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Landmarks

Alnwick Castle

Hogwarts flew its broomsticks here, but Alnwick Castle was guarding the Scottish border for centuries before Harry Potter learned to fly on its lawn.

Published

Alnwick Castle
Photo: Clementp.fr, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Quick Facts

Location
Alnwick, Northumberland, on the banks of the River Aln
Built
Founded around 1096; heavily remodelled in the 14th and 18th–19th centuries
Owners
The Percy family since 1309 (the Dukes of Northumberland since 1766)
Original builder
Yvo de Vescy, Norman baron, with the Percys taking over in 1309
Style
Medieval fortress restored by Anthony Salvin, with Italianate state rooms designed by Luigi Canina in the 1850s
Film and TV
Hogwarts in the first two Harry Potter films; Brancaster Castle in Downton Abbey's 2014 and 2015 Christmas specials; the first series of The Black Adder (1983)
Designation
Grade I listed building
Neighbour
The Alnwick Garden, redevelopment begun in 1997 and first phase opened in October 2001, on land once part of the castle's estate

The castle that played Hogwarts

Millions of film fans know Alnwick Castle without ever having heard its name. When Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was filmed in 2000, its outer bailey became the grounds of Hogwarts, and the lawns hosted Harry's first flying lesson with Madam Hooch. The castle returned for the Chamber of Secrets. Today it runs broomstick-training sessions on the very spot. It is a fine bit of role reversal: a castle built to scare off Scots is now best known for teaching small wizards to fly. The film crews were drawn by the look of the place. Its walls, towers and courtyards are what most of us picture when we imagine a proper English castle.

Built to hold back the Scots

Alnwick sits in the far north of England, in country that spent centuries on the front line. A Norman stronghold stood here from around 1096, held first by Yvo de Vescy. It guarded the main route north towards Scotland and the crossing of the Aln. The castle was no stranger to attack. Scottish kings came knocking more than once. In 1093 Malcolm III of Scotland was killed near Alnwick, and in 1174 William the Lion was surprised and captured near the town by an English force led by Ranulf de Glanvill. Fog hid the English riders' approach from Newcastle. It was a place meant to hold, and it held.

The Percys: a family that bought a castle and never left

In 1309 Henry de Percy bought the castle from the Bishop of Durham, Anthony Bek. The Percys then turned it into a showpiece fortress, adding the great gatehouse, towers and the barbican that still greets visitors. They were no quiet landlords. The family became the most powerful in the north and was involved in rebellions and power struggles against kings. Henry Percy, known as Hotspur, was immortalised by Shakespeare in Henry IV, Part 1. He was born around 1364 and was killed at the Battle of Shrewsbury in 1403. The family title became Earl and then, in 1766, Duke of Northumberland. Their descendants still live in the castle, which makes it one of the longest-running family homes of any English castle.

A medieval fortress with a palace inside

Step into the inner courtyard and the mood changes. By the 1700s the castle had been repaired and given a Gothic look by Robert Adam. The real transformation came in the 1850s and 1860s, when the 4th Duke hired the architect Anthony Salvin to restore the building. The Italianate state-room interiors were designed by Luigi Canina, with Italian craftsmen brought in to carry them out. The result is a set of state rooms that feel more like a Renaissance palace than a border fort. Expect carved ceilings, rich colour and a collection of paintings that includes works by Titian, Canaletto and Van Dyck. It is a startling contrast: a tough outside, a lavish inside.

Look up for the stone soldiers

One of the castle's quirkiest details is on the battlements. Stone figures of soldiers stand along the parapets, a tradition that goes back to the Middle Ages. They were meant to make the garrison look larger than it really was, a bit of medieval bluff for any approaching enemy. Some of the figures you see now are later replacements, but the idea is original. Look carefully from the approach road and you can spot them silhouetted against the sky. Also worth finding: the Postern Tower, the Constable's Tower and the keep itself. Together they give a clear sense of how the defences were laid out.

More than one screen role

Hogwarts is not the castle's only claim to screen fame. It appeared in the first series of The Black Adder in 1983, and in 2014 and 2015 it stood in as Brancaster Castle for Downton Abbey's Christmas specials. It has also turned up in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and in various period dramas. Just down the road is The Alnwick Garden, whose redevelopment the Duchess of Northumberland initiated in 1997; the first phase opened in October 2001. Its giant treehouse and Grand Cascade are now an attraction in their own right, so the two make a natural pair for a day out.

Notable people

  • Yvo de Vescy
  • Henry de Percy
  • Henry Percy (Hotspur)
  • Anthony Bek
  • Robert Adam
  • Anthony Salvin
  • Luigi Canina
  • Ranulf de Glanvill
  • Malcolm III of Scotland
  • William the Lion
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