Dunstanburgh Castle
 Castles |
Dunstanburgh is an outstanding example of one of the mighty northern strongholds built in the 14 th century, uninhabited now for well over 500 years. Like Bamburgh Castle, a little way up the coast, Dunstanburgh is perched high on a natural rocky promontory that reaches out into the sea, which meant that huge curtain walls were unnecessary on much of its perimeter. Protected on two sides by sheer cliffs and wild seas the remaining castle walls were guarded by a natural gully and an eighty-foot wide artificial ditch, which left the castle almost an island. Even today the ruined fortress is only accessible by foot, a trek of a mile-and-a-half over rolling moorland that slides away toward the ragged coastline.
It is possible that an earlier stronghold stood on the site, but the one that remains to us was built in the early 14 th century by Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, a grandson of Henry III. Quite likely the Earl chose this remote spot for his mighty fortress with the very recent defeat of Edward II's English army at Bannockburn (1314) still uppermost in his mind. The fortified area is an enormous 10-acres, sufficient to protect all the local people, together with their cattle, against Scottish incursions. The architect of this giant fortress was Master Elias, the mason, who had worked under James of St George, the mastermind behind many of Edward I's glorious castles. As a result it is not surprising that the main defence lay in the huge gatehouse, which also contained the great hall and the other state apartments.
Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, was one of the most powerful men in the realm and led the English barons in open revolt against Edward II in the early 1300's. When Edward came to the throne in 1307, he was already treated with suspicion by many of the lords because of the influence upon him of his lover, Piers Gaveston. Eventually the barons had Gaveston tried by a kangaroo court and executed, the Earl of Lancaster being their ringleader. For eighteen months the country was on the point of civil war, until in October 1313 Edward pardoned the barons. Dunstanburgh was completed in about 1325 and the vastness of its enclosure may well have been intended to house a large army should civil war break out.
Further modernisation took place during 1380-4, when another head of the House of Lancaster, John of Gaunt, son of Edward III who had married the heiress to the dukedom, took over the castle. As lieutenant of the Scots Marches, the Duke ensured that Dunstanburgh remained an impregnable fortress and an effective bulwark against marauding Scots raiders. He carried out substantial alterations and closed up the entrance to the great gatehouse making it the principal residential building. In promoting the gatehouse to the role of keep it required additional protection, thus John created an inner and outer bailey from the existing large enclosure. The inner ward was placed directly behind the gatehouse where it could be defended from the rest of the castle. Many of the other buildings constructed at the behest of John of Gaunt have long since disappeared, although some fragmentary remains of the curtain wall can still be traced. Another gatehouse was now required and a second one was constructed further along the curtain wall to the left of the original with a protecting barbican, but little more than its foundations survive to us.
During the Wars of the Roses, 1455-85, Dunstanburgh, like the neighbouring strongholds of Alnwick and Bamburgh, was held for the Lancastrian cause, but was forced into surrender in 1464. Unlike the other fortresses however, Dunstanburgh's history was more or less at an end, for it was never restored and gradually fell into decay - it had played an active role in English affairs for less than 150 years. Famously painted by Turner in the 19 th century, it was then pretty much the ruin viewed today.
Despite centuries of neglect the castle remains are considerable, in particular the massive gatehouse with its twin round towers either side of an arched entrance, originally standing four storeys tall and topped with two towers. The other main remnants are a stretch of curtain wall to the right of the gatehouse with projecting square towers and a rectangular structure called the Lilburn Tower. This building is situated precariously near the edge of the cliff on the west curtain wall and was employed as a watchtower. Built in the 14 th century it has survived remarkably better than the later buildings and its position, looking out to sea, lends its broken stones dramatic appeal. Along the south curtain wall are the relics of the Constable's Tower and Egyncleugh Tower, while nearby the former are the sparse foundations of a range of buildings.
From the surviving structures it is possible to imagine the dramatic impact this imposing castle would have made in the medieval period especially when lashed by high seas and wild gales.