MonissaTo finish off the castle/fortress/towerhouses is #Lindisfarne Castle. A Tudor fort that became an Edwardian holiday house.
It's not a bad view to wake up to :)
St. Michael's Mount, Marazion, Cornwall was a priory, then fortified, then a fortified monastery, it's all a bit confusing :) Now it's a stately home with a chapel on the side.
"The buyldinges that are on the topp of this Mount auntient all of freestone verie stronge and permanent wherof muche was erected by Willm Moriton, Nephew to Willm the Conquerour, who had muche lande in this Countrye. It was sometimes a Cell of munckes but since fortefyed for defence. It hath bene muche resorted unto by Pylgrims in deuotion to St Michaell whose chayre is fabled to be in the mount on the south syde of verie Daungerous access. The ascente unto the mounte is steepe curuing narrowe and rockye and that but one waye in the north syde. John Earle of Oxforde surprised this mount by pollicie and kepte it by force againste king Edwarde the 4. but with noe profitable or prayse worthy success for he was violently depryued of it. But some write that he surrendred it upon conditions. It is a place of noe greate importance hauinge small receyte of meanes to keepe and defende it longe At the foote of the mount is a peere of Stones wherin boates are harbored and from Marcaiew there is a causwaye or passage that leadeth to the Mount on foote at a lowe water."
From "Speculi Britanniae Pars: A Topographical and Historical Description of Cornwall", John Norden, 1728 [1626], p.39
Down to the other end of the country, on #Tresco one of the Isles of #Scilly are two forts: Cromwell's Castle (left), a 17th century fort built at the end of the Civil War to replace King Charles' Castle (right & on the hill).
Of the latter, the English Heritage website says: ""Its guns would have to point down at so steep an angle to hit ships in New Grimsby Channel that the cannonballs would have rolled out of the cannons before they fired" and "It was garrisoned by the Royalists during the Civil War, but when the Parliamentarians took Tresco in 1651 they simply bypassed the castle by landing on the other side of the island." Generally, as forts go, something of a failure.
Another 16th century tower house, Noltland Castle, #Westray, #Orkney. This was built quite defensively. You can see the holes for shooting through on the lower levels, rather than windows.
Muness Castle, Unst, Shetland is a 16th century tower house. A rather bleak day for photos.
Dunnottar Castle, near Aberdeen, is apparently a tower house. You can see the tower on the right. You can also see the rail of the path that goes down-down-down and then up-up-up to access it. Also, on the left, the larger main residence built in the 15th or 16th century.
Just hoping over to Rome for a bit. Castel Sant’Angelo started life as a tomb for one of the emperors (Hadrian), before it became a fortress. It was also a home for popes and prison.
Everybody: Sculpture! Paintings! Mona Lisa!
Me: Oooh, a castle!
At the heart of the Louvre: sometimes it's referred to as a castle, sometimes as a Medieval fortress, so I am using this as a transition from #castleaday to #fortressandtowerhouseaday So that might be a bit long. Not to mention hard to type. #Notacastleaday maybe?
