Thirlwall Castle is a 12th-century

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 ...

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land on ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, on the bank of the River Tipalt close to the village of Greenhead and approximately west of

Hexham Hexham ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Northumberland, England, on the south bank of the River Tyne, formed by the confluence of the North Tyne and the South Tyne at Warden, Northumberland, Warden nearby, and ...

. It was built in the 12th century, and later strengthened using stones from nearby

Hadrian's Wall Hadrian's Wall ( la, Vallum Aelium), also known as the Roman Wall, Picts' Wall, or ''Vallum Hadriani'' in Latin, is a former defensive fortification of the Roman province of Britannia, begun in AD 122 in the reign of the Emperor Hadrian. R ...

, but began to fall into disrepair in the 17th century. The site is protected by

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 Irel ...

and

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 ...

status.

Meaning of name "Thirlwall"

"Thirlwall" combines Middle English ''Thirl'', contracted with ''wall''; in context, reference and proximity to Roman-built Hadrian's Wall from which Thirlwall Castle was materially built. ''Thirl'' s verbmeans "perforated-" or s noun"bored-wall", from the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

''þyrel'', ''þyrl'', "a hole made through anything, an aperture, orifice" and ''weall'', "wall". As used and described in an ''Atlantic Monthly'' article, it is referenced as "a small passage built into a wall to allow sheep but not cattle to pass through ... a thirl, or a thawl". In Greek, the word ''Thura'' "θύρα thýra, ronouncedthoo'-rah; apparently a primary word (compare "door"); a portal or entrance (the opening or the closure, literally or figuratively): "door, gate". The middle English noun ''thirl'' likewise references a portal; a through passage, gate or door 'thura''through which lambs enter in. Book of John (KJV), tenth chapter conveys this same meaning: "Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door 'thura''of the sheep. I am the door 'thura'' by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture." (John 10:7;9). ''Thirl'', corresponding identically in meaning to Greek ''thura'', conjoined with ''wall'' then forms ''Thirlwall'' having reference to Roman-built Hadrian's Wall between Northeast England and Scotland in Northumbria.

History

The home of the Thirlwall family, the castle was fortified in about 1330 by John Thirlwall. In a survey of 1542 it was reported as in the ownership of Robert Thirlwall and in a 'measurable good' state of repair. Sir

Percival Thirlwall Sir Percival Thirlwall was the standard-bearer of Richard III during the Battle of Bosworth Field, the penultimate battle in the Wars of the Roses which ultimately brought an end to the reign of the Plantagenets and inaugurated the Tudor dynast ...

of Thirlwall Castle was killed at the

Battle of Bosworth The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the houses of Lancaster and York that extended across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 Augu ...

whilst fighting in the Yorkist cause on 22 August 1485. He was

Richard III Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Battl ...

standard-bearer A standard-bearer, also known as a flag-bearer is a person (soldier or civilian) who bears an emblem known as a standard or military colours, i.e. either a type of flag or an inflexible but mobile image, which is used (and often honoured) as a ...

in the final charge at Bosworth. He held up the standard even after his legs had been cut from under him.

Post medieval

Eleanor Thirwall, the last of the Thirlwall family line, abandoned the castle as a residence and the estate passed to the Swinburne family by her 1738 marriage to Matthew Swinburne of

Capheaton Hall Capheaton Hall, near Wallington, Northumberland, is an English country house, the seat of the Swinburne Baronets and a childhood home of the poet Algernon Swinburne. It counts among the principal gentry seats of Northumberland. It is a Grade I ...

. Swinburne sold the estate to the

Earl of Carlisle Earl of Carlisle is a title that has been created three times in the Peerage of England. History The first creation came in 1322, when Andrew Harclay, 1st Baron Harclay, was made Earl of Carlisle. He had already been summoned to Parliame ...

for £4000 in 1748. Thereafter the castle fell into decay. In 1832 and again in 1982 there were serious collapses of masonry. In 1999 the

Northumberland National Park Authority Northumberland National Park is the northernmost national park in England. It covers an area of more than between the Scottish border in the north to just south of Hadrian's Wall, and it is one of least visited of the National Parks. The park ...

took over the management of the castle, protecting it from further dereliction. It is open to the public without charge.

References

* ''A History of Northumberland'' (1840) John Hodgson Pt2 Vol 3 pp143–8
Images of Thirwall Castle
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