BERWICK-UPON-TWEED CASTLE

Northumbria

Berwick-upon-Tweed, that great border town, has switched sides between England and Scotland on a bewildering number of occasions.  It can be fairly safe to say the town has had more sieges than any other in the World, with the exception perhaps of Jerusalem.

It was ceded to the English in 1175 after William the Lion's expedition into England; Richard I sold it back to Scotland to pay for his crusades.  Edward I captured it back and massacred the townfolk.  William Wallace briefly recaptured the town only to be ousted by Edward II, then Robert the Bruce seized the town by stealth in 1318.  Edward III recaptured the town in 1333. There then followed seventy years of English rule before Henry Percy's revolt against Henry IV allowed the Scots back in.  In 1405 Henry marched north and re-took the town.  Henry VI subsequently lost the Castle when he lost his throne, it was eventually recaptured by Richard, Duke of Gloucester (who became Richard III) in 1482 and stayed in English hands thereafter, although continues invasion scares and skirmishes carried on until after the Jacobite rebellion's failure finally crushed all Scottish hopes for independence.

The Castle, which no doubt featured in much of this chaos, dates back to a very early period, although its early history is unclear, but it was probably built initially by David I of Scotlan.  There was certainly a Castle of some kind here which was rebuilt by Edward I when he re-captured the town for England in 1296.  Edward also rebuilt the towns defences.  Not a lot remains of the Castle, save for the bottom part of a keep and a Tudor gun emplacement.  A good deal of the rest of the Castle was swept away by the railway's construction in 1850 - although this did give Berwick the truly magnificent Royal Border Bridge (also pictured above).

The wall which descends down the side of the motte to the River is known - very appropriately - as the "Breakneck Stairs" and dates from Edward I's rebuild.

Berwick's glory now is the elaborate Town fortifications constructed from 1558, constructed to the most modern plans, all angle-bastions and arrow-head earthworks.  The circuit of these is fascinating and makes one marvel at medieval building methods.

Berwick is a truly amazing town and all its fortifications added together make an astonishing destination indeed.

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2001