#47 Alnwick Castle & Gardens

Reading Time: 28 minutes

Hello, and welcome back dear readers! On this installment, I am excited to start back up with a design that manages to tick-off all the boxes of a good story. It’s got murder, revenge, designs, dungeons, poisonous plants, and more. Located not far from the Scottish border in Northumberland, United Kingdom. We are going to deep dive into this site and history, talking about the castle itself as well as the Gardens. Covering topics such as the poison garden, how the family connects to the gunpowder plot, and more.

The episode transcript is down below, followed swiftly by the source information. An important note: I will be occasionally using UK English for several of the words and spellings, so there will be some differences throughout the transcript and show notes. Another new episode will becoming out later this week, before we return to the usual Monday releases next week. And with that, I hope you all enjoy!

The feature image is courtesy of Wisebuys21 on Flickr.

TRANSCRIPT:

One man’s podcast is another man’s poison, and It’s time for Architecture, Coffee, & Ink.

20 second Intro song

Hello, this is Hollywood C. and you’re listening to Architecture, Coffee, &, Ink. A podcast dedicated to introducing concepts, detailing out designs, and tackling the architecture you might not realize the meaning behind. I’m your hostess and I am here today to start introducing you to the designs that make you wonder why. 

tag line: So, I ask you to brew your coffee, grab your sketch book and pen, and let’s begin.

Hello and welcome back dear listeners! On today’s episode, I am excited to start back up with a design that manages to tick-off all the boxes of a good story. It’s got murder, revenge, designs, dungeons, poisonous plants, and more. In this episode on Alnwick Castle and Gardens, in Northumberland, United Kingdom. 

Just remember as always, to always check your sources, check your facts, and most importantly, check me.  

Introduction & History

Before setting the scene for the geological location, let me start by placing this castle in history. According to the Alnwick Castle website and podcast, the castle was believed to have been built starting in the year 1096. What’s known for certain is that it was after the Norman conquest.  

For those who don’t know, the Norman Conquest was an invasion of England. This was led by William, Duke of Normandy, overtaking the throne after the death of Edward the Confessor, who attempted to leverage his childless, and thus successor-less state, as a bargaining chip at multiple points throughout his reign. Needless to say, it created quite a mess, that ended with multiple deaths, wars, and a political change that resulted in the end of the Anglo-Saxon kings. But more importantly for our story today, resulted in the need for border control and defense. Especially for the newly arrived Norman elite who followed William into the country.

And so, in the 11^th century, Alnwick Castle is built, serving as a border defense. Alnwick, in which the ‘L’ and ‘W’ are silent, is located in Northumberland, by the River Aln, and just over 50 kilometers or 30 miles, from the Scottish border. Just behind the castle lies the town of Alnwick. The name Alnwick is Anglo-Saxon in origin. And translated means a trading place on the Aln. Of course, Aln, is either Celtic or Brittonic in origin and dates back to the ancient Britons, according to an England’s Northeast article. Which hopefully explains why they seem to follow different rules for pronunciation, despite the spelling.    

The castle is situated so the river is to the north of the property, and a ravine is along the south and east sides. Which shows a clear strategic advantage and allowed for the castle to settle into place relatively early in its history. While there were multiple renovations, which we will discuss in a moment, the overall plan or bare bones of the castle were established by the 12^th century. What is also so prominent about this building is that it is one of the oldest that wasn’t square. Looking down from an aerial view or on the castle’s website, you can see currently it is two rings of buildings. Not a perfect circle, or a bullseye on the landscape. But a noticeable difference from the ones built around the same time period, which were more often the square style we often think of.  They have these renderings of the castle, which do a really good job showing the changes over time on the website. I really have to commend them for some of the tools they used. So please check those out if you have a moment. 

Before diving deep into the history and architecture, I do want to note that while there is one primary family that I am focusing on, there is going to be a lot of names, titles, and juniors and seniors. So, when possible, I will be using nicknames more than I usually do, and I will also use some words and titles with the UK English spelling on the blog post.  

Getting back to the history, it was in 1309 that we see the castle first enter into the custody of the Percy Family, who maintain control of the castle today. But that was only the beginning of the castle’s colorful history. Originally, the castle was built by Ivo De Vesci, a noble from Normandy. It wasn’t long until it was captured by the King of Scotland, which basically started a long history of sieges. It was eventually returned to the De Vesci family, remained in their custody until the head of the family was killed, and left only a young heir. Too young an heir for those in power to feel confident about him having control of a border castle. So, wardship was given to Antony Bek, who sold the castle to the Percy Family, A Henry Percy. At the time, the castle was a true Norman design.

Diving into Norman Castle’s design, overall, it was heavily influenced by who they were in England. Technically, they were invaders, meaning that attacks were both highly likely and fundamental aspects to consider while designing. They were often designed as a motte and bailey. A motte and bailey are when you have a fortress or keep on a mound, with a lower town or series of buildings below, the bailey or ward, and a fence or wall of some type circling all around it. Bonus points if you can work in a moat. Typically, the gate is opposite the keep or fort, and the fort or keep has to be higher than the surroundings, basically allowing for 360-degree visibility in theory through elevation by having the higher ground.

 At the time, Alnwick was wood, so he and his son began converting it and updating it. Unfortunately, Henry Percy passed away before the castle was completed. But additions included towers, gatehouse, and stone ornamentation. After this point, they are Lords, however, after that, they became earls, and then finally dukes. Keep that in mind as I continue through the history. Starting with the first Earl, another Henry Percy, he started to fight with King Richard II of England. To the point that himself, and his son, the infamous Harry ‘Hotspur’ Percy, the same Hotspur that was featured in William Shakespeare’s plays, rebelled against the king. Nicknamed for his speed, and known for his conquests, and war prowess, Hotspur and Henry worked together. And they installed King Henry IV, only to fight with him later, eventually leading to both Henry and Hotspur’s death, and eventually the loss of Alnwick castle. Though in a lecture I watched given by the 12^th Duke, apparently the manner of death was wrong, and Hotspur actually died by a shot through his visor when he pulled it up on his helmet.

The castle was lost to the Percys’ through a period of time, until it was given back to the 4^th Earl of Northumberland after pledging loyalty to the crown after the castle had been part of the War of the Roses. It held forces and was seized by several parties’ multiple times. The War of the Roses, for those aren’t familiar with it, were a series of civil wars over the English throne. Unfortunately, this hold over the castle wasn’t very long, before the 7^th Earl, Thomas Percy, was suspected of treason, was executed and the Percy’s again left the castle.  

Unfortunately, he was tied up with the power struggle between Mary, Queen of Scots and Queen Elizabeth I, and he ended up leading the failed attempt to remove Elizabeth from power and was executed. He also apparently had an attachment to Anne Boleyn, prior to her ill-fated marriage to Henry VIII. And the castle was left to disuse until it reached the hands of the 9^th Earl. However, the 9^th Earl decided to place his cousin, a Thomas Percy, in a position as a constable of the castle. This Thomas was a rather horrible person, as the Alnwick Castle Virtual Tour mentioned he frequently threw people into the dungeon and oubliette until they paid him a ransom, and then he joined the Gunpowder Plot.

And hold your horses for this one. For those who don’t know, the Gunpowder Plot was a plot in 1605, which was an attempt to blow up parliament, and in particular the House of Lords, with the intention of removing King James from the throne, eventually.  However, someone sent a letter of warning, and despite knowing this, the plotters continued to move forward with their plan. Moving gunpowder into a rented cellar beneath Parliament, with Guy Fawkes acting as an expert on the gunpowder. Needless to say, when the plot failed, Thomas was killed, and the earl was thrown into the Tower of London, and the castle was again abandoned by the Percy’s but continued to play pivotal roles throughout history in the century they lost the castle.

Following this time, the castle continued to deteriorate, as it was damaged during war, and through time. The Alnwick Castle website includes this quote from an eyewitness from the period.

“I cannot sufficiently relate the Augmentation of the spoyle of his Lordship’s howse, eaven by both parties, burning wood, takeing away all the Iron barrs, bolts and Lockes of doores and doore bands to great dammage of the howse, distroying of meadowes soe as I knowe not where to make any provisions of hay for your use, nor dare I adventure to repare or put any thing in good order by reason of badnes of tymes and the incertainyty of amendment (the lead of the house is yet well saved and that is all.”

*Original Spelling included

It was the 1^st Duke, who began a serious renovation with Robert Adams, and Lancelot “Capability” Brown. Robert Adam was a neoclassical architect, and Capability Brown was a Northumberland native who designed over 170 parks and completely transformed England. However, they ended making the castle in a gothic style, and outside of Adam usual works. And as such, the 4^th Duke would hire Anthony Salvin to turn it into the Italianate palazzo that you see today. Anthony Salvin specialized in medieval buildings and was born in 1799. He undid a lot of the work that Adam had done. But his style is what is now associated with medieval castles, and due to Alnwick’s association with movies, is frequently what many people assume they look like.

Today, the castle is world renowned for its state rooms, and defenses, including thick walls and moats. Several of the existing towers have exhibits, though there are currently ten main towers along the walls. The main entrance or main gate has a barbican, which is a fortified gate or entrance, and a series of carved statues along the battlements, which were added at two different time periods, the 1300s and by the 1^st Duke, when they were doing the main renovations.

And I couldn’t call this a design podcast, if I didn’t take a moment to talk about the Lion Bridge. The Lion Bridge is actually a surviving Adam addition, which replaced the previous version of a bridge. After Brown and Adam had done major work on the castle, and exteriors, there was actually a flood in 1770 or 71, that resulted in the need to rebuild some of their original work, including the previously built bridge. This second bridge is a gothic revival, and has three arches over the water, and the iconic statue of the Percy Lion, first associated with the castle by the 4^th Earl, with 3 arches and 2 piers. An extremely unique feature is that part of the bridge was actually designed to look carved from wood. Despite being stone, giving the bridge an incredibly unique feeling.

And I want to take a second to describe the layout of the castle, and I am going to use a plan to walk you through the site. So, orientating the map, with the Lion Bridge towards the top of the page, the Barbican and entrance will be off that road, with the coach drop off in front of it. Entering through the gates, you will enter the Outer Bailey, with the state rooms in the main structure in the middle, the gun terrace along the front wall closest to the river. The Inner Bailey will be on the opposite side from where you enter. Along the wall, behind the Barbican, additional buildings were added on the outside of the walls, starting at what is a clock tower. And with that, we are actually going to begin the next part of our episode talking about what lies beyond the walls, Alnwick Garden.    

The Gardens & Poison Garden

Now, this is the part I am so excited to talk about, the gardens and the poison garden. I am a plant person. At my day job, I keep several plants on my desk, and in my house there are plants carefully scattered throughout the place. And in particular, I love gardens with an educational purpose and apothecary gardens, I can’t even tell you how excited I was to discuss these. 

The first gardens were actually laid out in the 1750s, though those in the UK might be more familiar with the current gardens dominating the grounds- especially given the headlines in the past few years, highlighting some controversy over preservation and money, but I am getting a bit ahead of myself.

The gardens were first laid out by the 1^st Duke, who I mentioned previously playing such a huge role in the history of the house. The next pivotal player was the 3^rd Duke, who was a plant aficionado that puts me to shame. He collected plants and would actually collect seeds from all over the world, planting what he could and using hothouses for those who wouldn’t normally live in the region.  In addition, two parks were included, one by Capability Brown to the north, named the Pastures and the other named Hulne Park. However, it was the 4^th Duke, who again created an Italianate Garden. During WWII it was utilized for food and was turned into a working garden, something that would continue until the 1950s. In fact, at one point, there was a school evacuated to the castle during the war.

The gardens as they stand today, only came about after the death of the 11^th Duke in 1995. After the title and castle was passed to his brother, the 12^th Duke, he asked his wife, Jane Percy, Duchess of Northumberland, to work on the gardens in 1996. To that point, they had basically been left in disrepair.  She spent a total of 42 million pounds, according to several of my sources, updating the gardens, and creating a formalized garden, that was built in stages. It was designed by Jacques Wirtz and Peter Wirtz of Wirtz International Landscape Architects, who are from Belgium. According to their website, they first joined the project in 1999 and continue to work on it to this day. The project was implemented in phases, starting with the opening of the first phase in October of 2001, which was the main opening. In this phase, the waterfall or cascade or Grand Cascade, as their website calls it opened, along with many of the initial plants. Additionally, they opened the rose garden, woodland walk and ornamental garden.

In the second phase, which focused on the introduction of the tree house and all that came along with it, was introduced in December 2004. Also in this phase is the Bamboo Labyrinth, Serpent Garden, and the Poison Garden, though it opened in 2005. And let’s take a minute to talk about it.

There are over 100 plants in the poison garden, and a pretty shocking mixture. Several of which are highly regulated, including a cage around them and mandated governmental reports, including permits, seed auditing, and limitations on removal after the season ends. However, a large number can be found as close as your own backyard or are fan favorites due to the colorful flowers, vibrant shades, or striking features. Reviewing the plant list I found, I found several of my own personal favorites, and several that are routinely used in projects around my area. The requirements I found to be included in the garden, is that it need to be either toxic, narcotic, or intoxicating. Many of these plants require human intervention to become that, needing to either be consumed or made into a poison, smelled, touched, etc. As such, the rules of the garden are very strict, and anyone seen attempting to take some of the plant, or touch or taste anything are immediately removed.  Several people faint every year, though I listened to an interview where the guide admitted that several of those cases were likely due to nerves, however, those particularly sensitive should probably avoid the area.   

But, what makes someone design a poison garden? The idea for the Poison Garden came to the Duchess when she was taking a trip to Italy, according to Smithsonian Magazine and the Third Eye Traveller. She was inspired by the Medici’s Garden. An extremely prominent family in Florence, who helped shape Italy, and happened to keep a poison garden in various villas. However, while they used it to assist with their ventures in politics, the Duchess thought it was a quote:

“…a way of educating children without having them realize they’re being educated.”

She is quoted as saying this, in that same Smithsonian article.

And given the plants they used for examples, such as Foxgloves, Daffodils, Rhubarb, and Rhododendron, and a few others I recognized, I completely agree.  While several of the plants are clear poisons- such as Ricinus Communis and Monkshood, which is also known as wolfsbane, and has beautiful flowers – the previous examples are why I think apothecary and teaching gardens are so important.

Going down the list, Foxgloves, one of my favorite flowers, is both toxic and helpful. The plant when correctly processed in a lab is used to create Digoxin, which is a heart medicine. Daffodils actually have lycorine, and are toxic, but commonly used across gardens globally. Rhododendron will poison the soil around them so that they will be the only plant to grow in the area.

However, Rhubarb is actually the best example of the dangers of misinformation. During the World War, due to ration supplies diminishing, the British Government encouraged people to eat Rhubarb leaves. However, what they didn’t know, was that the leaves were toxic, and several people ended up sick and in a few extreme cases dead. Additionally, nightshade berries look like a tasty treat, but the plant as a whole is incredibly poisonous. Teaching children to avoid the plants, education, and information is a huge aspect of the garden. But there are also stories of some infamous crimes, and anecdotes from other guests. 

After that, new additions have continued to be open for the gardens, including a Pavilion and Visitor Centre in 2006, and multiple others, including a new addition as recently as last year. Officially, the Alnwick Garden was separated from the estates, and is currently running underneath a charitable trust. The garden has won several awards, and notable distinctions, and their website boosts that within the UK, they have the largest collection of native European plants. And you have probably heard of them, as they have an internationally acclaimed Japanese Cherry Orchard. The Orchard opened in 2008 with 326 trees, and in 2018 the 50 iconic swings were added.

Alnwick Vampire

And even though it’s not an Eerie Arch episode, I will mention that the castle also has a vampire or had one. In addition to a Grey Lady, who haunts the passages beneath the castle. This vampire was apparently written about by William of Newburgh. William was a 12^th century historian who wrote the “History of English Affairs”. Though it seems that this vampire drags up the whole debate about a vampire vs a revenant. An argument, which can basically be summarized as which type of undead bloodsucker is this. Which will be a blog-only post on the website later on, as I want to verify some writing from the primary source prior to talking about this fun tidbit of history.

In Modern Times

In addition to the many activities directly related to the castle itself, Alnwick also hosts St. Cloud State University of Minnesota students every year, multiple exhibitions, and museums in various buildings around the campus. It has also been used for filming movies, tv shows, and more. Including the first two Harry Potter Movies, where it became known as Hogwarts, Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves, the Black Adder, Robin Hood, Downton Abbey, and many others you might recognize. I will link the official Castle Youtube channel on the blog when I upload the post this weekend, and I think you might be surprised how many of the rooms you recognize when watching the virtual tours.

“Alnwick Castle Virtual Tour 2020.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEJYzremMII.

The house is currently considered to be a Grade 1 listed building. A listed building is basically a historical or architectural important building, much like the National Register of Historic Places. They have grades, Grade I, II, & III, with I being the highest priority, according to historicengland.org, and the majority of buildings being an II.

The Castle and gardens are open to the public, and I will have that information in the show notes, but they are run separately. Booking online through their websites will always give you the most up to date information, including the pricing, but generally the season runs from March to October. Booking online will actually give you a discount, and also give you the best transportation information on getting to and from the castle, which is located off the A1.

Conclusion

As always- please rate, review, and subscribe everywhere you get your podcasts from. You can find me on Instagram at architecturecoffeeandink. Email the show at architecturecoffeeandink@gmail.com or the blog at architecturecoffeeandink.com. Architecture, Coffee, & Ink is a Hollywood C. Studios, LLC production. I am excited to meet with all my designers, dreamers, and DIY enthusiasts next time, but in the meantime,

May your coffee mugs be full, and your inkwells never run dry.

60 secs end song re-looped. 

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