2021 OCTOBER DAYTRIP TO SKIPTON CASTLE

Good day readers

We took our grandson (11 years old) to Skipton Castle today. It is best to book your tickets on-line. You can book the nearby ‘Bailey’ car park at a discount at the same time £2.50 instead of £4.50. At the gatehouse you can get a free guidesheet to the castle double sied it has a route shown in 40 cartoons to guide you round. Once in the castle perimeter we made a beeline for the café (disappointingly poor selection of snacks especially No bacon sandwiches) following that next port of call the loo, then into the castle.

The original earth and wood castle was built by the Normans (Baron Romille) in 1090 and was later rebuilt on the edge of cliffs above the beck as stone castle. In the early 14^th century the castle and lands were passed to the Clifford family who embarked on  improving the defensive qualities of the castle. An old well in the courtyard allowed the catle to withstand a 3 year siege by Cromwell’s forces. Eventually the Royalists surrendered in 1645 and the castle was partially demolished and left with no roof. It is possible to see the thickness of the pre-siege walls in the tower and the extent to which the castle was partially demolished.

After the siege the Cliffords rebuilt the castle walls in a thinner construction. A yew tree grows in the central courtyard and is believed to have been planted at that time.

The tour took us 1.5 hours to complete (including the coffee and cakes) and well worth the £24 it cost us to gain entry.   I have attached a picture of the family mounted on the wall of the café and a picture of the front of the Castle.

My book Port St James: Cliff Farm was published by Austin Macauley on 31^st August 2021and is available on line, from most bookshops and as an ebook. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing the novel. If so please post a review on https://austinmacauley.com/book/port-st-james

Thank you and all the best Philippa

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