However, by 1592, it was in a state of disrepair, as George Clifford, 3rd Earl of Cumberland was spending more time in southern England due to his role as Queen's Champion.

[2] In 1643, Lady Anne Clifford inherited the estates, including the castles of Brougham, Appleby, and Brough, and set about restoring them.

Brougham Castle was kept in good condition for a short time, after Lady Anne's death in 1676; however, Thomas Tufton, 6th Earl of Thanet, who had inherited the Clifford estates, sold the furnishings in 1714.

With the rivers Eamont and Lowther flowing nearby and meeting to the west, the site had natural defences and the area was fertile and easy to cultivate.

[4] In 1203, the Barony of Westmorland – containing Appleby, Brough, and Brougham – was granted to Robert de Vieuxpont by King John.

A favourite of John's, Vieuxpont was one of only a few lords loyal to him in northern England, whose inhabitants became so discontented with the king's rule that they eventually rebelled.

[8] In 1216, when a Scottish army invaded the Eden valley and Alan of Galloway occupied Westmorland, Brougham Castle played no part in the county's defence, probably because it was unfinished.

The construction of a new stone hall to the south of the keep may indicate that during the war there was a larger garrison present than in peacetime, or it may have been built in anticipation of a royal visit.

[13] In July 1300, Edward I – himself a renowned castle builder[14] – visited Brougham with a large household of followers and the teenage Prince of Wales.

Therefore, the Clifford estates experienced another period of control through guardians, suffering from Scottish raids to such an extent that in 1317 the king granted Roger £200 towards the maintenance of his castles.

On entering Westmorland, Balliol sought refuge with the Clifford family, staying at the castles of Appleby, Brougham, Brough, and Pendragon.

Although Roger Clifford spent much time at Appleby – which was Westmorland's county town – he was responsible for rebuilding the domestic buildings at Brougham Castle, including the hall.

He was ordered by the king to maintain a force of 40 men-at-arms and 50 mounted archers near the west end of the Scottish border region, and some were likely stationed at Brougham.

In August 1388, the Scottish launched an attack into England, with one force advancing east – and were eventually confronted at the Battle of Otterburn in Northumberland – and another raiding the west, reaching as far as Brough, 20 miles (32 km) to the south-east.

[29] When George Clifford died in 1605, his wife Margaret became dowager countess and began repairing Brougham Castle, which became her favoured residence.

Margaret contended with claims to the ownership of the family estates from her brother-in-law Francis Clifford, 4th Earl of Cumberland, but held onto Brougham Castle.

Later the same year, James I visited Scotland and on his return journey he stayed at the castles of Carlisle, Brougham, and Appleby, where expensive banquets were given in his honour.

Sir John Lowther, the garrison commander, stated that he took control of Brougham Castle not because it was strategically important, but to deny the Parliamentarians of its use.

In June 1648, Appleby endured a four-day siege before capitulating to the Parliamentarians, but lightly manned Brougham Castle succumbed easily to Colonel John Lambert.

Only the Tower of League was left untouched, but in 1723 its contents were also sold, for £40[41] By the 1750s, the castle's only practical use was as a ready source of building material for the village of Brougham, which prospered due to investment from the Earl of Thanet.

In 1794, a record of the dilapidated state of the castle noted that "much of the interior walls have lately been removed, also, for the purposes of building houses for the adjoining farmhold".

[42] During the late 18th century, the Lake District became a popular visitor attraction and the sensibilities of Romanticism glamorised such historic ruins as Brougham Castle.

[46] ...That river and those mouldering towerHave seen us side by side, when, having clombThe darksome windings of a broken stair,And Crept along a ridge of fractured wall,Not without trembling, we in safety lookedForth, through some Gothic window's open space,And gathered with one mind in a rich rewardFrom the far-stretching landscape... Henry Tufton died in 1849, and castle ownership fell to Hothfields.

With the introduction of bus services in the area, the castle experienced renewed interest from the public, and in the late 1920s around 2,000 people visited annually.

[43] The castle is a scheduled monument,[51] meaning it is a "nationally important" historic building and archaeological site which has been given protection against unauthorised change.

A postern gate was hidden behind a buttress in the north side of the gatehouse and would have provided a discrete means of leaving the castle.

[63] A keep contained the main domestic accommodation in a castle, usually high-status, and also provided the last place of refuge if the surrounding enclosure fell during an assault.

[63] However, historian Henry Summerson who assessed the historic documents for the castle concluded that construction could not have begun earlier than the first quarter of the 13th century.

Four storeys tall and with a single room at each level, the presence of a garderobe and fireplace on each floor suggests that the tower was reserved for high-status visitors.

The folklorist Marjorie Rowling identified him with another legendary local giant, Hugh Cesario, but Jennifer Westwood and Jacqueline Simpson prefer to derive him from Sir Tarquin, an adversary of Sir Lancelot in Thomas Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur; they believe that this story, unlocalized by Malory, probably became associated with north-west England because King Arthur was often said to hold his court in Carlisle.