[2] Scottish nobleman and doctor, John de Strivelyn, was granted the manor around 1340 by Edward III.

[6] The main structure, a three-storey rectangular pele tower with rounded turrets and battlements, was constructed about 1370, and was the home of the Middleton family.

[6] A west wing was added in 1711 but was largely demolished in 1872 by Sir Arthur Middleton when the remainder of the house was considerably altered.

[7] The castle was abandoned as a residence by the family in the early 19th century when Sir Charles Monck built Belsay Hall close by.

Aruna Ratanagiri, a Buddhist monastery of the Thai Forest Tradition, lies on a hilltop 3 miles (4.8 km) to the north-west of Belsay, in the hamlet of Harnham.