Brougham Castle

Brougham (pronounced "Broom") Castle, a large and well-preserved ruin, stands next to the River Eamont on the site of an old Roman fort, Brocavum, just two miles outside Penrith in Cumbria. In 1214 the Norman family of Vieuxpont chose to build their castle on the site, which consisted of a stone keep and service buildings surrounded by a timber pallisade.

By 1268 the castle had passed to Robert Clifford, whose father Roger had become Lord of Brougham when he married Robert Vieuxpoint's great-granddaughter. An important figure in the Scottish Wars (which started in 1296), Robert Clifford carried out much work at Brougham to strengthen its defences. After various attacks, and some periods of neglect in which the castle fell into ruin, the last member of the Clifford family, Lady Anne Clifford, inherited the Clifford Estate in 1643. She restored most of the Clifford properties and spent several months staying at each in turn. She died at Brougham Castle in 1676. After this time the castle quickly fell once again into ruin.

The best thing about Brougham Castle, for us, was the fact that we were free to wander through the ruins: from the keep, the oldest part of the castle still standing, to the third floor with its passage all the way around the walls, to the lord's chamber on the second floor in which Lady Anne died, to the castle's hall on the first floor. From numerous vantage points we stopped to take in the impressive views of the other castle buildings (see picture at left), the rushing River Eamont, and surrounding hills.

Date of Our Last Visit: August 2004