Hylton Castle (Newcastle upon Tyne)
The distinctive and highly decorative gatehouse-tower of a castle built by Sir William Hylton, shortly before 1400.
Introduction
Hylton Castle is a ruined stone castle in the North Hylton area of Sunderland. Originally built from wood by the Hilton (later Hylton) family shortly after the Norman Conquest in 1066, it was later rebuilt in stone in the late 14th to early 15th century. The castle underwent major changes to its interior and exterior in the 18th century and it remained the principal seat of the Hylton family until the death of the last "baron" in 1746. It was then Gothicised but neglected until 1812, when it was revitalised by a new owner. Standing empty again until the 1840s, it was briefly used as a school until it was purchased again in 1862. The site passed to a local coal company in the early 20th century and was taken over by the state in 1950.
One of the castle's main features, is the heraldic devices found mainly on the west façade, which have been retained from the castle's original construction. They depict the coats of arms belonging to local gentry and peers of the late 14th to early 15th centuries and provide an approximate date of the castle's reconstruction from wood to stone.
Open all year round at any reasonable time.
History to the present day
Early history
The first castle on the site, built by Henry de Hilton in about 1072, was likely to have been built of wood. It was subsequently re-built in stone by Sir William Hylton (1376–1435) as a four storey, gatehouse-style, fortified manor house, similar in design to Lumley and Raby. Although called a gatehouse, it belongs to a type of small, late 14th century castle, similar to Old Wardour, Bywell and Nunney castles.
The eccentric Henry Hylton, de jure 12th Baron Hylton left the castle to the City of London Corporation on his death in 1641, to be used for charitable purposes for ninety-nine years. It was returned to the family after the Restoration, to Henry's nephew, John Hylton, de jure 15th Baron Hylton.
18th century
When the 18th and last "baron" died without male heirs in 1746, the castle passed to his nephew, Sir Richard Musgrave, Bt, who took the name of Hylton. It was sold by an Act of Parliament in 1755. The new owner was to be a Mr. Wogan who returned from the East Indies to buy the castle for £30,550 (£3.7 million in 2007), but the sale never went through. It was instead bought by Lady Bowes, the widow of Sir George Bowes of Streatlam and Gibside in County Durham. No record of her, or any of her family, ever taking up residence exists and the castle later passed to her grandson, John Bowes, 10th Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne.
19th century
After a long period of remaining empty, the castle slowly began to decay, until in 1812, when Simon Temple, a local businessman, leased the castle from the Strathmores and made it habitable. However, his failed business ventures prevented him from completing his work, and in 1819 the castle was bought and lived in by a Mr. Thomas Wade.
By 1834, the castle was unoccupied again. In 1840, an advert was placed in the Newcastle Courant by Revd. John Wood for "Hylton Castle Boarding School" and the 1841 census shows Wood, his family, pupils and staff as living on the estate. In 1862, the castle was put up for sale by the Strathmores and purchased by William Briggs, a local timber merchant and ship builder. Briggs set about to change the appearance of the castle to what he believed to be more "authentic medieval". Alongside the medieval masonry, Briggs' alterations can still be seen today (albeit in ruins). Briggs' son, Colonel Charles James Briggs (father of Sir Charles James Briggs) inherited the castle in 1871 and built the nearby St Margaret's church.
20th century
After Colonel Brigg's death in 1900, the castle passed into the hands of the Wearmouth Coal Company about 1908, and from there to the National Coal Board. Due to the expansion of Sunderland in the 1940s, the castle became surrounded by housing estates including that of Castletown. The castle was vandalised and had the lead from its roof stolen. In 1950, due to local pressure and the threat of demolition, the castle and chapel were taken into the care of the Ministry of Works. Due to the advanced decay of the 19th century alterations, the ministry removed all internal partitions and consolidated the shell to reveal the remaining medieval masonry. In 1994, Channel 4's Time Team undertook excavations on the 'Eastern Terrace'. Their investigations revealed evidence of a medieval hall to the east of the castle; it has been suggested that the hall was used as a dining area.
More photos of Hylton Castle
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Hylton Castle c.1954
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St Catherine's chapel
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East Face
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Gothic Screen, East Face
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