HYLTON CASTLE

County Durham

Hylton Castle stands stranded amongst the housing estates of this suburb of Sunderland, a strange and unexpected thing to discover amongst the urban anonymity.

The first Castle was supposedly built here in 1072 by Henry de Hilton, but no trace remains. The present building was constructed between 1374 and 1420 by Sir William Hilton.  The initial Castle consisted of the tower (pictured) that is the main remnant left above groud today; this was enlarged over the ensuing years, and a curtain wall was added, part of which still remains to the north.

The eccentric Henry Hilton bequeathed the Castle to the unlikely beneficiary of the Corporation of London in 1640.  Early in the following century, after a long legal battle, it was regained by the Hiltons who extended the Castle by adding a north wing and a complete remodelling of the interior of the tower.  A second, south wing was added in the mid 1700s.  Little but outlines remain of both; although Channel 4's "Time Team" excavated the foundations of one of the wings in 1996.

By the end of the 18th century the Castle was abandoned and much of it was demolished by William Briggs around 1862.  What remains today is owned by English Heritage.

Hylton Castle has one of the most celebrated ghosts in the form of "The Cauld Lad" - a stable boy who was murdered by Baron Robert Hilton in 1609 who threw a hayfork at the lad whilst he slept instead of making the Baron's horse ready.  The hauntings ceased when clothing was fished from a nearby pond where the Baron was supposed to have flung the body.

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© Text copyright - Raving Loony Productions, Andrew J. Müller and Roy Barton
© Photos and Artwork - Andrew J. Müller and Roy Barton
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2001