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Leeds Castle is in Kent, England, 5 miles (8 km) southeast of Maidstone. A castle has been on the site since 1119. In the 13th century it came into the hands of King Edward I, for whom it became a favourite residence; in the 16th century, Henry VIII used it as a residence for his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. The castle today dates mostly from the 19th century and is built on islands in a lake formed by the River Len to the east of the village of Leeds. It has been open to the public since 1976.
NORRIS CASTLE - IMO : 6826951
Built 1968, by J. I. Thornycroft & Co. Ltd., Southampton (Yard # 4226) as NORRIS CASTLE
GRT : 734 / DWT : 210
Overall Length : 58.3 metres x Beam 12.8 metres.
Machinery : 2 Screw each driven by a Crossley : 2-stroke single acting 8-cylinder oil engine
Speed : 14.0 knots
History POR = Port of Registry
1968: NORRIS CASTLE : Southampton, Isle of Wight & South of England RMSP Co Ltd : POR Southamption
•1976: Vessel lengthened to Overall Length : 67.4 metres. GT 922 / DWT 213
1994: LOVRJENAC : Javno Poduzece "Jadrolinija" PO : POR Rijeka
2011: Broken up at Aliaga by Izmir Geri Donusum
NORRIS CASTLE on 26 September 1980 alongside at Southampton
Ship Details : Miramar
One of my favorite places to visit, this is the first time I have been able to do photography within the Castle. www.mercermuseum.org/ Access gained via a tour with roaminwithroman.com/
A visit to Powis Castle, another National Trust property. You are not allowed to take photo inside of the castle (items in private ownership), but it's fine around the exteriors and gardens. Anyone caught trying to take a photo inside gets told off by one of the guides inside the castle, so it wasn't worth the bother (bit frustrating when going around the castle). At least the outside areas makes up for what I couldn't take.
Powis Castle (Welsh: Castell Powys) is a medieval castle, fortress and grand country mansion near Welshpool, in Powys, Wales.
It is known for housing the treasures that were brought home by Robert Clive and his son, Edward Clive from India. The Clives obtained them during their service with the British East India Company.
The castle has also been known as Castell Coch, Castell Pool, Castell Pola, Castell Pole, Castell Trallwng, Red Castle, Redde Castle and Castel Cough.
The seat of the Earl of Powis, the castle is known for its extensive, attractive formal gardens, terraces, parkland, deerpark and landscaped estate. The property is under the care of the National Trust.
Princess Victoria (later Queen Victoria) visited the castle as a child when her mother took her to tour England and Wales in 1832.
Grade I listed building
History
Introduction: The castle was a Welsh stronghold, probably of Owain Cyfeiliog and his heirs, from c1170, and parts of the surviving structure are thought to date from the late C12- early C13. The castle was sacked c1275, and in 1286, Owain ap Gruffydd ap Gwenwynwyn, Prince of Powys, paid homage to Edward I as Baron de la Pole. A substantial programme of rebuilding followed - the layout, and much of the structure of the present buildings were determined in this work of c1300.
Sir Edward Herbert acquired the castle in 1587, and initiated the creation of a country house from a castle. The first phase of a substantial Baroque remodelling was begun immediately following the restoration of Charles II (Powis had fallen in a siege of 1644 and was not returned to the Herbert family until the Restoration). William, Third Lord Powis who inherited the title in 1867 (and was created Earl in 1674
Marquis in 1685), was exiled with James II in 1688 - and although the Herbert's were not formally re-instated at Powis until 1722, a major programme of work on the castle and gardens was initiated by the family during this period, extending the scope of the Baroque remodelling.
Minor works were carried out during the C18, but the castle was suffering from neglect by the latter years of the century: in 1771, Thomas Farnolls Prichard, architect, of Shrewsbury, was commissioned to report on improvements, and he was responsible for the remodelling of the SW range as a ball-room wing in 1775-7 (for George Herbert, second Earl of Powis). In 1801, the castle was inherited by Edward, second Lord Clive, and the Powis Earldom was re-created for him (for the third time) in 1804. As heir to the Clive fortune, he was able to commission Robert Smirke to carry out improvements to the castle, between 1820 and 1830. Thereafter, the final major alterations to the castle were carried out by G.F. Bodley, c1904, for the Fourth Earl. On his death in 1952, the property was given to the National Trust.
The Medieval Castle: By c1300, the castle comprised an outer bailey to the W, with curtain walls to the N and W at least, and an inner ward built around a courtyard, with twin gate towers to its W. It had previously been assumed that the SE angle tower constituted the earliest surviving part of the medieval castle, but recent research has shown that the curved section of the S wall of the inner ward pre-dates it and may represent the remains of a late C12 shell keep, which was subsequently substantially rebuilt when the buildings were extended northward in c1300; the gate towers are probably contemporary with this c1300 phase, together with the N curtain wall of the outer bailey, with the lower storey of the accommodation on its inner face (the present ball-room range). The N range of the inner ward has not yet been investigated in detail, but it is thought to represent the hall range of the C13 castle: the walls appear to be substantially of medieval masonry. The E gate tower may have been added in the C15, when the castle was owned by the Grey Family.
The C16-C17: Major remodelling of the castle followed its acquisition by Edward Herbert in 1587, though largely within the confines of the medieval structure: he added the long gallery on the N and W sides of the inner courtyard, and perhaps the portal on its E side; there are fragments of C16 decoration in other rooms, and documentary evidence for much more, suggesting that the establishment of the interior layout of rooms en filade may date from this time. Most of the present pattern of fenestration was established in the C16-C17 period, although the window details have been several times renewed. While the internal layout of rooms as it survives on the first floor may be late C16, most of their detail and decoration is no earlier than the later C17, with much work of c1660. It now seems likely that a major Baroque remodelling was initiated after the Restoration, and as part of this, new entrances were designed: new pavilions flanking the W entrance were added in 1668, and the main portal at the E (with a corresponding portal at the W, subsequently re-sited), also appears to be late C17. The Baroque programme used local craftsmen at first, but under the direction of William Winde from the 1670's, it attained a greater sophistication of design and planning. The insertion of the grand staircase between 1674 and 1685 (attributed to Winde) entailed further alteration to the internal layout and it may be that the inner walls of the NW drum tower were cut-down at this time to accommodate it.
The C18: Documentary sources record work carried out at Powis between 1748 and 1754, by William Burke, but it is not known what this entailed. However, it is known that further refenestration took place during the C18 (largely probably using existing openings); illustrations of the castle record some sash windows, and in 1856, the Third Earl remembered the draughty 'French sashes' which were replaced by Smirke. Thomas Farnolls Pritchard was responsible for the remodelling of the ball-room range, which had been detached from the castle following a fire in 1725.
Smirke's Restoration: Some sources suggest that Smirke was working at Powis between 1815 and 1818: but others suggest 1820-1830, and Paul Sandby Munn's water-colours of the castle in 1816 clearly pre-date Smirke's involvement. He refenestrated the castle, re-instating stone mullioned and transomed windows, and also raised the E gate tower by an additional storey to enhance its picturesque status. He also added new embattling, and made some alterations to the internal layout, including enclosing the loggia underneath the long gallery.
Bodley's Restoration: G.F.Bodley made minor alterations to the external appearance of the castle (for example removing the curved angle turret to the N of the E gate tower and replacing it with a canted oriel, and renewing windows, largely in earlier openings), and considerable alterations to the interior, including changes to the layout of rooms (notably the creation of the dining room from two smaller rooms), and an extensive programme of redecoration.
Exterior
Red sandstone rubble throughout, with freestone dressings. Main entrance between the two spurred drum towers of c1300, approached up steps with balustraded parapet which were added c1670 (the twisted urns on the parapet appear to be later additions). The original arched entrance with its tiers of stepped-out mouldings was re-exposed when Bodley re-sited a C17 portal which had previously obscured it. In the S elevation, the central section curves slightly in plan (the possible vestigial C12 shell keep), with a rectilinear tower at the SE angle.This retains some (partially recut) C13 flat- headed lancet windows (one with relieving arch); the rest of the fenestration was established in the C16-C17, including the oriel window of the long gallery immediately right of the W drum tower, but the detail is largely C19-C20 renewal of the earlier mullioned and transomed windows. N elevation has corbelled angle turret (medieval?) to NW; fenestration largely on the C16-C17 pattern, as renewed by Bodley. The stair tower towards the left of this elevation may have been added by Smirke when he moved the kitchens into the outbuildings on the N side of the castle.
E elevation is dominated by the projecting gate tower, probably added in the C15. Rectangular in plan, with curved angle turrets. Fine lierne vaulted ceiling to gate-house passage. Its E portal is late C17: ashlar, with engaged Doric columns flanked by niches with restored statues of Kings Offa and Edgar and surmounted by a balustraded parapet (the portal at the W entrance to the castle, removed by Bodley to the orangery, was originally similarly detailed).The tower was given an additional storey and stair turret by Smirke, and re- fenestrated, presumably at the same time. Some blocked earlier windows are visible, and illustrations suggest that there had previously been sash windows over the entrance. The S portal onto the garden may be by Bodley, reworking an existing feature. Fenestration in the flanking walls also largely renews a pattern of openings set in the C16-C17, but the canted oriel in the right hand angle of the gate tower was added by Bodley, replacing an earlier curved turret.
Inner courtyard is well coursed and squared rubble and balustraded parapet to S and W - associated with the construction of the long gallery, which is lit by a series of wide sash windows. Loggia below the gallery - 4 bays with Doric columns carrying semi-circular arches - was filled-in and glazed by Smirke. The N and E walls of the courtyard appear to be largely late C19-early C20 work: the N wall at least associated with Bodley's work to create the dining room; E portal however is probably late C16 or early C17 (perhaps contemporary with the long gallery?): lozenge rusticated arch carried on Doric columns on high bases; entablature surmounted by twisted urns.The W portal into the courtyard post-dates the long gallery and may be an early C18 interpretation of the classical.
Old kitchen and servants quarters: These buildings form a continuation of the building line of the N curtain wall, immediately N of the main body of the castle. The 2 sections to the E are rubble-faced with brick dressings, and seem to be substantially of C17 date; the rubble embattled wall to the W conceals an earlier layout of buildings - this refronting was probably carried out by Smirke, who moved the domestic offices into these buildings during his restoration of 1820-30. Heavily detailed with bold roll mouldings, and corbelled crenellations.
Interior
Gate passage is canted in plan, with stone vaulted ceiling and two portcullis slots. The two flanking towers retain their internal layout and structure substantially intact, but elsewhere (with the exception of the E gate tower), the internal arrangement owes more to the C16-C17 than to the medieval period. The long gallery is the principle surviving feature of the late C16 period: its wainscoting is painted with trompe l'oeil panels, and the plasterwork of the deep frieze, overmantles and ceiling, all belong to this period. There are other surviving traces of this period in the plaster relief ceilings in window embrasures in the dining room and oak drawing room. Similar plasterwork in SW tower bedroom, with its wall panelling, may also be late C16-early C17.
The late C17 baroque remodelling was probably begun immediately after the Restoration, but its richer later character probably reflects the involvement of William Winde. The state bedroom for instance is largely c1660, although the balustrade which separates the bed alcove from the rest of the room may be slightly later - contemporary with the great staircase, and the panelled lower room in the N tower may also be c1660. The great staircase is attributed to William Winde, and was probably installed between 1673 and 1685, by the First Earl, William Herbert, whose coronet appears in the painted ceiling. The staircase is richly worked, and the symmetrically grouped doorcases at first floor, with enriched pulvinated friezes and scrolled volutes to pediments form part of a single composition with it. The ceiling over the staircase was painted by Antonio Verrio, and has been dated to 1673- 1685, while the wall paintings are by Lanscroon, and are dated 1705. Other late C17-early C18 interiors include the library with its ante-room, both with painted ceilings by Lanscroon (although the rest of the room was re-ordered by Smirke), and the panelled blue drawing room which opens off the head of the great staircase.
Smirke re-ordered the S range of the castle, moving the kitchens, and creating bedrooms in what are now the private apartments. The dining room and oak drawing room were re- modelled by Bodley in 1902-1904, in a Neo-Elizabethan idiom that drew on surviving earlier features in the house (the frieze of the long gallery forms the source for the oak drawing room frieze, for example), as well as sources from elsewhere.
Reasons for Listing
Powis Castle is an outstanding monument which charts a progression from medieval fortress to country house: the extensive survival of the medieval external structure forms the framework for a remarkable series of later interiors, amongst which those of the late C16, and the late C17 Baroque are of exceptional importance.
Seen from the car park on arrival.
The castle of Platamon is a fortress-town of the middle Byzantine period (10th century A.D.). It lies at the south-east foot of mount Olympos, at a strategic position which controls the route leading from Macedonia to Thessaly and South Greece.
Excavations conducted in 1995 brought to light the traces of a Hellenistic fortification, dated to the 4th century B.C. This confirms the suggestion that the site of the castle was occupied by the ancient city of Herakleion, "the first city of Macedonia..." after the Tempe valley, according to an ancient literary source dated to 360 B.C. Habitation on the site continued until the 4th century A.D. The Byzantine wall was restored by the Franks after 1204 and again by the Byzantines in the 14th century. At the end of the 14th century the fortress was captured by the Turks and was again rebuilt but its inhabitants continued to be Christians. In the Second World War (1941) it was bombed by the German army.
More info here
Château Guillard is a fictional castle from the video game Overwatch. It is based on many 17th century-era castles often seen in the south of France. This layout has been designed to fit with NILTC's train displays.
The very bottom of the castle.
My family at Castle Butte, Saskatchewan.
Situated in the Big Muddy Badlands, Castle Butte is a free-standing structure with a circumference of 0.5 km and an elevation of 60 m.
The south front of Thornbury Castle in South Gloucestershire. The rooms on the top floor are the original privy apartments. The present building was the castle that was built by Edward Stafford, third duke of Buckingham who rebuilt the castle in order to make it his principal seat. The building work started in 1507. Unfortunately for Buckingham, he was not to enjoy the castle for long as he was beheaded in 1521 on the orders of Henry VIII. The castle became crown property.
The next prominent individual connected to Thornbury was Princess Mary, Henry VIII’s daughter (later Queen Mary I). She stayed in Thornbury for several days on her route to Ludlow in 1525. She is said to have stayed in the room in the top right of the picture (with the opulent sixteenth-century windows).
Later Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn stayed in the castle during the royal summer progress of 1535. They intended to stay in the castle before going to the city of Bristol, although an outbreak of plague in the city prevented their visit and increased their time at Thornbury.
The castle was granted back to the Stafford during the reign of Queen Mary I in 1554 and they held the castle till 1727. The manor was then sold to the contemporary duke of Norfolk and given by the duke to his relative, Henry Thomas Howard in 1766. The Howard family held the castle till the 1960s when it was purchased by a private investor and the castle began a luxury hotel and restaurant. Visitors can stay in the rooms Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII and Mary I stayed in and dine in the fine Tudor hall.
Sometime in the 1920s/1930s. There are a few cars but a picture redolent of a lost age when buildings sprouted many advertising signs. From a contemporary postcard. See Paul Townsend's notes on Garlicks flic.kr/p/6aWe2k
Castle Knock is situated a little to the west of the town of Ballater in Royal Deeside. It is a simple tower house built in the late 16th century by the Gordon family.
Castle Class 5071 Spitfire pulls away from Dawlish Station in 1957 with a local train for Paignton. This stretch of line from Exeter to Newton Abbott was one of the busiest on Summer Saturdays when the population would take their two week Summer holiday, often to the resorts in Devon and Cornwall. Between March 1958 and February 1962 5071 was allocated variously at Worcester (85A) and Gloucester Horton Road (85B), but in February 1962 the loco made its final move to Bristol St Philips Marsh (82B). The loco was withdrawn in October 1963 and scrapped at Coopers Metals Sharpness.
The Patrick O'Brien Collection
Inside the castle Loevestein. I made this photo this dark, because there was little light in the castle in those days. In the window there was made a bench so the people could read or stitch by the light.
In english: Information about Loevestein
Ik heb deze foto expres donker gehouden. Vroeger was het ook zo donker in het kasteel en hebben ze banken gemaakt voor het venster zodat ze konden lezen of handwerken bij het licht. De vensterbanken :-)
Nederlands: informatie over loevestein
To the north of the castle proper, in the trees to the right of this photo, there extends an irregularly shaped courtyard, which follows the shape of the island. The walls of the courtyard facing the 'mainland' to the east are exceptionally thick and there are two entrances towards the north end - an unusual arrangment. It is not known whether these were both for boats or whether there was once an underwater causeway to the castle, as was sometimes the case with these island fortresses. The walling along the far north-west side of the island, of both courtyard and castle, is much thinner, but then there would have been even less threat from that side than from this south-east side.
Bamburgh Castle, from the beach, Bamburgh, Northumberland.
Built on a basalt outcrop, the location was previously home to a fort of the native Britons known as Din Guarie and may have been the capital of the British kingdom of the region from the realm's foundation in c.420 until 547, the year of the first written reference to the castle. In that year the citadel was captured by the Anglo-Saxon ruler Ida of Bernicia (Beornice) and became Ida's seat. It was briefly retaken by the Britons from his son Hussa during the war of 590 before being relieved later the same year.
His grandson Æðelfriþ passed it on to his wife Bebba, from whom the early name Bebanburgh was derived. The Vikings destroyed the original fortification in 993.
The Normans built a new castle on the site, which forms the core of the present one. William II unsuccessfully besieged it in 1095 during a revolt supported by its owner, Robert de Mowbray, Earl of Northumbria. After Robert was captured, his wife continued the defence until coerced to surrender by the king's threat to blind her husband.
Bamburgh then became the property of the reigning English monarch. Henry II probably built the keep. As an important English outpost, the castle was the target of occasional raids from Scotland. In 1464 during the Wars of the Roses, it became the first castle in England to be defeated by artillery, at the end of a nine-month siege by Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick.
The Forster family of Northumberland provided the Crown with twelve successive governors of the castle for some 400 years until the Crown granted ownership to Sir John Forster. The family retained ownership until Sir William Forster (d. 1700) was posthumously declared bankrupt, and his estates, including the castle, were sold to Lord Crew, Bishop of Durham ( husband of his sister Dorothy) under an Act of Parliament to settle the debts.
The castle deteriorated but was restored by various owners during the 18th and 19th centuries. It was finally bought by the Victorian industrialist William Armstrong, who completed the restoration.
The castle was built during the reign of polish king Kazimierz III the Great, in the second half of the 14th century. It was part of the defensive system of royal fortresses which protected the western border of the state on the Silesian side, and was knowned as the Eagles' Nests.
At the end of the last century, it's current owners, the Lasecki family, undertook the challenge of saving the Castle of Bobolice, which was almost completly ruined. Archeological work, commisioned by the family;s representatives, former senator Jarosław W. Lasecki, and his brother, Dariusz Lasecki, is being carried out with the assistance of Poland's leading scholars, as is work on securing and reconstructing the castle, with the aim of saving this historical building of national significance.
Gwrych Castle, Abergele. Built in 1819 as a private residence, it has been empty and decaying since the late 1980s. The castle resembles a movie set in a way, in that many of the tower & building fronts are fakes - the only habitable building of any size is the square one in the centre of the structure.
*Gabriella & Melanie * This castle cake was for a little princess celebrating her 1st birthday :-)
"eggless" vanilla cake with lime/coconut buttercream, "eggless" chocolate cake with oreo cookie buttercream, "eggless" vanilla cake with oreo cookie buttercream...
Gwrych Castle, Abergele. Built in 1819 as a private residence, it has been empty and decaying since the late 1980s. The castle resembles a movie set in a way, in that many of the tower & building fronts are fakes - the only habitable building of any size is the square one in the centre of the structure.
When Lady Brenda Steel Maitland died in 2003, she left the castle and estate to a kindly schoolmaster, Gordon Stewart who had befriended and looked after her in later life. The castle was in much need of restoration, having fallen into what was described as a state of aristocratic decay after the death of Lady brenda's husband, and after being put up for sale was bought by Scott and Lesley Seath. They set about restoring the castle, which they funded by sub-dividing the estate to form 5 luxury modern houses and 3 stable conversions. Apparently, the local council turned down the original plans which had the new buildings designed with a Scottish baronial flavour, preferring the juxtaposition of modern architecture and the old castle.
Swords Castle was built as the manorial residence of the Archbishops of Dublin around 1200 or a little later in Swords, just north of Dublin.
It was never strong in the military sense, but covers a large pentagonal walled area of nearly 1.5 acres (6,000 m²) with a tower on the north, probably the Constable's residence, and an impressive gateway complex on the south. The warder may have occupied the quarters to the left of the gate, while to the right was the janitor's room with the priest's room overhead. The adjoining chapel, built in the late thirteenth century, was probably used as the Archbishop's private oratory.
Other buildings, recorded for an inquisition in 1326, have now vanished, including the great hall on the east side of the enclosure. The Archbishop abandoned Swords once a new palace was built at Tallaght in 1324 - a move no doubt encouraged by damage sustained during Bruce's campaign of 1317. The stepped battlements suggest some form of occupancy during the fifteenth century, but by 1583, when briefly occupied by Dutch Protestants, it was described as "the quite spoiled old castle". It was used as a garden in the nineteenth century and sold after the Church of Ireland was disestablished.
The newly renovated castle was used as a film location for the production of TV series The Tudors in spring 2010.
Fortress (Festung) on a rock the height of which amounts to 90 m. In 1205, the fortress was mentioned as Castrum Caofstein in a document for the first time. It was enlarged several times. The most important tower, the round and impressive Kaiserturm, was built from 1518-22. Several times in its history, the fortress was used as a prison.
It was overcast and sometimes drizzly so the light and color wasn't all that good, that's why I used the Photomatix process on most of the pictures I took at Huntly Castle, to bring out the color and details. My booklet I purchased there said this would have originally been tinctured with coloured pigments.
Our "Historic Scotland" passes we'd bought in Edinburgh let us into Huntly Castle as well as other places.
Huntly Castle: Over a period of 600 years this site saw four different castles in three slightly different locations under two different names. And between them these castles were attacked or besieged at least eight times.
In about 1180, Duncan, Earl of Fife, built the first castle here. By early 1306, John of Strathbogie, by now both Earl of Fife and Earl of Atholl, was executed by Edward I for supporting Robert the Bruce (see our Historical Timeline). The castle passed to his son, David of Strathbogie. After years of family support for Robert the Bruce, which included his using the castle as a base in 1307, David of Strathbogie chose to shift his support to the English early in 1314. This was a bad move, coming just before Robert the Bruce's final victory at Bannockburn.
In response to this Robert the Bruce, granted the castle and the lands of Strathbogie to Sir Adam Gordon of Huntly, in Berwickshire, who had shown him more consistent loyalty. This brought the Gordons to Moray, and with them the name of Huntly that was later to replace Strathbogie.
In about 1410, Sir Alexander Seton, later Lord Gordon, cleared away the 230 year old wooden castle and replaced it with a stone tower house built at the north end of the bailey. Only the thick-walled foundations of the tower house now remain, visible on the north side of the castle courtyard. The tower house would have been accompanied by a defensive wall around the bailey area, and ranges of other supporting buildings.
This castle was burned by the Earl of Moray in 1452, a member of the Black Douglas family and an opponent of King James II. In retaliation the Earl of Huntly (as the head of the Gordon family had become) destroyed the Black Douglas family in Moray. The damaged tower house at Strathbogie was replaced in 1460 by a much grander building on the south side of the site, where all later development was to take place. Today only the cellars under the later palace remain of the 1460 building.
In 1506, Alexander, the third Earl of Huntly, was granted a charter changing the name of the castle and surrounding area from Strathbogie to Huntly, in effect fitting the geography to his title. The castle has since been known as Huntly Castle, and the town to its south also later became known as Huntly.
By 1550 George, the 4th Earl of Huntly, was also Lord Chancellor of Scotland and one of the wealthiest men in the kingdom. He rebuilt the castle above the basement level into a grand palace, finishing the work just in time for a visit by Mary de Guise, widow of James V and mother of Mary Queen of Scots. George's strong Catholicism and political independence were later to lead to his falling out with Mary Queen of Scots. On 28 October 1562 she defeated him at the Battle of Corrichie, near Aberdeen. George was killed in the battle, Huntly Castle was looted and George's younger son was executed.
Repairs were still underway when George, the 6th Earl of Huntly, joined a plot against James VI (son of Mary Queen of Scots) in 1594. The King's response was to attack the castle, damaging it again and blowing up the remains of the old tower house on the north side of the enclosure. By 1599 George had made his peace with James VI and been promoted to Marquis of Huntly. His response was a further round of building work at Huntly, designed to make the 1550 palace even grander and more decorative.
The remodelling around 1600 included the remarkable fireplaces on view in the palace, one of which is dated 1606, and the decorative oriel windows and inscription on the exterior of the upper floor of the palace. The inscription reads: George Gordon First Marquis of Huntlie 16 above Henriette Stewart Marquesse of Huntlie 02.
The architectural triumph of the palace that resulted was not to be enjoyed for long. The 2nd Marquis of Huntly backed the King in the Civil War and paid for it with his life. In 1640 Huntly Castle was occupied by the Covenanting Army. In 1644 it was held for the King by the Duke of Montrose. And in 1647 it was defended by Lord Charles Gordon against General Leslie's Covenanters, but starved into submission. The defenders were all executed. In 1650, King Charles II stayed en route to his coronation as King of Scotland.
Huntly Castle last played an active role in Scottish History in 1746, when it was held by Government Troops against the Jacobites. It later became a handy quarry for those building the town of Huntly before its value as an attractive ruin was appreciated in the late 1800s. It was passed into State care in 1923, and is now looked after by Historic Scotland.
Gwrych Castle in Abergele, North Wales. Originally built as a private residence in 1819, the castle once had a total of 128 rooms including the outbuildings, including twenty-eight bedrooms, an outer hall, an inner hall, two smoke rooms, a dining room, a drawing room, a billiards room, an oak study, and a range of accommodations for servants. There are nineteen embattled towers and the whole facade is over 2000 yards.
After various entertainment uses, it was abandoned in the late 1980s and, in the years following, was wrecked by thieves and vandals. A plan to convert it into a 5 star hotel was abandoned in 2009 when the owners went bust. Its future is now, once again, uncertain.