfravilles.

External links

• Images of Elsdon Castle
• Elsdon Castle
• GENUKI (accessed: 27 November 2008)