Alnwick Castle
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Alnwick Castle, from the east, across the pastures and the River Aln |
Alnwick Castle is a
castle and
stately home in
Alnwick,
Northumberland,
England.
Yves de Vescy, Baron of Alnwick, erected the first parts of the castle in 1096. It was built to defend England's northern border against the
Scottish invasions and
border reivers and it has been owned by the Percy family, the
Earls and later
Dukes of Northumberland since 1309. The first Percy lord of Alnwick restored the castle and the Abbot's Tower, the Middle Gateway and the Constable's Tower survive from this period.
The
6th Earl of Northumberland carried out renovations in the 16th century. In the second half of the 18th century
Robert Adam carried out many alterations. The interiors were largely in a
Strawberry Hill gothic style which was not at all typical of his work, which was usually neoclassical. According to the official website a large amount of Adam's work survives, but little or none of it remains in the principal rooms shown to the public, which were redecorated in an opulent
Italianate style in the
Victorian era.
The castle consists of two main rings of buildings. The inner ring is set around a small courtyard and contains the principal rooms. This structure is at the centre of a large
bailey. As the central block was not large enough to contain all the accommodations required in later centuries, a large range of buildings was constructed along the south wall of the bailey. These two main areas of accommodation are connected by a link building. There are towers at regular intervals along the walls of the outer bailey. About a sixth of the bailey wall has been reduced almost to ground level on the bailey side to open up views into the park. Stable and service yards adjoin the castle outside the bailey; these would not have existed when the castle still had a military function.
Alnwick castle has two
parks. Immediately to the north of the castle is a relatively small park straddling the River Aln which was landscaped by
Lancelot Brown ("Capability Brown") and
Thomas Call in the 18th century; it is known as locally as The Pastures. Nearby is the much larger
Hulne Park, which contains the remains of
Hulne Priory.
The castle is in good repair and used for many purposes. It provides a home for the present Duke and family and offices for Northumberland Estates, which manages the Duke's extensive farming and property holdings.
Since the
Second World War, parts of the castle have been used by various
educational establishments: Firstly, by the Newcastle Church High School for Girls then, from 1945 to 1975, as a teacher training college and, since 1981, by
St. Cloud State University as a branch
campus forming part of their International Study Programme.
Special exhibitions are housed in three of the castle's perimeter towers. The Postern Tower, as well as featuring an exhibition on the Dukes of Northumberland and their interest in
archaeology, includes
frescoes from
Pompeii,
relics from
Ancient Egypt and
Romano-British objects. Constable's Tower houses military displays like the Percy Tenantry Volunteers exhibition, local,
volunteer soldiers raised to repel
Napoleon's planned
invasion in the period 1798-1814. The Abbot's Tower houses the
Regimental Museum of the Royal Northumberland Fusiliers.
The castle is used as a stand in for the exterior of
Hogwarts in the
Harry Potter films (though the wide angle images are computer generated). It has previously been a location used in
Blackadder I,
Robin Hood Prince of Thieves and many others listed in the
Location section of the Alnwick Castle
website.
The castle is open to the public throughout the summer.
Adjacent to the castle, the present Duchess of Northumberland, Jane, has established the Alnwick Garden, a formal garden set around a cascading
fountain. It is the most ambitious new garden created in the United Kingdom since the
Second World War, with a reported development cost for the whole of £42 million pounds (press release of
7 August 2003). The garden belongs to a charitable trust which is separate from the Northumberland Estates, but the Duke of Northumberland donated the 42 acre (170,000 m²) site and £9 million.
The first phase of development, opened in October 2001, involved the creation of the fountain and initial planting of the gardens. In 2004 a large 'tree house' complex, including a cafe, was opened.By that year it was the third most visited paid entry garden in the UK (after
Kew Gardens and
Wisley), with over half a million visitors. In February 2005, a
poison garden, growing plants such as
cannabis and
opium poppy, was added. May 2006 saw the opening of a pavilion and visitor centre designed by Sir
Michael Hopkins which can hold up to 1,000 people.
[Alnwick Garden's ‘transparent' visitor centre, Europe Travel News, 16 May, 2006]It is hoped that the remaining elements of the plan will all be built by 2008.
The purpose of the garden is to augment the facilities available on the Alnwick Castle site for tourists and educational visitors.
*
Syon House - the west London residence of the Dukes of Northumberland.
*
Northumberland House - the former central London residence of the Dukes of Northumberland.
*
Petworth House - belonged to the Earls of Northumberland until the 17th century
*
Alnwick Castle*
Alnwick Garden*
The Northumberland Fusiliers Museum*
Overhead photo from multimap.com - dates from around 1999. The largely derelict site of Alnwick garden is at the bottom right.
