NORHAM CASTLE

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Castle originally built as a motte and bailey in 1121 for Bishop Flambard and rebuilt in stone circa 1157 by Richard of Wolviston for Bishop Puiset. Additions were made in the 13th century, including the great hall and south wall. The keep was remodelled between 1422-25. The last phase of construction was 1513-15 when rebuilding was carried out especially to the north wall for Bishop Ruthal. During the late 18th and early 19th century one of the south turrets was encased in a gothic cottage. Scheduled and listed. A possible outer enclosure encroaches into the field to the south (NT 94 NW 48). The castle lies within a possible Iron Age promontory fort (NT 94 NW 52), and there are various post-medieval artillery fortifications in the vicinity (NT 94 NW 53).

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[NT 906475] NORHAM CASTLE [NR]. (1)

See attached M.P.B.W. Guide. (2)

As described and in good condition. Open to the public. Published survey 1/2500 revised. (3)

Air photgraphs. (4)

NT 906476 Norham Castle. Scheduled. (5)

Norham Castle. Grade I. Ruined castle of the bishops of Durham. Originally a motte-and-bailey castle of 1121 for Bishop Flambard.
Rebuilt in stone c.1157 by Richard of Wolviston for Bishop Puiset. Of this period the keep and part of the masonry of walls and W gateway. C13 additions include the S wall of the outer ward and the great hall in the inner ward. The keep was extensively remodelled in 1422-25; finally much rebuilding, especially of the N wall, in 1513-15 for Bishop Ruthal. One of the turrets of S wall encased in Gothick cottage in the late C18 or early C19. Inner ward with keep forming SE corner. Outer ward with West Gate, the site of Sheep Gate in S curtain wall. Inner and outer moats. (6)

NT 9067 4756; NT 9064 4745. Norham Castle tower keep castle.
Scheduled RSM No 23229. The mound of the earliest castle is protected on the S side by a 20m wide ditch up to 10m deep and on the N by its own steep gradient and the River Tweed. The keep was complete by 1174. Full archaeological and historical account. (7)

In August 1999, English Heritage carried out a Level 1 field observation on Norham Castle (8).

A detailed architectural study of the castle, which proved that the keep was begun by Bishop Flambard as early as 1121, was published by P Dixon and P Marshall in 1993, and this contributed to a guidebook by A Saunders published in 1998 (8a, b).

The field observation identified what appears to be a defended enclosure in the field to the south of the castle (NT 94 NW 52), its interior filled with well-preserved broad ridge and furrow (NT 94 NW 48). The massive defences bank and ditch crossing the promontory to the SE suggest it to be contemporary with the castle and an integral part of its design and defensive strategy.

The moat of the outer ward has a substantial counterscarp bank; a stretch of c100m to the SE of the castle has been levelled, part of the material apparently going into the moat. The arcading within the adjacent rampart of the outer ward has been exposed by the removal of the earth along the same stretch, some of which is shown on a view of the castle by Samuel and Nathaniel Buck in 1728 (reproduced in 8b, page 4).

Main events in the castle's history listed by Cathcart King. (9)

Following the Field Observation in August 1999 (Source 8), in March 2002, English Heritage carried out a detailed field investigation and survey of the setting of Norham Castle (NT 94 NW 1) to improve understanding of both the castle itself and various earthworks in its vicinity (Event Record 1363798).

A full report on the Level 3 investigation, which includes full description and analysis, plans at various scales, photographs and interpretative drawings, is available through the NMR. The remainder of the archive material is also available (10).

A Medieval/post Medieval castle, centred at NT 9063 4758, is visible as a ruined building on air photographs. It is enclosed by two moats that are visible as earthworks on air photographs. The castle (situated on top of a Medieval motte) is as described by previous authorities. The innermost moat measures between 20m and 30m wide. It is, however, only visible on the south and west sides. Any further earthworks are obscured by trees. After the inner moat there is an outer bailey that measures 40m wide. This is enclosed by an outer moat that also measures 30m wide and is only visible to the south-east (on the air photographs available). (11)

The castle was described as ruinous in 1571 when Elizabeth I granted it to Lord Hunsdon. Full history of the castle. (12)

Norham Castle was in the Palatinate of Durham. The original castle of Bishop Flambard was destroyed by the Scots. It was rebuilt in stone by Bishop Hugh de Puiset soon after 1153 on the orders of Henry II. In 1173-4, Henry suspected the Bishop's loyalty and took the castle into his own hands until 1189, and during the vacancy of the Bishopric of 1208-1217 it was again taken into Crown hands. (13)

Despite several 16th century surveys commenting on the continual deterioration of Norham Castle, and its excellent defensive position, nothing was done to halt the decay and bring Norham back to defensive readiness. By 1596 it was totally indefensible. (14)

There are several gunports at Norham dating from 1509-13. (15)

Saunders thinks that the casemates in the curtain wall posr-date the destruction done to the castle in 1513, rather than 1509-1513. There are three low level casemates for guns mounted on flat beds. The wall is sufficiently wide to have supported guns on it. (16)

SOURCE TEXT

( 1) Ordnance Survey Map (Scale / Date)

OS 25" 1963

( 2) by C H Hunter-Blair and H L Honeyman 1991 Norham Castle

( 3) Field Investigators Comments

F1 DS 10-MAY-67

( 4a) Aerial photograph

xs/824-34/CN (J Dewar 7258/CN 1976)

( 4b) Aerial photograph

xs/305 RCAMS AP 1976

( 4) Externally held archive reference

RCAHMS NMR Archive card

( 5) English Heritage 1987 County list of Scheduled Ancient Monuments : December 1987

Northumberland Page(s)8

( 6) List of Buildings of Special Architectural or Historic Interest

Berwick Upon Tweed, 11-FEB-1988 1408 Page(s)41

( 7) Scheduled Monument Notification

25-MAY-1994

(8) Field Investigators Comments

English Heritage: Field Observation on Norham Castle (NT 94 NW 1)

(8a) by Philip Dixon, Pamela Marshall 1993 The great tower in the twelfth century: the case of Norham Castle

The archaeological journalvol 1 (1844)- Page(s)410-32

(8b) General reference

Saunders. A 1998. English Heritage guidebook to Norham Castle.

(9) David J Cathcart King 1983 Castellarium anglicanum : an index and bibliography of the castles in England, Wales and the Islands. Volume II : Norfolk-Yorkshire and the islands

2 - 1983 Page(s)339

(10) Field Investigators Comments

English Heritage: Norham Castle survey

(11) Oblique aerial photograph reference number

NMR NT 9047/20 (19834/54) 01-AUG-1971

(12) Dodds, JF 1999 Bastions and Belligerents: Medieval Strongholds in Northumberland

Page(s)27-30

(13) R Allen Brown, H M Colvin and A J Taylor 1963 The history of the King's Works, volume 2 : the Middle Ages

Page(s)749-50

(14) by H M Colvin ... [et al] 1982 The history of the King's Works, volume 4 : 1485-1660 (Part 2)

Page(s)679-82

(15) Fortress Study Group Fort : the international journal of fortification and military architecture

4, 1977 Page(s)83

(16) Fortress Study Group Fort : the international journal of fortification and military architecture

25, 1997 Page(s)37-59

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