John O'Gaunt's Castle

John O'Gaunt's Castle
Haverah Park, England
Castle remains today
Site information
TypeHunting lodge
Location
John O'Gaunt's Castle
Shown within North Yorkshire
Coordinates53°59′10″N 1°40′03″W / 53.9861°N 1.6675°W / 53.9861; -1.6675
Grid referencegrid reference SE219545

John O'Gaunt's Castle was a royal hunting lodge. It is situated in the civil parish of Haverah Park near Harrogate, now in North Yorkshire (historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire).

History

The castle was considered to be the hunting lodge of John O'Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, who was Lord of the Manor of Knaresborough for twenty-eight years until 1399.[1]

Strongly sited on the end of a spur at Haverah Park, is a ditched platform 35 metres (115 ft) by 30 metres (98 ft) which had a curtain wall and a gatehouse, with a bridge over the moat. Within are buried footings of a central tower, 15 metres (49 ft) square, and one wall which probably formed part of a range. It was situated within the royal lordship of Knaresborough. Edward III had building works in progress here in 1334.[2] In 1372 he granted it, along with Knaresborough to his son John of Gaunt.[3]

The castle was listed for the first time on 17 December 1929.[4]

Description

The hunting lodge was a stone tower built atop on a square foundation. The lodge also had a chapel. The roof was made out of lead. A 2-metre (6 ft 7 in) wide ditch surrounded the castle.[4]

References

  1. ^ Armitage-Smith, Sydney (1964) [1873]. John Of Gaunt. New York: Barnes & Noble. p. 202. OCLC 1326706.
  2. ^ ""John of Gaunt's Castle". Shipley Express and Times. No. 3, 267. 10 December 1938. p. 11. OCLC 556550486.
  3. ^ Page, William, ed. (1912). The Victoria history of the county of York. Vol.2. London: Constable. p. 21. OCLC 1454982699.
  4. ^ a b Historic England. "Medieval royal hunting lodge known as John of Gaunt's Castle, immediately north west of Haverah Park Top, Haverah Park (1020950)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 6 July 2020.

See also