Castle Keep
The Castle Keep is one of Newcastle's
oldest buildings and is a great way to learn about the city's history. Built on
the site of an old Roman fort by the River Tyne, a castle was founded in 1080 by
William the Conqueror's eldest son. The Castle Keep of Newcastle upon Tyne was
built by Henry II between 1168-1178, it is one of the finest
surviving examples of a Norman Keep in the country.It was this castle that gave Newcastle its
name.
The castle's Keep, restored in the
1800s and again in the 1970s, houses the museum. The one thing you notice about
the three-floor Keep is the amount of staircases leading to places like the
Gallery, King's Chambers, Queen's Chambers, Great Hall, dungeon and a late
Norman chapel occupying the ground floor. There are also staircases that lead
nowhere.
The first staircase leads to the
roof, a fairly modern addition to the keep, which provides spectacular views of
the Newcastle skyline as well as its famous bridges.
Elsewhere in the museum there were
Norman gravestones made before the castle was built, musket balls, cannon balls,
the old city arms and plaques from the medieval Tyne bridge destroyed in 1771.
It stands within a site that also
contains: an early motte and bailey castle built by
Robert Curthose, the son of
William the Conqueror: an Anglo-Saxon cemetery
and a Roman Fort (Pons Aelius).
The Castle Keep is a Grade 1 listed
building, a Scheduled Ancient monument, and is open to
the public 361 days of the year as a heritage visitor
attraction. Owned by Newcastle City Council it is leased
to and managed by the Society of Antiquaries of
Newcastle upon Tyne, the second oldest
antiquarian society in the world.
Queen
Victoria hated the castle, but she needed to travel through Newcastle on her way
between Edinburgh and London. She would lower the carriage shade as she passed
the castle so she would not need to gaze on the castle. Eventually, a bridge
was built crossing the river so that her travels were out of view of the
castle. Some time after her death, a monument, with a statue of Queen Victoria,
was erected facing the castle - in direct violation of her wishes.
Castle Keep
St. Nicholas St
Newcastle Upon Tyne Tyne And Wear
NE1 1RE
Tel: 0191 2327938
