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Skipton Castle

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Drever
Drever
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5 out of 5
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Skipton Castle

  • June 18, 2009
  • Rated 5 of 5 by Drever from Ayr
Skipton Castle

The castle is one of the best-preserved 900-year old castles in England. It is both a tourist attraction and a private home.

Robert de Romille, a Norman baron built the first castle here in 1090. It consisted of a wooden Motte and Bailey, which proved unable to withstand attacks from the Scots. To defend better against them a stone keep soon replaced the original building - a sheer drop down the cliffs on one side, into the Eller Beck also made successful attacks more difficult. Skipton Town sat huddled beneath its castle for centuries, feeling safe in its closeness.

The Clifford Family became owners in 1310 and as you enter through the archway of the main gate you see, the family motto, "Henceforth" in French cut into the stone above the battlements. Robert Clifford appointed Lord Clifford of Skipton and Guardian of Craven ordered many improvements to the fortifications of the castle but died in the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 when these were barely complete. This marked the end of the English interference in Scottish affairs for a time.

During the English Civil War Sir John Mallory with a garrison of three hundred men held out in the castle for three years against a Parliamentary siege. Eventually the Royalists negotiated surrender terms with Oliver Cromwell who ordered the removal of the castle roofs and its defences.

In the 1650's Cromwell allowed Lady Anne Clifford, the last Clifford to own the castle, to restore it on the condition it would no longer have a serious defence. She had the upper parts of the round towers rebuilt but with much thinner walls than those below. To add light the outward facing walls had windows added for the first time and she had the outer curtain wall and gatehouse repaired.

The rainwater gutters carry the family arms and the year of the restoration, 1659. As a commemoration she planted a yew tree in the central courtyard to mark the Castle's repair from the Civil War.

The main castle consists of six drum towers, with a domestic range connecting the two towers on the northern side, protected by a precipice overlooking Eller Beck. The first floor comprises the original kitchen, great hall, withdrawing rooms and the lord's bedchamber. New kitchens, storage and work cellars make up the ground floor. The remaining towers are mainly military in nature and purpose. 16th and 17th century additions have created a new entrance staircase (replacing the original drawbridge), a further domestic wing, and new, larger windows in the walls.

Through the entrance is the Shell Room - throughout the walls are hundreds of mother-of-pearl shells, collected by the Clifford family over the years.

After climbing Lady Anne's steps, you find yourselves in a lovely little courtyard, the Conduit Court, so named because the castle's piped supply of spring water ended here. Growing here is Lady Anne’s yew tree. From this courtyard, you can enter most of the rooms. To the right of the castle open to the public, is the Tudor Wing, now a private home.
There is a free guide which explains the best way to explore the castle, it also means you follow a route in the same direction which is helpful as some of the passageways are narrow.

Open daily from 10am (Sundays 12 noon.) There are tea rooms, shop and picnic area. Parking is in the town.

From journal Three days in Harrogate

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