Warkworth Castle Warkworth Castle is a ruined medieval building in the town of the same name in the English county of Northumberland . The town and castle occupy a loop of the River Coquet , less than a mile from England ' s north - east coast . When the castle was founded is uncertain : traditionally its construction has been ascribed to Prince Henry of Scotland in the mid - 12th century , but it may have been built by King Henry II of England when he took control of England ' s northern counties . Warkworth Castle was first documented in a charter of 1157 – 1164 when Henry II granted it to Roger fitz Richard . The timber castle was considered " feeble " , and was left undefended when the Scots invaded in 1173 . Roger ' s son Robert inherited and improved the castle . Robert was a favourite of King John , and hosted him at Warkworth Castle in 1213 . The castle remained in the family line , with periods of guardianship when heirs were too young to control their estates . King Edward I stayed overnight in 1292 and John de Clavering , descendant of Roger fitz Richard , made the Crown his inheritor . With the outbreak of the Anglo - Scottish Wars , Edward II invested in castles including Warkworth where he funded the strengthening of the garrison in 1319 . Twice in 1327 the Scots besieged the castle without success . John de Clavering died in 1332 and his widow in 1345 , at which point Henry de Percy , 2nd Baron Percy , took control of Warkworth Castle , having been promised Clavering ' s property by Edward III . Henry Percy , 1st Earl of Northumberland , added the imposing keep overlooking the village of Warkworth in the late 14th century . The fourth earl remodelled the buildings in the bailey and began the construction of a collegiate church within the castle , but work on the latter was abandoned after his death . Though Algernon Percy , 10th Earl of Northumberland , supported Parliament during the English Civil War , the castle was damaged during the conflict . The last Percy earl died in 1670 . In the mid - 18th century the castle found its way into the hands of Hugh Smithson , who married the indirect Percy heiress . He adopted the name " Percy " and founded the dynasty of the Dukes of Northumberland , through whom possession of the castle descended . In the late 19th century , the dukes refurbished Warkworth Castle and Anthony Salvin was commissioned to restore the keep . Alan Percy , 8th Duke of Northumberland , gave custody of the castle to the Office of Works in 1922 . Since 1984 English Heritage has cared for the site , which is a Grade I listed building and a Scheduled Ancient Monument . History . Early history . Although the settlement of Warkworth in Northumberland dates back to at least the 8th century , the first castle was not built until after the Norman Conquest . The town and its castle occupied a loop of the River Coquet . The castle was built at the south end of the town , guarding the narrow neck of the loop . A fortified bridge also defended the approach to the town . The surrounding lowland countryside was favourable for agriculture . When the castle was founded and by whom is uncertain , though traditionally Prince Henry of Scotland has been thought responsible . With civil war in south - west England , King Stephen of England needed to ensure northern England was secure . To this end , the Treaty of Durham in 1139 between Scotland and England ensured peace . Under the treaty Henry of Scotland became Earl of Northumbria in exchange for ceding control of the castles at Bamburgh and Newcastle to the English . Without them Henry would have needed a new seat from which to exercise his authority , and a new castle at Warkworth may have met the requirement . However , charters show that Henry still controlled Bamburgh Castle after the treaty , and as Warkworth was a modest castle by contemporary standards it may be have been founded by someone else . Henry died in 1152 and his son , Malcolm ( crowned King of Scotland in 1153 ) , inherited his lands . In 1157 Malcolm travelled to Peveril Castle in Derbyshire , where he paid homage to the new King of England , Henry II . Malcolm surrendered England ' s northern counties to Henry , including the castles of Bamburgh , Carlisle , and Newcastle , and probably Appleby , Brough , Wark , and Warkworth , though it is possible that Henry II founded Warkworth Castle in 1157 to secure his lands in Northumberland ; other contemporary castles in the area were built for this purpose , for instance the one at Harbottle . The first mention of Warkworth Castle occurs in a charter of 1157 – 1164 from Henry II granting the castle and surrounding manor to Roger fitz Richard , a member of a noble Norman family . It has been suggested that this charter may have used the term castle to describe a high - status residence on the site , possibly dating from the Anglo - Saxon period , meaning Roger may have built the castle . He owned lands across a wide area , and Warkworth may have been of little significance in the context of his other holdings . When the Scots invaded Northumberland in 1173 , although Roger fitz Richard was in the county Warkworth Castle was not defended by its garrison . Its defences at the time were described as " feeble " . In 1174 Duncan II , Earl of Fife , raided Warkworth . The contemporary record does not mention the castle , and instead notes Warkworth ' s inhabitants sought refuge in the church . When Roger fitz Richard died in 1178 his son and heir , Robert fitz Roger , was still a child . A guardian looked after the family estates until Robert came of age in 1191 . He paid the Crown 300 marks in 1199 for confirmation of his ownership of Warkworth , including the castle . Substantial building work at Warkworth Castle is attributed to Robert . A favourite of King John , Robert hosted him at Warkworth Castle in 1213 . Warkworth Castle continued to descend through the family line when Robert fitz Roger was succeeded by his son John in 1214 , who was succeeded by his son Roger in 1240 . Roger died in 1249 when his son Robert was one year old , and a guardian was appointed to care for the family ' s estates : William de Valence , half - brother of King Henry III . The castle , characterised by this time by the chronicler Matthew Paris as " noble " , remained under the guardianship of Valence until 1268 , when it reverted to Robert fitz John . King Edward I of England stayed at Warkworth Castle for a night in 1292 . The English king was asked to mediate in a dispute over the Scottish throne and laid his own claim , leading to the Anglo - Scottish Wars . After the Scottish victory at the Battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297 , Robert and his son , John de Clavering , were captured . They were subsequently released and in 1310 John assumed control of the family estates . A year later , John made arrangements so that on his death the king would receive all of his property . Between roughly 1310 and 1330 the English struggled to deal with Scottish raids in northern England . Such was the importance of large castles during the Scottish Wars that the Crown subsidised their maintenance and even construction . In 1319 , King Edward II paid for a garrison for the castle of four men - at - arms and eight hobilar s to enhance the existing force of twelve men - at - arms . Ralph Neville was the keeper of Warkworth Castle in 1322 . As he was married to John ' s daughter , Euphemia , Ralph may have hoped to inherit the Clavering estates , but that did not happen . Twice in 1327 Scottish forces besieged the castle without success . Percy family . Around this time , the Percy family was becoming Northumberland ' s most powerful dynasty . Henry de Percy , 2nd Baron Percy , was in the service of Edward III and was paid 500 marks a year in perpetuity in return for leading a company of men - at - arms . In exchange for the annual fee , in 1328 Percy was promised the rights to the Clavering estates . Parliament declared such contracts illegal in 1331 , but after initially relinquishing his claim Percy was granted special permission to inherit . John de Clavering died in 1332 and his widow in 1345 , at which point the family ' s estates became the property of the Percys . While the Percys owned Alnwick Castle , which was considered more prestigious , Warkworth was the family ' s preferred home . Under the Percys a park was created nearby for hunting , and within the castle two residential blocks were created , described by historian John Goodall as " of unparalleled quality and sophistication in Northumberland " . The second baron died at Warkworth in 1352 . In 1377 the fourth Baron Percy , also named Henry , was made the first Earl of Northumberland ( becoming the first family from northern England to be granted an earldom ) in recognition of his extensive power in the march areas along the Anglo - Scottish border . With a network of contacts and dependencies , the Percys were the pre - eminent family in northern England in the 14th century " for they have the hertes of the people by north and ever had " , in the words of contemporaneous chronicler John Hardyng . Henry Percy commissioned the building of the distinctive keep shortly after he was made Earl of Northumberland . Percy may have enhanced his main castle to compete with John of Gaunt , who rebuilt the nearby Dunstanburgh Castle , or with the House of Neville , a family becoming increasingly powerful in northern England and who undertook a programme of building at the castles of Brancepeth , Raby , Bamburgh , Middleham , and Sheriff Hutton . Architectural similarities between Warkworth ' s keep , Bolton Castle , and the domestic buildings at Bamburgh Castle suggest that John Lewyn was the master mason responsible for building Warkworth ' s keep . Earl Henry helped dethrone Richard II and replace him with Henry IV . The earl and his eldest son Henry " Hotspur " Percy fell out with the new king , and eventually rebelled . After Hotspur was killed at the Battle of Shrewsbury in 1403 , his father fled to Warkworth . The earl eventually went to York to submit to the king . He was arrested and the king attempted to install his own men at the castles of Alnwick , Langley Castle , Prudhoe , and Warkworth . The earl ' s 14 - year - old son claimed that he was loyal to the king but was not empowered to formally surrender the castle , and it remained under control of the Percys . Henry was pardoned in 1404 . Earl Henry rebelled again in 1405 , this time joining the unsuccessful revolt of Archbishop Scrope . While Henry was fleeing north after the failed rebellion , his castles offered some resistance before submitting to royal forces . Warkworth itself was well - provisioned and the garrison initially refused to surrender . However , according to a letter written by Henry IV from Warkworth after its fall , after just seven shots from his cannon the defenders capitulated . The castle was forfeited to the Crown , and was used by one of the King ' s sons , John , Duke of Bedford , who was appointed to rule the area . It remained in the ownership of the Crown until Henry V restored it to the Percy family in 1416 , and at the same time made the son of " Hotspur " Henry , another Henry Percy , second Earl of Northumberland . It is known that the second earl resided at Warkworth and undertook building work there , but it is now unclear for which parts he was responsible . The Percys supported the House of Lancaster during the Wars of the Roses , and the second earl and his successor – Henry Percy , 3rd Earl of Northumberland – were killed at the battles of St Albans in 1455 and Towton in 1461 respectively . The new king , Edward IV , issued an attainder against the family and their property was confiscated . After the Battle of Towton , the title of Earl of Northumberland was given to the Yorkist John Neville , 1st Marquess of Montagu . His brother , Richard Neville , 16th Earl of Warwick , used Warkworth as a base from which the Lancastrian - held castles of Northumberland – Alnwick , Bamburgh , and Dunstanburgh – were attacked and their sieges co - ordinated . In 1470 Edward IV returned the Percys ' estates to the eldest son of the third earl , who was also called Henry Percy . A year later Henry was granted the earldom of Northumberland . Some time after 1472 Henry remodelled the building of the bailey . He also planned to build a collegiate church within the castle , but the work was abandoned after his death . When the fourth earl was murdered in 1489 , his son , Henry Algernon , inherited and maintained the castle . In the early 16th century Henry Percy , 6th Earl of Northumberland , was responsible for clearing the collegiate church founded by his grandfather , but left incomplete by the fifth earl . Thomas Percy , brother of the sixth earl , was executed for his role in the Pilgrimage of Grace in 1536 . When Henry Percy died the next year without any sons , the family ' s property passed to the Crown . Although royal officers still used the castle , by 1550 it had fallen into disrepair . In 1557 the Percy estates were restored to the descendants of Thomas , and the nephew of the sixth earl , another Thomas Percy , was given the earldom . He began a programme of repairs at the castle , and in the process dismantled " the hall and other houses of office " . The Rising of the North in 1569 saw Catholic nobles in northern England rebel against the Protestant Queen Elizabeth I . The Catholic Thomas Percy joined the rebellion and supporters congregated at the castles of Alnwick and Warkworth . Sir John Forster , Warden of the March , ordered those inside to leave and the castles were surrendered to his control . During the conflict that followed , Warkworth remained under royal control . Forster pillaged the castle , stripping it of its timbers and furnishings . The keep at least did not share in this fate , but in April 1572 Henry Carey , 1st Baron Hunsdon , bemoaned the treatment meted out to the Percy castles , writing to the queen ' s chief minister , " It is a great pity to see how Alnwick Castle and Warkworth are spoiled by him . . . I am creditably informed that he means utterly to deface them both . " An attainder was issued against Thomas Percy so that when he came into English custody he was executed without trial on 22 August . As a result , Percy ' s son was passed over , but under the terms of the attainder his brother was allowed to inherit . In 1574 , Elizabeth granted Henry Percy permission to inherit the family ' s property and assume the title of 8th Earl of Northumberland . The castle formed the backdrop for several scenes in William Shakespeare ' s " Henry IV , Part 1 " and " Part 2 " . Another Henry Percy inherited the family estates in 1585 and assumed the title of 9th Earl of Northumberland . After the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605 , the earl was imprisoned for his connection with Thomas Percy , one of the plotters . Shortly before he was sentenced ( he was fined £30 , 000 and held in the Tower of London ) , the earl leased Warkworth Castle to Sir Ralph Gray , who owned Chillingham Castle in Northumberland . Gray neglected the earl ' s building and allowed it to fall further into disrepair . The lead from the buildings in the bailey was sold in 1607 to alleviate the earl ' s financial problems . When James I visited in 1617 en route to Scotland , his entourage was angered by the sorry state of the castle . With the unification of England and Scotland under a single ruler , the earls of Northumberland had no need for two great castles near the Anglo - Scottish border ; they maintained Alnwick at the expense of Warkworth . In the first quarter of the 17th century , the keep was used to hold manor courts and for the laying out of oats . The details surrounding Warkworth Castle ' s role in the English Civil War are unclear , but the conflict resulted in further damage to the structure . Initially held by Royalist forces , the castle was still important enough that when the Scots invaded in 1644 they forced its surrender . Algernon Percy , 10th Earl of Northumberland , supported Parliament , which may have prevented the Scots from doing much damage to the castle . Parliamentarian forces took over the castle in 1648 ; when they withdrew they removed the castle ' s doors and iron so that it could not be reused by the enemy . They may also have partially demolished some of the castle , and may be responsible for its present state . Algernon Percy unsuccessfully applied for compensation in 1649 for the damage . Dukes of Northumberland and present day . Josceline Percy , the last Percy earl , died in 1670 . Two years later his widow allowed the keep ' s materials to be reused to build Chirton Hall . A total of 272 cart - loads were taken from the keep . Josceline Percy ' s property passed to the Duke of Somerset through marriage . In 1698 , the owners decided not to renovate Warkworth Castle after the estimate to add battlements , floors and new windows came in at £1 , 600 . Elizabeth Seymour inherited the property from her father in 1750 . Her husband , Hugh Smithson , changed his name to Hugh Percy , and the castle then descended through the Dukes of Northumberland , a dynasty he founded . During the 18th century the castle was allowed to languish . The south - west tower was falling apart and around 1752 part of the curtain wall east of the gatehouse was demolished ( it was rebuilt towards the end of the century ) . The town and its historic ruins were by now attracting interest as a tourist destination , largely due to Bishop Thomas Percy ' s poem , " The Hermit of Warkworth " . In the mid 19th century Hugh Percy , 3rd Duke of Northumberland , undertook some preservation work . His successor , Algernon Percy , contracted Anthony Salvin to restore the keep . The work undertaken between 1853 and 1858 was not as extensive as Salvin had planned , and was limited to partially refacing the exterior and adding new floors and roofs to two chambers , which became known as the Duke ' s Chambers , on the second floor . The duke occasionally used the chambers for picnics when he visited from Alnwick Castle . Algernon Percy funded excavations at the castle in the 1850s which uncovered the remains of the collegiate church within the bailey . In 1922 Alan Percy , 8th Duke of Northumberland , granted custodianship of the castle to the Office of Works which had been made accountable for the guardianship of ancient monuments . The Duke ' s Chambers remained under direct control of the Percys . The Office of Works undertook excavations in the moat in 1924 and removed the custodian from the gatehouse . English Heritage , who now manage and maintain the site , succeeded as the castle ' s custodians in 1984 , and three years later the Duke ' s Chambers were given over to their care . The castle is a Scheduled Ancient Monument , a " nationally important " historic building and archaeological site which has been given protection against unauthorised change . It is also a Grade I listed building ( first listed in 1985 ) and recognised as an internationally important structure . Layout . Warkworth Castle is an irregular enclosure . The keep is at the north end , overlooking the town , with the bailey to the south . The current keep was built on an earlier mound , known as a motte . The curtain wall of the bailey dates from the early 13th century . There are four towers : Carrickfergus Tower in the south - west corner , Montagu Tower in the south - east , a postern tower in the west wall ( north of the kitchen ) , and Grey Mare ' s Tail Tower attached to the east wall . Against the east curtain wall was a stable . In the northern half of the bailey , aligned east – west , was an unfinished 15th - century collegiate church ; it was cleared away in the early 16th century . Immediately west of the church was the kitchen , situated in the angle of the curtain wall as it changes from its north – south alignment and turns towards the keep . Along the west curtain wall , south of the kitchen , were the pantry , great hall , and withdrawing chambers . In the south - west was a chapel . Apart from the north side , the castle was surrounded by a moat . Gatehouse . The gatehouse in the centre of the south curtain wall mostly dates from the 13th century . It was originally accessed via a drawbridge and visitors had to pass through two gates , one at either end of the passage , and a portcullis . The semi - octagonal projections on either side of the gate passage are considered ornamental . Between the projections and above the gate were machicolations , openings for missiles to be hurled at attackers . The rooms on either side of the passage were guardrooms . The only remaining openings on the front are slits at ground level . Slits on the other sides of the gatehouse , and along the entrance passage , allowed the gatekeeper to watch people approaching and entering the castle . The structure underwent later alterations in the 19th and 20th centuries when it housed the castle ' s custodian ; slits in the gatehouse ' s front may have been filled in . West range . The range along the western curtain wall dates from about 1480 , when the fourth earl remodelled the bailey . The great hall was the social hub of the castle , where the household gathered to eat . The now - ruined 15th - century building replaced an earlier hall on the same site , dating from about 1200 , although some of the stone dates from the mid 12th century . The earl would have entered from the south from his connecting private chambers , and people of lower status through the Lion Tower . Internally , it was split into two aisles of differing width . Both halls were heated by open hearths , two of which survive from the earlier hall . Opposite ends of the hall were for opposite ends of the social scale within the castle . The high end ( next to the withdrawing chamber ) was for the earl and his family , and the low end ( next to the kitchen and other service rooms ) for the rest of the household . In the medieval period , the great hall was richly decorated with tapestries . The Lion Tower was the entrance to the north end of the great hall . Above the archway through the tower were displayed heraldic items , symbolic of the Percy earls ' power . The lion at the bottom was the emblem of the earls . Though now much damaged , above the lion were the ancient arms of the family and the arms of the Lucy family , whose property the Percys had inherited in the 1380s . As the tower was entered from the bailey , on the right was a doorway leading to the incomplete collegiate church . To the left was the great hall , and beyond that , withdrawing chambers ; to the right were the buttery , pantry , larder , and kitchen . Immediately north of the kitchen was a postern tower . Built around 1200 , its upper floors were later reused for accommodation . An entrance of lesser status than the main gatehouse , the gate ' s position next to the kitchen suggests it was a tradesmen ' s entrance , used for conveying supplies to the castle . The square Little Stair Tower was the entrance from the bailey to the withdrawing rooms south of the great hall . At ground floor level there was a doorway in each of the tower ' s faces . Directly south of the east side of the tower was the castle ' s chapel . The northern door led to the great hall , and the western door to a cellar under the great chamber . There are only fragmentary remains of the spiral staircase . Above the passageway was a single room , of uncertain purpose : it may have been used as another chapel , a guest room , or an antechamber where guests would wait before being admitted into the earl ' s presence . South of the great hall was a two - storey building containing withdrawing chambers , dating from around 1200 . Narrow windows opening onto the bailey were original but have since been filled in . The first floor was entirely occupied by the great chamber , furnished with a fireplace . In the south - west corner of the room was a door to a small room which was perhaps used as a safe . The ground floor was used as a cellar , through which the Carrickfergus Tower could be accessed . The polygonal tower was also accessible through the great chamber at first floor level . Fitted with latrines and a fireplace , it was an extension of the lordly accommodation provided by the great chamber . South and east . Montagu Tower in the south - east corner was probably built by John Neville , Lord Montagu , in the 15th century . Fitted with latrines and fireplaces , the upper floors provided accommodation , most likely for the more important members of the household . By the 16th century , the ground floor was used as a stable . The buildings against the south curtain wall between Montagu Tower and the gatehouse are of unknown purpose . North of Montagu Tower , against the east curtain wall , are the ruins of stables which stood two storeys high . West of the stables was a wellhouse containing a stone - lined well some deep . The Grey Mare ' s Tail Tower , probably built in the 1290s , has a slit in each of its five faces , offering views along the curtain wall . Keep . Goodall described Warkworth ' s keep as " a masterpiece of medieval English architecture " . Built in the last quarter of the 14th century , it was probably designed by John Lewyn . It was laid out in the form of a Greek cross and originally it was crested with a battlement , and perhaps decorative statues . Around the top of the building survive carvings of angels carrying shields . A large lion representing the Percy ' s coat of arms overlooked the town from the north side of the keep . The lion and sculptures were probably originally painted and would have stood out from the rest of the building . Archaeologist Oliver Creighton suggests that the rebuilding of the keep and other reconstruction work were meant to suggest the enduring lordship of the owners . On top of the keep is a lookout tower , which would have been less prominent before the keep ' s roof was removed . Goodall suggests that the keep was used only for short periods , and the west range , including the great hall , was the lord ' s preferred residence for prolonged visits to Warkworth Castle . The ground floor was used predominantly for storage of food and wine , but there was also a room with access to a basement chamber roughly square . This has variously been interpreted as an accounting room with a floor safe , or guardroom with a dungeon dug into the floor . In the keep ' s west wall was a postern through which stores would pass into the building . Kitchens occupied the west side of the first floor and were connected via staircases to the stores immediately below . In the south - east corner was a great hall , originally heated by a central hearth and spanning the height of the first and second floors . A chapel off the great hall led to a large formal room where the lord would meet guests . The second floor was entirely domestic in nature , with bedrooms and withdrawing chambers . In the 19th century , while the rest of Warkworth Castle was in ruins , the rooms of the second floor were re - roofed and occasionally used by the duke on visits . At the centre of the keep was a lightwell with interior windows ; at its foot was a tank for collecting rainwater used for cleaning . External links .