Ravensworth Castle (Durham)

United Kingdom / England / Whickham /
 castle, interesting place
Ravensworth Castle in north Durham, which stands on the gentle slope of a hill to the north-west of the village of Lamesley was at one time the pride of the county, today it is an empty shell.
The castle occupied the site of an old fortress whose origin is lost. Two of its ancient towers are embodied in the present structure. This early stronghold, according to the first chroniclers, was called Ravens helm and in some records, Raffens weath. Hutchinson, an early historian of the county of Durham, in attempting to explain these names tells us: The The antiquity of this castle leads to conjectures as to the etymology of the name; in many old records it is called Ravenshelm and Ravenfwaith, in the old spelling Raffenfweath. The Danish standard was called Raffen, and weath is a north country word, now used in Scotland for sorrow . The application we would make is, that Ravensworth Castle is of Danish foundation, and had its name from them as Raffens-Helm, or the stronghold of the Danish standard; and that some defeat of that people had occasioned the name of Raffens weath, or Danish woe."
Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ravensworth_Castle
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   54°55'35"N   1°38'16"W

Comments

  • Actually what remains is just the service courtyard and stables. The massive castle itself was demolished as it was falling apart due to mining subsidence
  • I've added a photo of what the catle used to look like
This article was last modified 15 years ago