Cockermouth Castle
| Cockermouth Castle | |
|
Cumberland | |
|---|---|
 Cockermouth Castle | |
| Location | |
| Grid reference: | NY123309 |
| Location: | 54°39’56"N, 3°21’40"W |
| Town: | Cockermouth |
| History | |
| Information | |
| Owned by: | Wyndham family |
Cockermouth Castle stands in the town of Cockermouth in Cumberland overlooking the junction of the Rivers Cocker and Derwent. It is a grade I listed building[1] and a Scheduled Ancient Monument.[2]
History
The first castle on this site was built in 1134.[3] Some of the stone was sourced from the Roman site of Derventio.[4] Significant additions were made in the 13th and 14th centuries.[3]
The castle played a significant role in the Wars of the Roses, and in the Civil War, and was badly damaged in the latter.[3]
Various magnates held the castle, most prominently the Percy Earls of Northumberland from the 15th to 17th centuries.[5] It passed to the Wyndham family, the current owners, in the 18th century.
The castle was the home of the dowager Lady Egremont until her death in 2013.[3]
Conservation and public access
The castle is partly inhabited and is mainly in good condition, but some of the ruined structures are decaying, resulting in their inclusion on the Heritage at Risk register.
The castle has been opened to the public as part of the Heritage Open Days scheme.[3]
Outside links
- National Heritage List 1144724: Ruins
- National Heritage List 1144725: Inhabited part
- Buildings at Risk Register: Cockermouth+Castle
- Ecastles site
References
- ↑ National Heritage List 1144725: Cockermouth Castle: residence
- ↑ National Heritage List 1013333: Cockermouth Castle
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 "Cockermouth Castle". http://www.cockermouth.org.uk/dms-showpage.php?tid=251. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
- ↑ "Cockermouth Castle". Heritage Open Days. September 2015. http://www.heritageopendays.org.uk/directory/cockermouth-castle. Retrieved 6 January 2016.
- ↑ Bradbury, J. Bernard History of Cockermouth Richard Byers 1995 p.238 ISBN 0952981203
- Fry, Plantagenet Somerset, The David & Charles Book of Castles, David & Charles, 1980. ISBN 0-7153-7976-3