Harbottle Castle

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Ruins of Harbottle Castle

Harbottle Castle is situated in the village of Harbottle, Northumberland, 9 miles west-north-west of Rothbury overlooking the River Coquet (grid reference NT932048).

It is thought that the mound on which the keep stands was a site used by the ancient Britons and that in Saxon times there was a stronghold on the site held by Mildred, son of Ackman. The present castle was built about 1160 by the Umfraville family at the request of King Henry II on land awarded to them following the Norman Conquest, presumably as a defence against the Scots.

Not long after its erection, in 1174, it was taken by the Scots and was then rebuilt more strongly. In 1296 it was besieged by Robert de Ros and some 40,000 men, but the siege was withheld. In the 1310s Robert the Bruce captured the castle. It was restored in 1336, but in ruins again by 1351. It was repaired at the end of the 14th century and in about 1436 the castle passed into the hands of the Tailleboys. It was for a long time the residence of the Warden of the Middle Marches and used as a prison.

A child's poem about the castle set in stone

In 1515 Margaret Tudor, the widowed queen of James IV of Scotland and sister of Henry VIII, having been banished by the regent, the Duke of Albany, came to the castle with her second husband, the Earl of Angus. While there a daughter was born, who was also called Margaret. Margaret was to become the mother of Lord Darnley, the second husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, and grandmother of James VI of Scotland and James I of England. Further building work took place between 1541 and 1551 and more repairs were made in 1563.

After the Union of England and Scotland, the castle fell into decay and its stones were used in other buildings. In 1865 Roger Widderington used both the stone and the name to build a new manor house at the east end of the village.

Today only earthworks and some standing masonry remains. The site is run by Northumberland National Park Authority and entry to it is free.