Brougham Castle

Brougham Castle

This Is England - Brougham Castle, Cumbria.Moor Lane, Penrith,United Kingdom.Brougham, just two miles outside Penrith, lies in the former historic county of Westmorland. A Roman fort originally occupied the site of the current Brougham Castle. The site was later taken by the Norman family of Vieuxpont to build their castle, the ruins of which can still be seen. Vieuxpont’s castle consisted of a stone keep, and service buildings, surrounded by a timber pallisade.By 1268 the castle had passed to Robert Clifford, whose father Roger had become Lord of Brougham when he married Robert Vieuxpoint’s great-granddaughter. Robert Clifford was an important figure in the Scottish wars which started in 1296, and he carried out much work at Brougham to stregthen the defences.In 1643 Lady Anne Clifford inherited the Clifford Estate. In 1649 when she was 60 years old, she moved North, and spent the next 26 years rebuilding churches and castles. Skipton, Pendragon, Appleby, Brough and Brougham Castles were restored to their former glory. She died at Brougham Castle, in the room where her father had been born, in 1676. After this the castle quickley fell into ruin.You can wander through the impressive ruins of the 13th century fortress, admiring its lovely location of the banks of the River Eamont. The keep is the oldest part of the castle still standing; the bottom three stories are from about 1175. www.visitcumbria.com

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