Langley Castle

Langley Castle is a restored medieval tower house, now operated as an hotel, situated in the village of Langley in the valley of the South Tyne some three miles south of Haydon Bridge, Northumberland (gbmapping|NY835624). It is a Grade I listed building

It was built in the middle of the 14th century by Sir Thomas de Lucy as a great H-shaped tower of four storeys. Before this the site was the seat of the Barons of Tynedale in the 12th century, from whom descend the Tyndall family. It was attacked and severely damaged in 1405 by the forces of Henry IV in the campaign against the Percys and Archbishop Scrope. It remained as a ruin until it was bought and restored by a local historian, Cadwallader Bates, in the late 19th century. He died in 1902 and his wife Josephine continued the restoration. After she died in 1932 the building remained empty until it was used as a barracks in the Second World War following which it was used as a girls' school.

It has since been converted into a luxury hotel set in a woodland estate of ten acres. One of the more remarkable features of the building is the south west tower which is occupied by no less than 12 garderobes, four to each floor.

Early recorded history

The earliest recorded history of the area derives from the Roman occupation period; in 122 AD, the Romans constructed Hadrian's Wall, the course of which lies several miles from Langley Castle. The wall incorporated Agricola's Ditch and was constructed chiefly of stone in the eastern reaches, [ [http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=18177 C.Michael Hogan (2007) "Hadrian's Wall", ed. A. Burnham, The Megalithic Portal] ] such as near Haltwhistle. The wall was designed primarily to prevent entrance by small bands of raiders or unwanted immigration from the north, not as a fighting line for a major invasion according to Johnson. [Stephen Johnson (2004) Hadrian's Wall, Sterling Publishing Company, Inc, 128 pages, ISBN 0713488409]

Line notes

References

* [http://ukheritage.net/castles/langley.htm Langley Castle]
* [http://www.langleycastle.com/ Langley Castle Hotel]
* [http://www.northofthetyne.co.uk/Langley.html Images of Langley Castle]
* [http://northumberlandtales.blogspot.com/2008/08/langley-castle.html More details on early ownership]
*Fry, Plantagenet Somerset, "The David & Charles Book of Castles", David & Charles, 1980, p. 251. ISBN 0-7153-7976-3
*"A History of Northumberland" (1840) Rev John Hodgson. Pt2 Vol 3 pp 367-8
* [http://www.ecastles.co.uk/philipdavis/English%20sites/2599.html The Gatehouse Gazetteer, Langley Castle]