Pentecost

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Castles

Pentecost Tapestry ~ Floors Castle

Castles

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Castles, Photography, The UK

Yes we did manage a Castle or two during our holidays all be it they are few and far between in fact so few and far between one was one side of the country and the other the other side.

We visited Dunrobin Castle on a rather long way back home, home to the Earls and Dukes of Sutherland since the 13th century.  Situated 52 miles north of Inverness it is surprisingly French and Disney like in its appearance, not like a traditional Scottish Castle at all.

It’s 13th century core is still there but can not be seen from the outside, for that you need to go inside the castle and look through into an internal courtyard.  However, I have no pictures of that as Dunrobin, along with many other castles these days do not allow photographs to be taken inside (my guess it is some kind of condition that insurance companies put on them, well I hope that is the case I would be doubly miffed it was them just being silly).  That being said it must also be said that the Dunrobin’s entry charge means that should you be north of Inverness and unsure what to do for a day then this is the place to go.  There is of course the castle itself, a good number of rooms open to the public, although it still is a family home.  Hubby loved the children’s playroom with some fantastic toys made by local people on display.  There is copious amounts of wood panelling, wonderful bookshelves with each foot and a half shelf separately adjustable – project for Hubby, though not sure he will ever get around to it – innumerable family trinkets and memorabilia from down through the centuries all encompassed in a wonderful warm and welcoming feel.

The main rooms of the Castle face out on to the gardens and the North Sea:

It was a glorious day when we visited the sky was blue the sea aquamarine, the gardens are a lovely mixture of formal gardens and wooded areas and you can wander round them to your heart’s content as entrance to them is included in the price, as is one of the best falconry displays I have ever seen, and the fantastic family museum housing some stunning Pictish stones (warning to those of you who don’t like taxidermy there is quite a bit in there)  which is in the once Summer house.  (Don’t be fooled, it is probably at least twice the size of the Rectory.)  We spent the whole afternoon at Dunrobin, but we could have easily spent the whole day (I could have spent the whole day in the museum), good value for its £9.50 entrance fee and what is more the nice gentleman who welcomed us did try every angle going to get us a reduced price.  But we were too old, or too young and weren’t student, yes we were sure.

The other castle could not have been more opposite not only on the other side of the country but also a ruin.  This picture – courtesy of Hubby – was taken as we headed north, we had planned a stop on the way back when I would have taken my pictures but it was raining and the end of a long day, so that is for another journey.

Ardvreck Castle is on Loch Assynt near, well near nowhere.  Okay it is about half the distance north of Ullapool that Dunrobin is from Inverness but it feels and is totally isolated unlike Dunrobin.  On the east the roads are wide mainly straight and in parts dual carriageway, in the west the roads are narrow twisty and in parts single track with passing places.  Built in the 15th century it was the family seat of the Clan MacLeod.  Next time we are up that way I would like to spend some time exploring both the castle and the near by Calda house, which is also in ruins, which Clan MacKenzie built in 1726 as a modern manor house after capturing the MacLeod’s castle and lands in 1672.

What’s the Time?

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Castles, Photography, The UK

While on holiday time took on a new meaning and it had nothing to do with what the hands of a clock or watch had to say.

We had time to spend doing things that took as long or as short as they took.  It didn’t even really matter that for the first three days I was too ill to do anything much, time moved on but it also stood still.

We enjoyed life at a snail’s pace getting there when we got there.

Enveloped in the peace and tranquility of staying in an apartment overlooking Walmer Castle with use of the gardens of an evening.

It would be a pure joy to open the door and return.

But we can’t return, well not immediately at least.  I am sure Hubby will be posting plenty pictures and tales of our travels over on his blog, as for me, well good old time will tell.

Up, Up and Away

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Castles, Nature, Photography

The news story here during the week warning pilots around Glasgow Airport to be on the watch out for a stray vulture reminded me of our trip to Warwick Castle and a young vulture that stubbornly refused to fly at all.

Young Rupple's Griffon Vulture at Warwick Castle

I don’t know about you, but for me it seems more sinister that a vulture might be on the loose than if any of the other bird of prey, maybe I watched too many cartoons as a child.

The story did remind me that I really should catch up on some post holiday blogging so here are some of the other fine birds of prey that can be seen at Warwick Castle …

Bald Eagle

Young Milky Eagle Owl

Sea Eagle

Stella Sea Eagle

and my personal favorite the stunning crowned eagle.

Crowned Eagle

Time … Please

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Castles, Liturgical Seasons, Marie Antoinette, Photography, Religion

We have been on holiday and one of the places we visited was Warwick Castle which was a bit of a disappointment, but more of that on a later blog, for now it is time to show you a little gem tucked away and totally ignored by everyone else who was walking through when we did.

It is believed that Marie Antoinette owned this clock with its ceramic stations of the cross for the numbers, wouldn’t mind owning it myself!

Conwy Castle

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Castles, Photography, The UK

Conway Castle is another of Edward I’s castles in Wales and the last one we visited, before heading out of Wales.  Its construction began in 1283 and it was one of the very few Edwards’ Welsh castles that were completed in an incredible 4 years, however, maybe short cuts were taken as the massive stone arches which are still standing where added later to strengthen the roof and stop it falling in.

Conwy Castle with Great Hall Arch

Built on a craggy out crop with water on three sides it has imposing walls…

Conwy Castle Walls

with three bridges to reach it, from left to right the road bridge, the orginional castle bridge and the rail bridge …

Bridges to Conwy

Around the landward side are the meandering town walls.

Conwy Town Walls

Like Beaumaris Castle, Conwy Castle’s Chapel was still obvious with a grand apse.

Conwy Castle Chapel

Again we didn’t have long at Conwy Castle, although in this instance I don’t think we will go out of our way to visit again.  In my view the castle just wasn’t special enough to endure the birds and their mess again, although if I was in the area I would be tempted to take a wander around the town walls.

Beaumaris Castle

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Castles, Photography, The UK

Beaumaris, the castle on the ‘fair marsh’ on the isle of Anglesey, begun in 1295 and the last of Edward I’s great line of fortress castles for Wales.  It is unusual for a castle in that it is built at sea level and is relatively hidden, you happen upon it rather than seeing it in the distance on some mound or rocky outcrop.  This was my favorite of the castles we visited in Wales, however like other castles and historic monuments held by CADW I fear for its future, but more of that later.

Beaumaris Castle is what my daughter always refered to as a proper castle, that is it has a moat and in Beaumaris’ case the moat is still full of water, probably due to it being at sea level.

Beaumaris Castle Moat

The only way into the castle today is through the Southern Barbican, beside which was once the sea dock bringing people and provisions right up to the castle walls.

Beaumaris Castle Southern Barbican

As well as the drawbridge and the portcullis, there were murder holes, doors, a shooting platform and that only got you into the narrow outer ward which runs the whole way around the castle.

Beaumaris Castle Outer Ward

The castle might be at sea level and not easy to spy out but from the walls of the Southern Barbican you get great views across to mainland Wales.

Mainland Wales from the Castle Walls

If your plans had been to storm the castle so far you would be stuck between the outer and inner walls, being attacked from the tops of both and from the incredible 164 ground level arrow loops.  To get into the inner ward you would have had to try to get through the South Gate past a further ten barriers including five murder holes and three further portcullises, this was a well fortified castle.

Through Inner South Gate

Of course you could have approached from the north, but the same awaited you, the outer Barbican being fortified is a similar manner to the southern one.

Outer North Gate

While the inner northern gatehouse being deeper and housing the Great Hall was never fully completed but would have housed even more defences than that of the Southern Gate.

Grand Hall above Northern Inner Gate House

By the time you had made it to the inner ward, you had got past the kind of security that even today’s camera would be hard to match.

Inner Ward towards South Gate

One of the great features that remains at Beaumaris is the arches in the basements of the towers.  Usually these have long since gone, or are still plastered over to make a dark basement with a domed roof.

Tower Basement

This picture also clearly shows one of my concerns about the care of this and all the CADW sites.  As pretty as you might thing the vegetation looks it will be doing damage to the walls and undermining the pointing.  In fact in every castle we visited in Wales there were areas which recently visitors had been allowed to visit but now were considered unsafe, Beaumaris has the most number of these areas.  It isn’t just the unchecked vegetation however, there is another problem, birds.  Pigeons and gulls are allowed to nest in the ruins, there is no netting or wires up to prevent them, this also made both Conwy (which I will blog about at a later date) and Beaumaris Castle less than pleasant with birds suddenly swooping towards you and the amount of bird droppings around the place – do take wet wipes and or gloves with you when you visit.

On the east range in the central tower there is a chapel and unlike many a castle chapel (usually the watching chamber, larger windows and sometimes wall niche are the only clues) its purpose is clearly seen with its stonework and plastered walls, that would have been richly painted originally.

Beaumaris Castle Chapel

If you leave the mainland and head to Anglesey then Beaumaris Castle is certainly worth a visit but don’t forget those wet wipes and don’t miss the gargoyle outside the southern inner gate

Beaumaris Castle Gargoyle

Royal Caernarfon Castle

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Castles, Photography, The UK

While Staying at The Bath Tower we did of course visit Caernarfon Castle which is part of the same fortification.  Started in 1283 and finished although not completed in 1330 it is considered one of the finest remaining buildings of the Middle Ages.

Caernarfon Castle from The Bath Tower

Commissioned by Edward I to secure the recently captured lands or northern Wales it is one of a series of castle built to defend the area, it also shows the ways of a shrewd and clever king.  Caernarfon was the grandest of these series of castles and its multi coloured walls, like those of Constantinople and grand Eagle Tower with stone eagles perched on its battlements made both a bold claim with comforting security.  The locals in northern Wales held their last conquerors, the Romans in great respect, now their new conqueror used a famous Roman city and the Roman’s emblem to adorn his administration castle for the area.

The Eagle Tower from King's Gate

It is said that while visiting the Castle on 25th April 1284 Queen Eleanor gave birth to Edward I’s son within the far from complete castle walls.  Later in 1301, again in a shrewd move to quell rumblings, Edward I would declare his son Edward, who had been born in Wales within the great Caernarfon Castle, Edward or Caernarfon Wales’ new Prince, there was still a Prince of Wales and what is more as Edward I’s oldest surviving son that Prince would one day be King of England.  In the castle there is a stained glass window that marks this link between the castle and the title Prince of Wales.

Caernarfon Castle Stained Glass

The current Prince of Wales is the 21st to hold the title since Edward of Caernarfon, his investiture as Prince of Wales took place at Caernarfon Castle on 1st July 1969, it took a lot of planning and preparation and the large slate dias that was built for the occasion is still in place in the castle.

The Black Tower with the slate plinth for the investiture of Prince Charles as Prince of Wales

Slate Dias at Caernarfon Castle

Thanks to Hubby for the picture directly above, I was having a rest so didn’t get this view of the dias from above Queen’s Gate.

In 1911 Edward VIII is the only other Prince of Wales to have been invested at Caernarfon Castle.

Caernarfon Castle from The Eagle Tower with Snowdonia in the distance

Inside the Castle walls is a large area and on the day of Prince Charles investiture it was filled with invited guests.  Some sat on staging with cushions made out of Welsh tweed which they were then allowed to keep as mementoes.  Others sat on special designed chairs also with specially commissioned Welsh tweed cushion.  In The Bath Tower were we were staying were two of these chairs.  Now I must admit at this point that when I originally saw them I thought they were out-of-place and wasn’t too keen on them, still not really my thing, but now I don’t think they are out-of-place, especially as they sit beneath the window that has a view of the castle.

Investiture Chair

Which brings me full circle from where I started only this time the picture is of The Bath Tower (shrouded in green and scaffolding) from Caernarfon Castle.

The Bath Tower from Caernarfon Castle

p.s.

As we left The Bath Tower to go to the Castle we met a neighbour of the Tower.  ‘Did you see the Queen?’  she asked.  Apparently she had been at the castle an hour or so before us.  However as Hubby had stood next to her admiring a horse at Royal Ascot in the 90′s and I had spoken to her and shook her hand in the 70′s neither of us felt we had missed out on that particular aspect of our royal trip to Caernarfon Castle.

The Bath Tower

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Castles, Landmark Trust, Photography, The UK

While away Hubby and I stayed in another Landmark Trust property, this time The Bath House part of Caernarfon Castle and Walls.

The walls around Caernarfon like the castle itself were built in the late 13^th century.  In was part of a Bath House although not believed to house the baths themselves, although since this period it has been called the Bath Tower.  In 1856 the North Wales Theological (later the St Mary’s) Training College, obtained the Bath House through the efforts of the Bishops of Bangor and St Asaph at a Crown rent of 4d a year.  The lower floors were used as a pantry and for the cleaning of shoes and knives and by 1871 the first floor was the chapel with stained glass being placed in what is now the kitchen and bathroom.  It became a private house in 1894 and was lived in until 1907 and ran into disrepair before Landmark Trust purchased it in 1967.  While several other of the bastion towers on Caernarfon town walls have been lived in, in the past, it is now only the Bath Tower that is habitable.

To be absolutely honest, I was a bit disappointed by this property, not because of the property itself or it’s situation which has many pluses, but because it was clad in scaffolding and netting, an entrance wasn’t available to us and men appeared outside our bedroom window first thing in the morning; if this had been my first Landmark Trust Property visit I wouldn’t have been recommending them as I have been.

Hubby was less perturbed by the pointing work than I was so you can read a more enthusiastic report about our stay there over at Hubby’s blog, for me I am just going to stick to the history and post pictures of the stained glass from when the first floor was a chapel (ps I slightly disagree with Hubby and Landmark Trust’s notion of floor counting I think it’s starts with a basement – I will explain my reasoning to anyone who is interested!)

The Bath Tower Kitchen Window

The Bath Tower Bathroom Window

Eilean Donan Castle

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Castles, Photography, The UK

While taking our annual break in Argyll in October we decided to take the road to Skye and visit Eilean Donan Castle, one of the most photgraphed and painted castles in Scotland and one which neither of us had ever been to before.  We drove through rain and snow stopping to admire the stunningly beautiful scenery in biting cold winds to arrive at Eilean Donan in pleasantly warm autumnal sun.

The castle has been described as the most Romatic castle in Britian, indeed it has even won an award to that effect, however it’s romanticism passed me by.  It is wonderfully quirky with stairways, corridors and little nooks all over the place, it has glorious views from just about every one of it’s windows, but for me their are several castles that would be further up the list of the most romantic castle in Britian.  It is still however set in a beautiful surroundings and is clear to see why it is favoured so much by the photographer and artist.

Doune Castle

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Castles, Photography, The UK

Does it look familiar?  Well if you are a fan of Monty Python that might be why as in 1975 Doune Castle was one used as the setting for the scene ‘The French Gaurd’ from ‘Monty Python and The Holy Grail’.

It is a fine building and in the Great Hall is some furniture which was made out of the gallows trees that used to sit outside the Castle and was blown down in 1878.  The gargoyles, being in the shape of lions, would find a place at St Mark’s should the Castle ever want rid of them.

While the small chapel has a window for the servants to observe the celebrating and distributing of the sacrament, while they themselves would have stayed outside and not taken part.

Caerlaverock Castle

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Castles, Photography, The UK

A visit to the Solway Firth and the Caerlaverock Burn will bring you to not one but two castles.  The original square castle built by St John de Maxwell now has nothing much more than a footprint remaining, the castle his nephew became Lord Caerlaverock around 1266 a new castle was planned further away from the mud flats of the Solway Firth and their flooding.  Much still remains of this castle, set in its water filled moat, what makes it unique however is its shape, rather that being the traditional square it is triangular making it easy to defend.  Apparently around 1300 the castle was laid seige by Edward I’s army of 87 knights and 3,000 men and siege engines, the castle held out for two days resisting without the siege engines managing to do much damage.  Two days to storm a castle was hardly a long time scale, but the siege had come as a surprise and no supplies had been gathered for a long haul, however the English army were astonished when the occupants of the castle surrendered all 60 of them!  Herbert de Maxwell’s design had proved to work  the castle had stood firm and it had been lack of supplies rather than indefensibly that had seen its downfall.

The ranges on the east and south sides of the courtyard are known as the Nithsdale Lodging and show the change of style that had come about by 1634 when the date stone says they were constructed.  Built by Robert the first earl of Nithsdale they show how in later years the castle had become a grand residence, with large windows looking out over the moat and into the surrounding countryside.