Greystoke Castle

In 1069, after the Norman conquest the English landlord Ligulf de Greystoke was re-granted his land and he built a wooden tower surrounded by a pale (or pele).

The building grew to become a large pele tower and in the 14th century after William de Greystoke obtained a royal licence to castellate it,[1] the castle was further enlarged.

In 1571 the castle was in the ownership of Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk and Earl Marshal of England through his marriage into the Dacre family, who had been the previous owners.

The Howards were Catholics and Royalists and as a consequence during the Civil War the castle was laid waste by Parliamentarians under General Lambert in 1648.

Then between 1838 and 1848, the castle was rebuilt to a design by Anthony Salvin, incorporating the older structures including the pele tower, and the estates were developed by Charles Howard into a modern farm.