Ford Castle, Northumberland

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Fowrde; ffurde; Forde; Foord

In the civil parish of Ford.
In the historic county of Northumberland (Modern Authority of Northumberland, 1974 county of Northumberland).

Sir William Heron was granted licence to crenellate in 1338. Quadrangular type with four corner towers, three of which survive. It was converted into a mansion in 1694, and given Gothick detail in 1761 by George Raffield for Sir John Hussey Deleval. Restored in a C17 style for Louisa, Marchioness of Waterford from 1862.

This site has been described as a;
Masonry Castle.
The confidence that this site is a medieval fortification or palace is Certain.
Masonry ruins/remnants remains.

A Royal licence to crenellate was granted in 1338 July 16.

This site is a scheduled monument protected by law.
This site is a Grade 1 listed building protected by law*. (Images of England number 238054, 238055)

The Ordnance Survey Map Grid Reference is NT94413749

Modern Map from Good for landscape form and features	Modern Map from Good for general location
Air Photo from	1st edition OS Map from

Sources of information, references and further reading

PastScape number; 3646

County Sites and Monuments Record number; N1812, N1908

• Web site links
  • http://www.northumberland.gov.uk/Fordcastle/
    http://www.britannia.com/britcastles/ford.html
    http://www.keystothepast.info/durhamcc/K2P.nsf/K2PDetail?readform&PRN=N1812
    http://www.keystothepast.info/durhamcc/K2P.nsf/K2PDetail?readform&PRN=N1908
    http://www.sine.newcastle.ac.uk/view_structure_information.asp?struct_id=117
    http://www.sine.newcastle.ac.uk/view_structure_information.asp?struct_id=1463
    http://www.sine.newcastle.ac.uk/view_structure_information.asp?struct_id=2380
    http://www.castleuk.net/castle_lists_north/74/fordcastle.htm
• Books
  • Dodds, John F., 1999, Bastions and Belligerents (Keepdate Publishing) p84-7
    Salter, Mike, 1997, The Castles and Tower Houses of Northumberland (Malvern) p56-7
    Emery, Anthony, 1996, Greater Medieval Houses Vol1 (Cambridge) p94-5, 159
    Pettifer, A., 1995, English Castles, A guide by counties (Woodbridge) p185
    Jackson, M.J.,1992, Castles of Northumbria (Carlise)
    Pevsner, N., 1992 (revised by Grundy, John et al), The Buildings of England: Northumberland (London, Penguin) p282-4
    Pevsner, N et al, 1992. The Buildings of England: Northumberland (London) p282-83
    Rowland, T.H., 1987 [reprint1994], Medieval Castles, Towers, Peles and Bastles of Northumberland (Sandhill Press) p5, 6, 9-11, 19-20
    Desmond, R., 1984. Bibliography of British Gardens (Winchester), 127
    King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol2 p333
    Fry, P.S., 1980, Castles of the British Isles (David and Charles) p231-2
    Binney, M., and Hills, A., 1979. Elysian Gardens (London) p17
    Harris, J., 1979. The Artist and the Country House: A history of country house and garden view painting in Britain, 1540-1870 (London) p205
    Graham, Frank, 1976, The Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne: Frank Graham) p168-75
    Hedley, W. Percy, 1968-70, Northumberland Families Vol2 p52
    Long, B., 1967, Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) p107-8
    Hugill, R.,1939, Borderland Castles and Peles [1970 Reprint by Frank Graham] p109-111
    Vickers, Kenneth H. (ed), 1922, Northumberland County History (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) Vol11 p369-425
    Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (Methuen and Co)
    Mackenzie, J.D., 1897, Castles of England (Heinemann) Vol2 p388-90
    Bates, C.J., 1891, Border Holds of Northumberland (London and Newcastle: Andrew Reid) p9, 14, 24, 39, 305-9 [plan and elevation]
    Timbs, J. and Gunn, A., 1872, Abbeys, Castles and Ancient Halls of England and Wales Vol3 (London) p392-408
    Turner, T.H. and Parker, J.H., 1859, Some account of Domestic Architecture in England (Oxford) Vol3 pt2 p412
• Journal Articles
  • 1979, Journal of the British Archaeological Association Vol132 p85
    Fawcett, R., 1976, ‘Ford Castle' Archaeological Journal Vol133 p190-2 [plan]
    St Joseph, J.K., 1950, 'Castles of Northumberalnd from the air' Archaeologia Aeliana [ser4] Vol28 p16-7
    Hussey, C., 1941 Jan, Country Life Vol89 p32-5, 56-60, 78-82
    1928, History of the Berwickshire Naturalist Club Vol26 p155-6 [only plans from N.C.H.]
    1891-2, Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle Vol62-3
    Bates, C.J., 1887-8, Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle Vol3 p347-9
    1882-4, Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle Vol1 p146-7
• Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents - This section is far from complete and the secondary sources should be consulted for full references.)
  • 1584 Commissioners Report [Click here]
    1541 Survey of the East and Middle Marches [Click here]
    1509 Survey of Tevedale [Click here]
    1415 list of Northumberland Castles [Click here]
    Calendar of Patent Rolls (1338-40) p114
• Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
  • William Camden, 1607, Britannia [http://www.philological.bham.ac.uk/cambrit/nhumbeng.html#nhumb26]
    Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p343
    Toulmin-Smith, Lucy (ed), 1910, The itinerary of John Leland in or about the years 1535-1543 (Bell and Sons; London) Vol3 p24