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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.
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 The loco was withdrawn in October 1963 and scrapped at Coopers Metals Sharpness.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
The inner castle is entered from the outer courtyard by this arched gateway, 7 feet 6 inches wide and protected by a great round tower, the stump of which can be seen on the right. Behind the door, a vaulted passage leads to the inner courtyard, which was surrounded by the principal buildings, including a keep at the south corner.
There has been debate over the years about the order in which these buildings were builded! The usually reliable MacGibbon & Ross stated that the keep at the south corner was the oldest part, but it would appear that for once they were wrong. The oldest part of the castle seems to have been a simple oblong keep, the masonry of which is included here. A description of the castle written in 1898 states that:
"The original keep, containing the principal gateway, has been, strange to say, the best and most substantially built part of the whole structure. The outer walls are composed of blocks of stone all of the same size, squared and dressed, and laid regularly in courses nine to eighteen inches in height, but they are now bleached and weather worn with the storms of centuries. The heart of the wall has been packed with whinstone and other hard material, into which hot lime has been run, welding the whole into one solid mass. A close inspection of the lime in the walls reveals the fact that it had been burnt in open fires by the agency of coal, as numerous particles of unburnt coal are to be discerned mixed up with it. "
Rochester Castle stands on the east bank of the River Medway, in Rochester, Kent. It is one of the best-preserved castles of its kind in the UK. There has been a fortification on this site since Roman times (c AD43), though it is the keep of 1127 and the Norman castle which can be seen today. With the invention of gunpowder other types of defence became more appropriate, and the military centre of the Medway Towns moved to Chatham.
The Romans under Aulus Plautius built a fort on the site of the present castle to guard the important river crossing, where they constructed a bridge. There is evidence of an earth rampart later replaced by a stone wall. The timber piles of the Roman bridge were rediscovered during the construction of the present road bridge.
The Norman period commenced with the victory of William of Normandy at Hastings. He appointed his half brother Odo, Bishop of Bayeux, as Earl of Kent. Rochester's first Norman castle was probably of the motte and bailey type – a wooden tower and with palisades – on Boley Hill. This was the castle that was besieged by William Rufus during the Rebellion of 1088.
As a result of this siege, Bishop Gundulf was persuaded to build a stone castle with a curtain wall. It is not known how much, if any, of the surviving keep is his. Gundulf was a talented architect: he had started the building work on Rochester's Norman Cathedral in 1080, and was also responsible for the White Tower of the Tower of London.
Henry I granted the custody of the castle to the Archbishop of Canterbury, William de Corbeil. Corbeil started to build the great stone keep in 1127, much of which survives today. It is the tallest in England and has dominated the city and river crossing for 800 years.
In 1206, King John spent £115 on repairs to the castle and moat. He even preemptively held it during the year of the negotiations leading up to Magna Carta, but its terms forced him to hand it back into the custody of Stephen Langton, archbishop of Canterbury, in May 1215. The rebel barons then sent troops under William d'Aubigny to the castle, to whom its constable Reginald de Cornhill opened the castle's gates. During October, marching from Dover to London, John then found Rochester in his way and on 11 October began besieging it in person.
The rebels were expecting reinforcements from London but on hearing of the size of King John's army they turned back at Dartford. Robert Fitzwalter rode out to stop the king, fighting his way onto the bridge but eventually being beaten back into the castle. He also sacked the cathedral, took anything of value and stabled his horses in it, all as a slight to Langton. Orders were then sent to the men of Canterbury saying, "We order you, just as you love us, and as soon as you see this letter, to make by day and night, all the pickaxes that you can. Every blacksmith in your city should stop all other work in order to make them and you should send them to us at Rochester with all speed". Five siege engines were then erected and work carried out to undermine the curtain wall. By one of these means the king's forces entered and held the bailey in early November, and began attempting the same tactics against the keep, including undermining the south-east tower. The mine-roof was supported by wooden props, which were then set alight using pig-fat, on 25 November 1215 John had sent a writ to the justiciars saying "Send to us with all speed by day and night, fifty of the fattest pigs of the sort least good for eating so that we may bring fire beneath the castle" [2], causing the south-east tower of the keep to collapse. The rebels withdrew behind the keep's cross-wall but still managed to hold out. A few were allowed to leave the castle but on John's orders had their hands and feet lopped off as an example.
Winter was now setting in, and the castle was only taken (on 30 November) by starvation and not by force. John set up a memorial to the pigs and a gallows with the intention of hanging the whole garrison, but one of his captains (Savari de Mauleon) persuaded him not to hang the rebels since hanging those who had surrendered would set a precedent if John ever surrendered - only one man was actually hanged (a young bowman who had previously been in John's service). The remainder of the rebel barons were taken away and imprisoned at various royal-held castles, such as Corfe Castle. Of the siege - against only 100 rebels, and costing over a thousand pounds a day - the Barnwell chronicler wrote "No one alive can remember a siege so fiercely pressed and so manfully resisted" and that, after it, "There were few who would put their trust in castles".
King John died on October 19, 1216, so it fell to Henry III to repair the castle. He spent over a £1000 on rebuilding, with new stables and gateways, and a further ditch to strengthen the defences. A new chapel was built next to the Royal apartments in the bailey. The most notable surviving feature is the new south-east tower, which was rebuilt according to the latest defensive design and is three-quarters round better to deflect missile attack and work against attempts at undermining.
In 1264, the dissident barons, led by Simon de Montfort, attacked Rochester . They crossed the Medway under cover of the smoke from a fire-ship, and took the city. Like John before them, they quickly gained control of the castle bailey and then attempted to undermine the keep. This time the siege was not successful, being relieved after only a week by Henry himself. However, the rebels did burn down many of the buildings, including the Royal chambers. Repairs were not carried out until 1367, under Edward III, by which time much of the stone had been removed for other use.
The 15th century Wars of the Roses were not fought in Kent, so the castle was spared. It was briefly taken by Wyatt's men during his futile uprising of 1554. But with the invention of gunpowder and introduction of cannon, this form of castle was no longer so secure. It became expensive to maintain so fell into disrepair.
The castle is now maintained by English Heritage and is open to the public. The wooden flooring in the centre of the keep is gone, but many of the passageways and spiral staircases within the thickness of the walls are still usable. Decorative chevrons ornament the archways and the water well in the cross-wall is clearly visible. Visitors with a head for heights can climb 111 ft (34 m) to the battlements and enjoy a commanding view of the river and surrounding area.
Castle against the backdrop of the Firth of Forth crossings: the nineteenth-century rail bridge, the suspension road bridge (1964); the Queensferry Crossing (under construction - to open 2017).
15th-century castle, garrison fortress and state prison. Now a visitor attraction.
Blackness was used as a location in the following: Elsinore Castle in Franco Zeffirelli's Hamlet (1990); Fromt de Boeuf in BBC TV's Ivanhoe (1997); Macbeth (1997); Doomsday (2008); Outlander (2014).
Historic Scotland: www.historicenvironment.scot/visit-a-place/places/blackne...
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.
Cinderella Castle was completed in July 1971, after about 18 months of construction, and reaches to a height of 189 feet (57.6 meters) tall -- more than twice the size of Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. An optical trick known as forced perspective makes the Castle appear even larger than it actually is. As it becomes taller, its proportions get smaller. For example, using this method, the top spire of the Castle is actually close to half of the size it "appears." Major elements of the Castle were scaled and angled to give the illusion of distance and height, a method frequently used in Disney theme parks around the world.
Cinderella Castle appears to be made of white and grey stone with royal blue roofs on their turrets; the tops of several towers and two of the tallest spires are made with real gold and gold leaf. Despite appearances, no bricks were used in its construction; the inner structure is constructed of six-hundred tons of steel braced frame construction, and a 10-inch-thick (250 mm) reinforced concrete wall encircles the structure to the full height of the outermost "stone" walls. All of the steel and concrete works are supported on a concrete drilled caisson foundation. In spite of the fact that this is not a genuine fortress, it is the next best thing structurally speaking. Much less fiberglass is used than is popularly supposed. Rather, most of the exterior is a thick, very hard fiber-reinforced gypsum plaster that is supported by light-gauge metal studs. Most fiberglass work is reserved for the exterior walls of more ornate upper towers. The roofs are not fiberglass, either. They are shingled in the same type of plastic that computer monitor shells are made from, attached to a cone of light gauge steel sheeting over the steel sub-frame. These towers were lifted by crane, then welded and bolted permanently to the main structure. Contrary to a popular legend, the Castle cannot be taken apart in the event of a hurricane. It would take months to disassemble, it would be too dangerous to operate the 300-foot (91 m) crane required in windy conditions, and there would have to be a safer building to keep it in; it was simpler to design it to handle a hurricane. It can easily withstand the 110 mph (175 km/h) design wind speeds in Central Florida with a great deal of strength in reserve.
Cinderella Castle is also surrounded by a moat, which contains approximately 3.37 million gallons (12.76 megaliters) of water; however, unlike the drawbridge at Sleeping Beauty Castle in Disneyland, Cinderella Castle can not raise its drawbridge. There are a total of 27 towers on the castle, each numbered 1-29-- tower numbers 13 and 17 were deleted before construction when it was realized that they could not really be seen from anywhere in the park, due mainly to the other Fantasyland buildings. The tower with the clock in front is 10, the tallest is 20. 23 is the other golden-roofed tower.
Originally, a suite was planned for the Disney family and executives, but since Walt Disney died nearly five years before the park opened, it remained unfinished, and eventually was turned into an office. There are three elevators inside the castle. One is for guest use and goes between the lobby of Cinderella's Royal Table, and the second floor where the restaurant is. The second is for restaurant staff use, and is located in tower 2 to the left of the drawbridge. It has landings in the Utilidors, the mezzanine level in a break room, and on the second floor in the kitchen. The third elevator is in tower 20, and services the Utilidors, the breezeway, the kitchen of Cinderella's Royal Table, and the Cinderella Castle Suite. The suite is about 30 feet below the level where the cable is attached to tower 20. Access to the cable is by ladder. From January 2007 to December of 2009 the suite was used as a prize for the Disney Dreams Giveaway at the Walt Disney World Resort during the Year of a Million Dreams celebration.
Guests had an opportunity to spend a night in the castle if they win the Giveaway. Guests could be approached by a Disney cast member at any time in one of the four theme parks and informed that they have won a prize. The chance to stay in the Cinderella Castle Suite was just one of the many prizes.
Cinderella Castle was designed so that it was tall enough that it could be seen from the Seven Seas Lagoon in front of the Magic Kingdom, where many guests took ferries from the parking lot to the gates of the park. In theme park jargon, Cinderella Castle was conceived as the primary visual magnet (known in Disney parlance as a 'weenie') that draws new entering guests through Main Street, U.S.A. towards the central hub, from where all other areas can be reached.
The castle was repainted in the Fall of 2006, and now is a slightly off white, brown and pinkish color, and the turrets are a much darker blue
Walt Disney World-Magic Kingdom- Orlando Fl.
Corfe Castle is a fortification standing above the village of the same name on the Isle of Purbeck in Dorset. Built by William the Conqueror, the castle dates back to the 11th century and commands a gap in the Purbeck Hills on the route between Wareham and Swanage. The first phase was one of the earliest castles in England to be built using stone when the majority were built with earth and timber. Corfe Castle underwent major structural changes in the 12th and 13th centuries.
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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.
Looking at the dates involved, it is probably reasonable to assume that the Leslies built a simple castle here when they acquired the lands of Balquhain in the mid-14th century, and that it was this castle that was destroyed by the Forbeses in 1420. Following the death of Sir Andrew and the destruction of his castle, a new castle replaced the old, which lasted until 1526, and may still form the lower section of what remains today. Therefore most of what we see today, was built a century after the death of 'Red Andrew'.
Mary Queen of Scots was hospitably entertained here on her northern progress in 1562 and stayed the night on the eve of her army's destruction of the Gordons at the Battle of Corrichie. It remained the main seat of the family till 1690, when they moved themselves to Fetternear, an old summer residence of the Bishops of Aberdeen. Balquhain fell into disrepair and is said to have been finally burned by the Duke of Cumberland in the aftermath to the '45 Rebellion.
The remains of the chapel erected in a desperate attempt to save the soul of Sir Andrew Leslie from the fires of eternal damnation, still stand. The 'Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland' record its position at grid ref NJ 7098 2100. The surviving walls, within a small enclosure planted with ash and oak, reach a height of about 4 feet although one end of the building has been used for the dumping of stone cleared from nearby fields.
For me, one of the fascinations of places such as this (the chapel) is that the sparse remains of a building in a field, which to the uninitiated might be nothing more than a 19th century farm cottage, take on new interest the moment one knows a bit about its past.
After the Norman conquest of England in 1054, an Anglo-Norman lord built Pembroke Castle in 1089 as the Normans moved to subdue Celtic Wales, commencing a legendary contest of nationalities. The castle became the seat of the Earl of Pembroke, a hereditary position granted by the English crown. Nonetheless, over the centuries Pembroke served both as the center of English hegemony (including ownership by Richard II, the Lion-Hearted, of the House of Plantagenet) and as the locus of insurrections led by Welsh princes. In the 15th century, the first Tudor prince (later crowned Henry II, King of England) was born here to a 13 year-old mother of Plantagenet/Lancastrian descent and a noble Welsh father (deceased at the child’s birth) with Lancastrian connections. In the seventeenth century, at the start of the English Civil War, Pembroke allied with Parliament, but when its masters shifted allegience to the Crown, Oliver Cromwell arrived at Pembroke to lead a Parliamentary siege that recaptured the fortress. Cromwell encouraged the destruction of the castle, but it was rehabilitated in the late nineteenth and mid-twentieth centuries in recognition of its historical and architectural importance. Pembroke, Wales (1 June, 2017)
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.
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Caerphilly Castle is a medieval fortification in Caerphilly in South Wales. The castle was constructed by Gilbert de Clare in the 13th century as part of his campaign to maintain control of Glamorgan, and saw extensive fighting between Gilbert, his descendants, and the native Welsh rulers. Surrounded by extensive artificial lakes – considered by historian Allen Brown to be "the most elaborate water defences in all Britain" – it occupies around 30 acres (12 ha) and is the second largest castle in the United Kingdom. It is famous for having introduced concentric castle defences to Britain and for its large gatehouses. Gilbert began work on the castle in 1268 following his occupation of the north of Glamorgan, with the majority of the construction occurring over the next three years at a considerable cost. The project was opposed by Gilbert's Welsh rival Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, leading to the site being burnt in 1270 and taken over by royal officials in 1271. Despite these interruptions, Gilbert successfully completed the castle and took control of the region. The core of Caerphilly Castle, including the castle's luxurious accommodation, was built on what became a central island, surrounding by several artificial lakes, a design Gilbert probably derived from that at Kenilworth. The dams for these lakes were further fortified, and an island to the west provided additional protection. The concentric rings of walls inspired Edward I's castles in North Wales, and proved what historian Norman Pounds has termed "a turning point in the history of the castle in Britain".
The castle was attacked during the Madog ap Llywelyn revolt of 1294, the Llywelyn Bren uprising in 1316 and during the overthrow of Edward II in 1326–27. In the late 15th century, however, it fell into decline and by the 16th century the lakes had drained away and the walls were robbed of their stone. The Marquesses of Bute acquired the property in 1776 and under the third and fourth Marquesses extensive restoration took place. In 1950 the castle and grounds were given to the state and the water defences were re-flooded. In the 21st century, the Welsh heritage agency Cadw manages the site as a tourist attraction.
Caerphilly Castle was built in the second half of the 13th century, as part of the Anglo-Norman expansion into South Wales. The Normans began to make incursions into Wales from the late 1060s onwards, pushing westwards from their bases in recently occupied England. Their advance was marked by the construction of castles and the creation of regional lordships. The task of subduing the region of Glamorgan was given to the earls of Gloucester in 1093; efforts continued throughout the 12th and early 13th centuries, accompanied by extensive fighting between the Anglo-Norman lords and local Welsh rulers. The powerful de Clare family acquired the earldom in 1217 and continued to attempt to conquer the whole of the Glamorgan region.
In 1263, Gilbert de Clare, also known as "Red Gilbert" because of the colour of his hair, inherited the family lands. Opposing him in Glamorgan was the native Welsh prince Llywelyn ap Gruffudd. Llywelyn had taken advantage of the chaos of the civil war in England between Henry III and rebel barons during the 1260s to expand his power across the region. In 1265 Llywelyn allied himself with the baronial faction in England in exchange for being granted authority over the local Welsh magnates across all the territories in the region, including Glamorgan. De Clare believed his lands and power were under threat and allied himself with Henry III against the rebel barons and Llywelyn.
The baronial revolt was crushed between 1266 and 1267, leaving de Clare free to advance north into Glamorgan from his main base in Cardiff. De Clare started to construct a castle at Caerphilly to control his new gains in 1268. The castle lay in a basin of the Rhymney Valley, alongside the Rhymney River and at the heart of network of paths and roads, adjacent to a former Roman fort. Work began at a huge pace, with ditches cut to form the basic shape of the castle, temporary wooden palisades erected and extensive water defences created by damming a local stream. The walls and internal buildings were built at speed, forming the main part of the castle. The architect of the castle and the precise cost of the construction are unknown, but modern estimates suggest that it could have cost as much as castles such as Conwy or Caernarfon, perhaps as much as £19,000, a huge sum for the period.
Llywelyn responded by intervening with his own forces but outright conflict was prevented by the diplomatic efforts of Henry III. De Clare continued building work and in 1270 Llywelyn responded by attacking and burning the site, probably destroying the temporary defences and stores. De Clare began work again the following year, raising tensions and prompting Henry to send two bishops, Roger de Meyland and Godfrey Giffard, to take control of the site and arbitrate a solution to the dispute.
The bishops took possession of the castle later in 1271 and promised Llywelyn that building work would temporarily cease and that negotiations would begin the following summer. In February of the next year, however, de Clare's men seized back the castle, threw out the bishops' soldiers, and de Clare – protesting his innocence in these events – began work once again. Neither Henry nor Llywelyn could readily intervene and de Clare was able to lay claim to the whole of Glamorgan. Work on the castle continued, with additional water defences, towers and gatehouses added.
Llywelyn's power declined over the next two decades. In 1276 Henry's son, Edward I, invaded Wales following a dispute with the prince, breaking his power in South Wales, and in 1282 Edward's second campaign resulted in Llwelyn's death and the collapse of independent Welsh rule. Further defences were added to the walls until work stopped around 1290. Local disputes remained. De Clare argued with Humphrey de Bohun, the earl of Hereford, in 1290 and the following year the case was brought before the king, resulting in the temporary royal seizure of Caerphilly.
In 1294 Madog ap Llywelyn rebelled against English rule, the first major insurrection since the 1282 campaign. The Welsh appear to have risen up over the introduction of taxation and Madog had considerable popular support. In Glamorgan, Morgan ap Maredudd led the local uprising; Morgan had been dispossessed by de Clare in 1270 and saw this as a chance to regain his lands. Morgan attacked Caerphilly, burning half of the town, but failed to take the castle. In the spring of 1295 Edward pressed home a counter-attack in North Wales, putting down the uprising and arresting Madog. De Clare attacked Morgan's forces and retook the region between April and May, resulting in Morgan's surrender. De Clare died at the end of 1295, leaving Caerphilly Castle in a good condition, linked to the small town of Caerphilly which had emerged to the south of it and a large deer park in the nearby Aber Valley.
Gilbert's son, also called Gilbert de Clare, inherited the castle, but he died fighting at the battle of Bannockburn in 1314 while still quite young. The family's lands were initially placed under the control of the Crown, but before any decision could be taken on the inheritance, a revolt broke out in Glamorgan. Anger over the actions of the royal administrators caused Llywelyn Bren to rise up in January 1316, attacking Caerphilly Castle with a large force of men. The castle withstood the attack, but the town was destroyed and the rebellion spread. A royal army was despatched to deal with the situation, defeating Bren in a battle at Caerphilly Mountain and breaking the Welsh siege of the castle.
In 1317 Edward II settled the inheritance of Glamorgan and Caerphilly Castle on Eleanor de Clare, who had married the royal favourite, Hugh le Despenser.[] Hugh used his relationship with the king to expand his power across the region, taking over lands throughout South Wales. Hugh employed Master Thomas de la Bataile and William Hurley to expand the Great Hall at the castle, including richly carved windows and doors. In 1326, however, Edward's wife, Isabella of France, overthrew his government, forcing the king and Hugh to flee west. The pair stayed in Caerphilly Castle at the end of October and early November, before leaving to escape Isabella's approaching forces, abandoning the extensive stores and £14,000 held at the castle. William la Zouche besieged the castle with a force of 425 soldiers, cornering the constable, Sir John de Felton, Hugh's son – also called Hugh – and the garrison of 130 men inside. Caerphilly held out until March 1327, when the garrison surrendered on the condition that the younger Hugh was pardoned, his father having been already executed.
Tensions between the Welsh and the English persisted and spilled over in 1400 with the outbreak of the Glyndŵr Rising. It is uncertain what part the castle played in the conflict, but it seems to have survived intact. In 1416, the castle passed through Isabel le Despenser in marriage to her first husband Richard de Beauchamp, the earl of Worcester, and then to her second husband, Richard Beauchamp, the earl of Warwick. Isabel and her second husband invested heavily in the castle, conducting repairs and making it suitable for use as their main residence in the region. The castle passed to Richard Neville in 1449 and to Jasper Tudor, the earl of Pembroke, in 1486.
After 1486, the castle went into decline, eclipsed by the more fashionable residence of Cardiff Castle; once the sluice-gates fell into disrepair, the water defences probably drained away. Antiquarian John Leland visited Caerphilly Castle around 1539, and described it as having "waulles of a wonderful thiknes", but beyond a tower used to hold prisoners it was in ruins and surrounded by marshland. Henry Herbert, the earl of Pembroke used the castle for his manorial court. In 1583 the castle was leased to Thomas Lewis, who stripped it of much of its stone to extend his house, causing extensive damage.
In 1642 the English Civil War broke out between the Royalist supporters of Charles I and those of Parliament. South Wales was predominantly Royalist in sympathy, and during the conflict, a sconce, or small fort, was built overlooking Caerphilly Castle to the north-west, on the site of the old Roman fort. It is uncertain if this was built by Royalist forces or by the Parliamentary army that occupied the area during the final months of the war in March 1646, but the fort's guns would have dominated the interior of the castle. It is also uncertain whether or not Caerphilly Castle was deliberately slighted by Parliament to prevent its future use as a fortification. Although several towers had collapsed by the 18th century, possibly as a result of such an operation, it is probable that this deterioration was actually the result of subsidence damage caused when the water defences retreated, as there is no evidence of deliberate destruction having been ordered
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.
Matsumoto Castle in Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture, Japan.
Matsumoto castle is one of the oldest original castles in Japan, and one of the two "black" castles still standing.
Stokesay Castle is a fabulous 13th century stone manor house with a stunning yellow and black half-timbered 17th century gatehouse. It was built by a very wealthy wool merchant, Laurence of Ludlow, between 1285 and 1291 after Edward I’s conquest of Wales in 1284. Laurence was wealthy enough to lend money to Edward I, as well as many of the great lords of the Welsh borderlands. He drowned when his ship transporting wool to Flanders sank in a storm in 1294 but his descendants remained lords of the manor at Stokesay until 1498.
The Great Hall is the earliest part of the castle, with its oak roof and staircase dating to its original construction in the 1280s, making it one of the oldest such structures surviving in Britain. The fabulous gatehouse was added in 1640-41 just before the Civil War when it was in the ownership of William Craven, a Royalist. The castle surrendered peacefully in 1645 and was left largely intact except for the curtain wall which was demolished.
William Craven recovered all his estates after Charles II’s restoration in 1660 but he did not return to Stokesay. It was occupied by tenant farmers, the Baldwyn family, who remodelled the Solar (living room) in the 1660s with wood panelling and the elaborately carved wooden fireplace overmantle which was originally brightly painted. The Baldwyns left in the early 18th century and subsequent tenants let the buildings deteriorate, the Solar, for example, being used as a granary. In 1869 John Derby Allcroft, a successful London glove manufacturer, bought the estate, and began an extensive and unusually sympathetic programme of repairs which restored the main structure of the castle to its original state.
Bouzov Castle (Czech: Hrad Bouzov) is an early 14th-century fortress first mentioned in 1317.[1] It was built on a hill between the village of Hvozdek and the town of Bouzov, 21 kilometres (13 mi) west of Litovel and 28 kilometres (17 mi) northwest of Olomouc, in Moravia, Czech Republic. The castle has been used in a number of film productions lately, including Arabela, Fantaghirò, and Before the Fall.
History
Owners
Bouzov was established at the turn of the 14th century with the purpose to watch over the trade route from Olomouc to Loštice. The minor aristocratic Bůz of Bludovec family were its first recorded owners from 1317 to 1339.[2] The castle also takes its name from the family. Ownership of the castles was then changed, and the Lords of Kunštát were among the most important medieval owners. According to tradition, the Bouzov castle is often connected with name of the most famous member of this noble dynasty, Jiří z Poděbrady was born in Bouzov in 1420 and was crowned Czech King in 1458. His original title was Jiří of Kunštát and Bouzov. In 1558 the castle burned down, and lost much of its majestic quality. In the course of centuries there were several changes of proprietors; the castle was owned by the lords of Vildenberk, margrave Jošt, the Haugvic and the Pod Štatský families, and in 1696 the barony was bought by the grand master of the Teutonic Order, the Rhenish palsgrave Fanciscus Ludovicus.
Vildenberks period
As various noble families changed possession of Bouzov, in a similar way also its appearance was changed from an early gothic castle to a Renaissance style. In the time of the lords of Bouzov, the castle played mostly a defensive and guarding role. It probably consisted of a tower and rampart and wooden dwelling houses. The Vildenberks built a stony manor on the western side which was taller than the rampart. Already in the 14th century the castle was significantly widened - a settlement with outhouses was constructed with a ditch and circumvallation, rampart with a 200-foot-high (61 m tall) watchtower and a moat wall built around the castle. During the rule of the Kunštát family, the manor was fortified with a new connected rampart with two bastions, and the moat wall was rebuilt with five round bastions. Later a round gun-bastion was erected and the tallest watchtower was repaired.
From the 15th to 19th century
In 1408 the castle passed into the hands of Viktorin of Bouzov. In 1499 the Haugvics started the construction of a palace on the eastern side and connected the northern and southern dwelling building. In the first half of the 15th century it was converted into a Hussite stronghold, serving as a prison for captured Swedes during the Thirty Years war. In the second half of the 16th century the castle burned out and remained uninhabited.
About a hundred years later, the reconstruction of the castle began again with the remodeling of the southern wing. At that time the castle had already lost its defensive function and became an utterly dwelling object. With the arrival of the Teutonic Order, during the 18th century the castle also lost this function. Only the building in the outer settlement remained inhabited, and by the end of the 19th century the ruin of the castle became a tourist goal.
From the 15th to 19th century
In 1408 the castle passed into the hands of Viktorin of Bouzov. In 1499 the Haugvics started the construction of a palace on the eastern side and connected the northern and southern dwelling building. In the first half of the 15th century it was converted into a Hussite stronghold, serving as a prison for captured Swedes during the Thirty Years war. In the second half of the 16th century the castle burned out and remained uninhabited.
About a hundred years later, the reconstruction of the castle began again with the remodeling of the southern wing. At that time the castle had already lost its defensive function and became an utterly dwelling object. With the arrival of the Teutonic Order, during the 18th century the castle also lost this function. Only the building in the outer settlement remained inhabited, and by the end of the 19th century the ruin of the castle became a tourist goal.
Description
An eight-storey watchtower, 58 metres (190 ft) high, dominates the complex. The buildings are grouped around it in the form of a horseshoe, and the castle is enhanced by a number of towers, and among other things, bastions, battlements, oriel windows and loopholes. The two long bridges, ending with a short drawbridge, span the deep dry moat around the castle. The knights' hall, armoury, which is in one of the few original rooms with preserved Gothic vaulting, bedrooms of the knights and a neo-gothic chapel with its Gothic altar and tombs occupy the central part of the castle. The valuable furniture comes from the private collection of Eugen von Habsburg and the collection of the Order of the Teutonic Knights. Since 1999 the castle has been a national monument
Castle Leslie Estate, Glaslough, County Monaghan, Ireland.
Canon EOS 300 v with Kodak ColorPlus 200 film.
The bricks for this MOC came from mainly the trusty old 7094 Kings Castle (2007), rebuilt in the new Kingdoms style, as in the new 7946 King's Castle.
Augmented with Kingdoms sets 7949 Prison Carriage Rescue, 7950 Knights Showdown and 7953 Court Jester.
This is the first time I have taken pictures of my LEGO Modulex castle. Its been in photos before in other people's photostreams, but this is the first time I have taken detailed pictures of it... Unfortunately these are the last time I will be taken pictures of it since I have scheduled it for demolition. :(
It's been a good long run of shows this has been displayed at, a lot of NILTC shows, a few Brickworlds, and a LEGO Kidsfest.
Its been a good run, but My Modulex collection is in need of reorganizing and sorting an this castle is starting to fall apart, and I want to build something else.
It's been fun old friend, may your pieces live on in many other MOCs. :.)
Hastings Castle is situated in the town of Hastings, East Sussex
Before or immediately after landing in England in 1066 William of Normandy ordered three fortifications to be built, Pevensey Castle in September 1066, Hastings (before the Battle of Hastings) and Dover, a few days after the battle. Hastings Castle was originally built as a motte-and-bailey castle near the shore. In 1070 William had issued orders for the Castle to be rebuilt in stone, along with the St Mary's Chapel.
The Count of Eu held the castle for most of the Norman period, but King John ordered that the castle be destroyed to prevent it falling into the hands of the Dauphin Louis. In 1220, Henry III re-fortified the castle.
In 1287 violent storms battered the south coast for many months and the soft sandstone cliffs eventually succumbed to the elements. Large sections of the face fell into the sea along with parts of the castle.
In 1339 and 1377, the town was attacked by the French leaving many burnt buildings which included homes. Throughout the next century erosion was unchecked and gradually more of the castle was lost to the sea. The mid 16th century saw the castle receive another blow as Henry VIII commissioned that all Catholic monasteries were to be destroyed and this left the site in decay for many years. After that the site was purchased by the Pelham family and used for farming until the ruins had become so overgrown they were lost from memory.
During World War II, the castle received more damage as Hastings was a target for bombing raids. In 1951 the Hastings Corporation purchased the site and converted it into a tourist attraction.
The castle consists of 100 independent buildings that were gradually connected to become the building as it stands now.The oldest parts of the castle have not been definitively dated, but the first written record of the castle is in 1160. From the mid 12th century, the castle was home to the Counts of Savoy, and it was greatly expanded in the 13th century by Pietro II. The Castle was never taken in a siege, but did change hands through treaties.
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.
These stained glass lamps on the walkway to Cinderella Castle don't get noticed all that much, but sure do add a lot to the theming and look of the castle. It's all of the little details in Disney Parks that make them much more than just the standard amusement park.
Angelokastro (Αγγελόκαστρο, "Castle of Angels" or "Angelos' castle") is one of the most important fortified complexes on Corfu. It is situated at the rocky shores on the north-west coast of Corfu. The fortress was built on a natural promontory which gave an excellent defensive position, due to the sheer inclines to the north, west and south, and provided a view of almost entire south Adriatic.
The origin of its name is not completely clear, with some historians mentioning that in 1214 Michael I Komnenos Doukas, Despot of Epirus, sometimes called Michael Angelos, annexed Corfu to Epirus and following his death, Michael II Komnenos Doukas, often called Michael Angelos in narrative sources, further fortified the area and named it after himself and his father: Angelokastro. The Despots were related to the Komnenoi dynasty of Byzantine emperors.
It can be reasonably assumed that since Byzantium lost its dominion over southern Italy in 1071 AD, the Komnenoi must have paid a lot of attention to the castle since Corfu by default became the frontier to the west of the Byzantine Empire between the 11th and 12th centuries, serving to separate and defend Byzantium from its dangerous foes to the west. After the Crusaders took Constantinople in 1204, Corfu fell into the hands of a variety of invaders until 1267 when it was occupied by the Angevins of Naples. Shortly thereafter the Angevins took over Angelokastro. The takeover is documented in a rare manuscript of the time confirming the change of ownership of the castle. The manuscript is the oldest written reference to the castle.
In 1386, the castle came under the ownership of the Most Serene Republic of Venice. Throughout the period of the Venetian rule the castle enjoyed great prominence because it offered protection to the locals from foes such as the Genoan pirates to the west as well as the Turks to the east.
The Venetians, being the prominent maritime power of the era, used it to monitor the shipping lanes in the southern Adriatic and the Ionian sea. The Castellan of the castle was appointed by the city of Corfu and was a nobleman whose family name was included in the Venetian originated Libro d'oro (Golden Book), a list of the aristocratic families of Corfu.
In 1403, a Genoese pirate fleet made an attempt to occupy Angelokastro. The Genoan pirates burned and pillaged the surrounding area. Then they attempted to occupy the castle. After furious battles with the Corfiot garrison, they were ultimately repulsed.
In August of 1571, the Turks made another of many attempts at conquering Corfu. Having seized Parga and Mourtos from the Greek mainland side they attacked the Paxos island, killing, looting and burning. Subsequently they landed on Corfu's southeast shore and established a large beachhead all the way from the southern tip of the island at Lefkimi to Ipsos in Corfu's midsection of the eastern part of the island. These areas were thoroughly pillaged and burnt as in past encounters.
The Turks also attacked Angelokastro at that time trying to establish a beachhead at the northwestern part of the island, but the garrison at Angelokastro stood firm. These Turkish defeats both at the city castle in the east and Angelokastro in the west proved decisive and the Turks abandoned their attempt at conquering Corfu.
With the advent of modern warfare the castle's importance declined and gradually it fell into a state of disrepair. The passage of time did to the castle what no aspiring conqueror could.
Ruined castle in Klevan, Ukraine. It is not very far from the Tunnel of Love. I don't remember the distance, but it couldn't be no more than a 5 minute car ride.
OK, not really a Lego castle, just reminds of :-)
more at: my blog
Mirror labyrinth in Prague, Petrin hill.
Blarney Castle, near Cork, Ireland , home of the famous "Blarney Stone !"
The Blarney Stone is a block of bluestone built into the battlements of Blarney Castle, Blarney about 8 km from Cork, Ireland. According to legend, kissing the stone endows the kisser with the gift of gab (great eloquence or skill at flattery). The stone was set into a tower of the castle in 1446. The castle is a popular tourist site in Ireland, attracting visitors from all over the world to kiss the Stone and tour the castle and its charming gardens.
The word blarney has come to mean clever, flattering, or coaxing talk.