On my second day in Bamburgh, I enjoyed a relaxed morning and breakfast at my hotel, and then headed directly to the castle in order to be there when it opened. Rather than entering the interior right away with the bulk of the other early visitors, I decided to tour the exterior first.
Now, it must be said that many of the structures to be seen today at Bamburgh Castle are actually quite modern and date from restorations done in the late 19th and early 20th century. The castle’s recorded history, though, begins in 547 when Ida the Flamebearer, an Anglo-Saxon king, choose the site to be the royal capital for his Kingdom of Bernicia, later to become the Kingdom of Northumbria when his grandson and successor, Aethelfrith the Ravening Wolf (what a name!) added Yorkshire to his lands.
A royal capital of Northumbria for the next 400 years, the second of two major Viking raids saw Bamburgh’s fortifications left in ruins for nearly 100 years. The castle was then rebuilt by the Normans and eventually became the stronghold of a succession of British Kings and noble families. Greatly damaged during the War of the Roses in the mid 1500s, it was the first castle in England to be defeated by artillery.
The fortunes of the castle and its owners waxed and waned over the next several hundred years, and by the late 19th century, the castle had been in ruins for some time when it was bought by William Armstrong, a wealthy inventor, industrialist, and philanthropist who purchased the castle (at the age of 84!) for the price of 60,000 British pounds. He then spent over a million pounds to restore it, and he filled it with his large and valuable collection of artworks, portraiture and ceramics. With his death at age 90, the castle passed to his great nephew who continued the restorations and choose it to be his family’s residence. The castle has remained in the Armstrong family ever since and today is one of the largest inhabited castles in Britain.
Phew! That is a very condensed summary of over 1400 years of history!
Stairs led up to this walkway along the top of the inner wall, and I was able to look down onto the battery terrace below, lined with a collection of cannons, and beyond that an access road, dunes, the beach, and the North Sea.
From the Inner Ward, I then walked towards and around the massive Keep to marvel at this view of its north face, and then the view north of the castle grounds, the round tower of the Windmill, and the dunes, beach and sea.
From the Keep, I walked down to the lawned area and then left towards the western wall of the castle. From the high wall, I had a view over the village of Bamburgh and of the playing field I had walked across the day before. A huge bicycle was chalked onto the lawn to celebrate an upcoming bicycle race on the Northumbrian coastal road. I had seen the chalked lines when I was on the field but had no idea they formed a bicycle!
Here is the view as I approached the Windmill tower.
And then, from the tower, are views towards the village, north up the coast, and looking back towards the castle.
Here are a few more photos from the exterior of Bamburgh Castle.
King Oswald, mentioned on the sign above, was one of the sons of Aethelfrith and is known for helping to spread Christianity throughout northern England during his reign as King of Northumbria. At his invitation, the Irish monk Aidan came to Northumbria from the monastery of Iona in 635. He preached throughout the region, established a church at Bamburgh, and founded the monastery on Lindisfarne. One day, I hope to revisit beautiful Northumberland and walk Saint Oswald’s Way, a 97 mile (156 km) long-distance route that begins on Lindisfarne (yes!) and ends at Hadrians Wall.
Now, we jump ahead nearly 1400 years to this image!
Housed in the Armstrong Aviation museum, this motorcar was manufactured in 1936 by Armstrong Sidderly Motors, one of the companies associated with Lord Armstrong’s business empire. (The company continued producing cars until 1960 when it was bought by Rolls Royce.) Born in 1810, William Armstrong, later Lord Armstrong, was an engineer, businessman, and inventor. His house at Cragside Estate was the first in the world to be lit by electricity! He and his companies were responsible for many early technological innovations in the design and production of hydraulic cranes, aircraft, airships, motor cars, armaments, and more. When he died at age 90, he was still actively involved in his companies and had an employment force of over 25,000!
After my explorations of the castle grounds and the Aviation Museum, I decided to have a little break. Oh, the joys of an English tea room!
Refreshed and re-energized by my lovely tea and cream scone, I entered the castle and began my tour of the interior, happy to have been given an audio headset which provided fascinating information and stories about the history of the castle and its rooms, artefacts, and inhabitants over time. Several of the fourteen rooms available for viewing are pictured below.
Artefacts in the Armoury Museum which is housed in the 12th century keep.
After my wonderful visit to the castle, I walked through the village to visit St. Aidan’s church and spent a few moments there resting in its peaceful interior.
In the churchyard, there is a memorial to Grace Darling, a lighthouse keeper’s daughter who became widely known and celebrated after she and her father performed a harrowing rescue of sailors, clinging to a small rocky islet of the Farne Islands during a powerful storm as their ship was sinking. The sign below is located adjacent to her resting place, and the other images are from the excellent Grace Darling museum which sits directly across from the church. As well as telling the dramatic story of the rescue, the museum also provides a glimpse into the challenges of living as a family of lighthouse keepers on a small, isolated, and sea-battered island.
After my visit to the church and museum, I had a late lunch/early dinner, rested for a few moments in my hotel room, and then headed back out, excited to explore the beach north of the castle.
The next series of photos alternate between views looking back at Bamburgh Castle, and forward towards the Bamburgh lighthouse as I walked north.
I climbed the small dune behind the lighthouse to sit for a moment and enjoy the view and the prettiness of some daisies.
Then, I descended back down to the rocks and continued north towards the stunning beach that I knew lay ahead, the sands of Budle Bay.
What a beach! I looked back at the lighthouse…
then continued forward again to a beach, sea, and sky that was there just for me.
I walked for perhaps another kilometre before I reached an impasse, Budle Water, the combined outflow at Budle Bay of Warren Burn and Ross Low.
I walked inland beside the river for a ways and then turned to climb into the dunes, looking for a trail that might lead across the dunes back towards Bamburgh village.
There was no trail easily visible, and my brain and body together decided that I probably wasn’t up to the challenge of going up and down and around the slippy-slidey dunes. So, I retraced my steps, happily, back down the wide golden expanse of the beach to the castle, then the village, then up to my room under the eaves. Thank you, Bamburgh, for another day of fabulous history and magnificent natural beauty.
I was just quickly scrolling through your pictures (with the intention to go back to your post later) and my eye caught on the photo of a painting of a girl in a rowboat, in a stormy sea. That photo itself brought to mind a story I read recently, I don’t even remember where. But the details of the impossible situation of the survivors of a shipwreck that clung to freezing cold slippery sharp rocks always stayed with me, and the girl and her father going out to save them, in spite of how treacherous it was. It was a very sad story not everyone was saved, including two children and a clergyman. I didn’t remember the girl’s name. Sure enough that memorial on your trip was to Grace Darling. A name I won’t forget again. With a name like that we could all be heros!
What beautiful views from the castle but can you imagine how cold it must have been when it was occupied? Brrr!