![Egremont IMG 1323 - panoramio](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c2/Egremont_IMG_1323_-_panoramio.jpg)
Egremont Castle is located in the town of
Egremont,
Cumbria
Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...
().
History
The original castle was built on a mound above the
River Ehen
The River Ehen is a river in Cumbria, England.
The river's source is at the west end of Ennerdale Water: it runs west through Ennerdale Bridge where it is joined by Croasdale Beck (flowing from Banna Fell). Ennerdale Water itself is fed by the ...
on the site of a Danish fort following the conquest of
Cumberland
Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 19 ...
in 1092 by
William II of England
William II ( xno, Williame; – 2 August 1100) was King of England from 26 September 1087 until his death in 1100, with powers over Normandy and influence in Scotland. He was less successful in extending control into Wales. The third so ...
. The present castle was built by
William Meschin
William Meschin (sometimes William le Meschin; died between 1130 and 1135) was an Anglo-Norman nobleman and baron. The brother of the earl of Chester, Meschin participated in the First Crusade. After returning to England, he acquired lands both ...
, who founded the castle between 1120 and 1135. Further additions were made in the 13th century. It eventually fell into disuse and became the ruin it is today.
The castle provided protection for the town which William also created. The long wide street provided a marketplace for traders, who were granted privileges and given security in return for payment of tolls. Some of the profits were undoubtedly used by this founding father of
Egremont in the foundation of
St Bees Priory
St Bees Priory is the parish church of St Bees, Cumbria, England. There is evidence for a pre-Norman religious site, and on this a Benedictine priory was founded by the first Norman Lord of Egremont William Meschin, and was dedicated by Archb ...
, dedicated to
Saint Bega
Saint Bega was reputedly a saint of the Early Middle Ages; an Irish princess who became an anchoress and valued her virginity. Promised in marriage to a Viking prince who, according to a medieval manuscript ''The Life of St Bega'', was "son of th ...
, at
St Bees on the Cumbrian coast.
The castle is of
Motte-and-bailey
A motte-and-bailey castle is a European fortification with a wooden or stone keep situated on a raised area of ground called a motte, accompanied by a walled courtyard, or bailey, surrounded by a protective ditch and palisade. Relatively easy to ...
design.
It is said to have once possessed a horn which only the rightful heir could blow. The legend was the subject of
William Wordsworth
William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication ''Lyrical Ballads'' (1798).
Wordsworth's ' ...
's poem ''The Horn of Egremont Castle''.
In popular culture
An idealised view of the castle (as a painting in progress) appears as a detail on the cover of ''
The Big Lad in the Windmill'', the 1986 debut album by the band
It Bites
It Bites are an English progressive rock and pop fusion band, formed in Egremont, Cumbria, Egremont, Cumbria, in 1982 and best known for their 1986 single "Calling All the Heroes", which gained them a Top 40, Top 10 UK Singles Chart hit. Initial ...
(three-quarters of whom grew up in Egremont).
See also
*
Grade I listed buildings in Cumbria
There are over 9000 Grade I listed buildings in England. This page is a list of these buildings in the county of Cumbria, sub-divided by district.
Allerdale
Barrow-in-Furness
Carlisle
...
*
Listed buildings in Egremont, Cumbria
Sources
External links
Visit Cumbria*Fry, P.S. ''The David & Charles Book of Castles'', David & Charles, London, 1980.
12th-century establishments in England
12th-century fortifications
Castles in Cumbria
Ruins in Cumbria
Grade I listed buildings in Cumbria
Egremont, Cumbria
William II of England
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