Halton Castle is a

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

in the village of Halton, part of the town of

Runcorn Runcorn is an industrial town and cargo port in the Borough of Halton in Cheshire, England. Its population in 2011 was 61,789. The town is in the southeast of the Liverpool City Region, with Liverpool to the northwest across the River Mersey ...

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's coun ...

, England. The castle is on the top of Halton Hill, a

sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...

prominence overlooking the village. The original building, a

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 ...

castle began in 1071, was replaced with the current sandstone castle in the 13th century. Building alterations continued until at least 1609, when the structure is recorded as in disrepair. The castle is recorded in the

National Heritage List for England The National Heritage List for England (NHLE) is England's official database of protected heritage assets. It includes details of all English listed buildings, scheduled monuments, register of historic parks and gardens, protected shipwrecks, a ...

as a designated Grade I

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern I ...

, and a

scheduled ancient monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

. It was the seat of the Barons of Halton from the 11th century until the 14th century, then passed to the

Duchy of Lancaster The Duchy of Lancaster is the private estate of the British sovereign as Duke of Lancaster. The principal purpose of the estate is to provide a source of independent income to the sovereign. The estate consists of a portfolio of lands, properti ...

. It was besieged twice in the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polic ...

after which its structure deteriorated. In the 18th century a new courthouse was built on the site of the previous gatehouse. The castle lies in ruins apart from the courthouse which has been converted into a

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and wa ...

History

Early history

There is evidence that Halton Hill was a settlement in

prehistoric Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use o ...

times. Construction of the castle began in 1071 after

Hugh d'Avranches, Earl of Chester Hugh d'Avranches ( 1047 – 27 July 1101), nicknamed ''le Gros'' (the Large) or ''Lupus'' (the Wolf), was from 1071 the second Norman Earl of Chester and one of the great magnates of early Norman England. Early life and career Hugh d'Avra ...

, gave the land to Nigel of Cotentin, who built a wooden

castle. This was replaced by a

castle in the 13th century, which still stands. When the 15th baron, Henry Bolingbroke, became King Henry IV, the castle became the property of the

. In 1207 King John visited and donated £5 towards the upkeep of its chapel.. Edward II visited the castle for three days in November 1323, during which time he also visited

Norton Priory Norton Priory is a historic site in Norton, Runcorn, Cheshire, England, comprising the remains of an abbey complex dating from the 12th to 16th centuries, and an 18th-century country house; it is now a museum. The remains are a scheduled an ...

. A new gate tower was built between 1450 and 1457. During the

Tudor period The Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603 in England and Wales and includes the Elizabethan period during the reign of Elizabeth I until 1603. The Tudor period coincides with the dynasty of the House of Tudor in England that began with t ...

it was primarily used as a prison, an administrative centre, and a

court of law A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accord ...

. In 1580–81 the castle was designated as a prison for Catholic

recusants Recusancy (from la, recusare, translation=to refuse) was the state of those who remained loyal to the Catholic Church and refused to attend Church of England services after the English Reformation. The 1558 Recusancy Acts passed in the reign ...

. According to a survey of the Royal Palaces in 1609, the castle had fallen into disrepair by then.

Civil War

At the outbreak of the

the castle was garrisoned by the Royalists under the command of Captain Walter Primrose who had been appointed by

Earl Rivers Earl Rivers was an English title, which has been created three times in the Peerage of England. It was held in succession by the families of Woodville (or Wydeville), Darcy and Savage. History The first creation was made for Richard Woodville, ...

. It was besieged by

Roundhead Roundheads were the supporters of the Parliament of England during the English Civil War (1642–1651). Also known as Parliamentarians, they fought against King Charles I of England and his supporters, known as the Cavaliers or Royalists, who ...

Parliamentary forces under Sir William Brereton in 1643 and, after several weeks' fighting, the Royalists surrendered. They regained control under Colonel Fenwick after the Parliamentarians abandoned the castle to focus on Royalist forces led by

Prince Rupert Prince Rupert of the Rhine, Duke of Cumberland, (17 December 1619 (O.S.) / 27 December (N.S.) – 29 November 1682 (O.S.)) was an English army officer, admiral, scientist and colonial governor. He first came to prominence as a Royalist cava ...

. There was a second siege in 1644 but, as the fortunes of the Royalists declined elsewhere, they withdrew from Halton and the Parliamentarians under Sir William Brereton re-occupied the castle. In 1646 a "Council of War" was held in

Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the Borough of Warrington, borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The populati ...

where it was decided that the defences of the castles at Halton and Beeston should be dismantled. Halton Castle served no military function after this time. By 1650 the castle was said to be "very ruinous".

Later history

The condition of the building continued to deteriorate although the gatehouse remained in use as a court. In 1728 George Cholmondeley, 2nd Earl of Cholmondeley, leased the site from the Crown. In 1737 a courthouse was built on the site of the medieval gatehouse. Henry Sephton, a

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

architect and builder, and John Orme, a joiner from

Prescot Prescot is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley in Merseyside, England. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire, it lies about to the east of Liverpool city centre. At the 2001 Census, the ...

, were appointed to carry out the work. The first floor was the courtroom and prisoners were held in the basement. By 1792 the courthouse had fallen into disrepair and money was found to repair it, although the source of that money is unclear. The court continued to function there until 1908. In around 1800, three

folly In architecture, a folly is a building constructed primarily for decoration, but suggesting through its appearance some other purpose, or of such extravagant appearance that it transcends the range of usual garden buildings. Eighteenth-cent ...

walls had been added to the existing ruined walls on the east side of the castle to make it look more impressive from

, the home of Sir Richard Brooke. One of these walls was demolished in around 1906. During the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edward ...

a sunken garden and two

bowling green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep ...

s were constructed within the castle enclosure. In 1977 the castle was leased to Halton Borough Council. In 1986–87 the site of the castle was excavated.

Present state

The castle continues to be owned by the

. It is leased from the Duchy by Halton Borough Council and managed by The

Museum Trust. The interior of the castle is occasionally opened to the public and there are plans to make it more accessible in the future. The castle is a Grade I

. Its walls are in a ruinous state, but the circumference is intact and it is possible to walk completely around the exterior. From its prominent position there are extensive views in all directions, including

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a Historic counties of England, historic county, Ceremonial County, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significa ...

, Cheshire, the

Pennines The Pennines (), also known as the Pennine Chain or Pennine Hills, are a range of uplands running between three regions of Northern England: North West England on the west, North East England and Yorkshire and the Humber on the east. Commonly ...

, the hills of the

Peak District The Peak District is an upland area in England at the southern end of the Pennines. Mostly in Derbyshire, it extends into Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Staffordshire, West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire. It includes the Dark Peak, where moorl ...

and the mountains of

North Wales North Wales ( cy, Gogledd Cymru) is a region of Wales, encompassing its northernmost areas. It borders Mid Wales to the south, England to the east, and the Irish Sea to the north and west. The area is highly mountainous and rural, with Snowdonia N ...

. The courthouse is now a public house, The Castle, Halton. Its first floor is used as a function room and the basement contains the cellars of the public house. It is designated as a Grade II* listed building.

References

Citations

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