Location: North Yorkshire Map
Constructed: 1190 by Robert Fitzrandolph 3rd Lord of
Middleham and Spennithorne
Tel. 01 969 623 899
Open:
Apr- Sept 10am- 6pm daily
Oct- Mar 10am- 4pm Mon- Wed, Sat,
Sun
Closed: 1 Jan, 24- 26 Dec
Middleham Castle is a medieval fortress situated in North Yorkshire in United Kingdom. Construction of Middleham Castle began in 1190 by the orders of Robert Fitzrandolph 3rd Lord of Middleham and Spennithorne. t was built near the site of an old castle motte. In 1270, the castle passes into the hands of the Neville family, whose most important figure is Richard Neville, the "king maker", a prominent figure in the War of the Two Roses.
The castle was built from 1190 by Robert Fitzrandolph, 3rd Lord
of Middleham and Spennithorne on the site of an earlier motte.
In 1270 it came into the hands of the Neville family, the best
known of whom was Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick, known
as a kingmaker in the Wars of the Roses. After the death of
Richard Plantagenet, 3rd Duke of York at the Battle of Wakefield
in December 1460, his younger sons, George and Richard, took
over the Earldom of Warwick and both lived at Middleham Castle
with the Neville family. Her brother Edward was imprisoned at
Middleham Castle for some time after being captured by Neville
in 1469. After Neville's death at the Battle of Barnet in 1471
and Edward's return to the English throne, his brother Richard
married Anne Neville, Richard Neville's younger daughter, and
made Middleham Castle his family home. Their son Edward was also
born at Middleham Castle and later died there as well.
Richard succeeded Edward as Richard III. to the throne of
England, but spent little time at Middleham Castle during his
reign, which lasted only two years. After Richard's death at the
Battle of Bosworth in 1485, the castle remained in royal hands
until the reign of James I, when it was sold. During the 17th
century it was uninhabited and fell into disrepair. A garrison
was stationed there during the English Civil War, but there were
no acts of war. Today the ruined castle is managed by English
Heritage, who have listed it as a Grade I historic building.
The castle is a compact, solid structure and, although now in
ruins, most of the walls are intact. The castle consists of a
massive Norman keep with a rectangular plan surrounded by a
later-built curtain wall. Extensive palace-like living quarters were
later added to it.
The keep is similar to other large, square
keeps, but only had two floors. It is divided on both floors with an
inner wall, and it is equipped with turrets on each corner and in
the middle of each wall. The ground floor houses two large,
originally vaulted sleeping chambers and upstairs there are two
knights' halls with high windows. The entrance is - as usual -
reached via an external staircase to the upper floor, and a later
added chapel guards this entrance. A repaired spiral staircase leads
up to the turret at the southeast corner, from where one can enjoy
views over the surrounding city and country, e.g. B. also on the
site of the old motte in the southwest.
The 13th-century
curtain wall concentrically surrounds the keep, making the castle a
compact and effectively defensible structure, albeit built for
comfort rather than military purposes. In the 15th century the
Nevilles had an impressive array of halls and outbuildings built
along the curtain wall, making the castle a truly magnificent
residence in which nobles of their class could live comfortably.
Bridges at upper floor level connected these new buildings to the
keep, and the ceiling of the Great Hall was also raised, either to
accommodate clerestory or to provide space for another bedroom.
The castle is entered through a tower on the north-east corner,
although this is a 15th-century remodeling. Only the foundations
remain of the original gatehouse, extending east into the
now-vanished outer courtyard. With the exception of this eastern
castle wall, however, the ring of walls is fairly complete, although
the walls of the residential buildings no longer exist. Some
restoration work has been carried out on the castle in modern times,
but the lower facades of the keep are still in rather poor
condition. Windows and doors have crumbled, floors have collapsed
and none of the battlements survive. The castle is still an
impressive ruin and one can still sense its former strength and
grandeur.