Yorkshire 6 - a trip into Yorkshire and a visit to a castle put off yesterday as it was black over Bills mothers

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Summer is drifting on and with that drift there is a feel of Autumn in the air. The mornings have a distinctly chilly feel and the grass is covered with beads of dew. The nights are drawing in. The lights are being switched on around 8.30 and the days feel considerably shorter. The sky is grey and overcast and the last bank holiday is only just around the corner. The central heating clicks in early in the morning as it tries to raise the house temperature from 18 degrees to a more comfortable 21. How I hate this time of year - knowing that there are only a few more weeks of what can be described as Summer and we have nothing to look forward to apart from the cooler and sometimes dismal days of Autumn.



The only thing to look forward to is the upcoming holiday. What a week it has been. Suzy had to go to the garage to have her bonnet inspected. The windscreen fitters had identified a misaligned bonnet and we found a water pipe rubber worn through. The garage fixed the pipe but have taken photos of the bonnet to send to Fiat to see if they will do the work under warranty. This is a warranty of two years and we are just out of it. How come though that they fix the pipe which is as out of warranty as the bonnet but leave the bonnet. My head says you either do both or none at all. Photographs have been sent to Fiat and we wait to see whether or not they will do the work. If it takes as long as the work on the motorhome part took I doubt we will get any answer this side of Christmas .

The vignettes have arrived from Tolltickets. Typical German efficiency. Ordered them on Monday and the vignettes arrived the next day. The Go Box for Italy and the remaining vignettes turned up a couple of days later. We have topped up the Caxton Card with enough euros to pay for fuel and food. Czech and Croatian currency ordered from the Caravan Club. Arrived in one day - typical Caravan Club efficiency. And the car is taxed, MOT'd, serviced before we go on holiday. There are so many things to do before you leave the country. Things that cannot wait until you return. Passports checked - still enough on them for travel this year, Driving licences still OK and EHIC still up to date, travel insurance paid for, tickets for the train checked and packed as well as ones for the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua. Campsite booked at Rimini in readiness for a trip to watch MotorGP. Apart from that everything else is left to chance and likely change. And we have been checking the 10 day weather forecast which suggests the weather will be fine although rain is promised for the MotorGP day.

Doctors and opticians visits completed just in case. And Suzy has had a leak. Rain dribbled in after her visit to the garage. We couldn't work out where it was coming from but it seemed a lot of it coming in. It probably wasn't a lot just felt like it. I was reminded being told once that when a baby is sick or does a wee there seems always a lot more than there actually is. And so it was with Suzy, a regular drip drip and trickles down the interior.

Into the dealership she went and after three days they advised us that she had a leak in her top cappings. Sounds like an exotic palace in Istanbul. A bit of sealant and she was on her way again. We made the trip down to the plumbers merchants to buy some tape to reinforce her - just in case. And finally toilet paper - bought loads of it - just in case. There is a Zen saying "There is nothing else you can do but burst out laughing" and after the week we have had I can only agree.

We had planned to visit Conisbrough castle yesterday but the skies darkened and the rain felt in bucketloads. It was dark over Bills mothers so castle visit was put off until today. Conisbrough Castle is about 25 miles up the M1 and was built in the 12th-century.

We parked up on a tiny car park and walked up the hill to the castle. The remains are very striking and are dominated by the 97-foot (29.5m) high circular keep which is supported by six buttresses. The property is English Heritage run which means we got in for nothing with our Cadw membership. Gavin on the desk smiled at us and asked if we were North Walian or South. Having told him we were Gogs from the North he told us he had been brought up in Colwyn Bay just up the road from where we used to live. We exchanged a little Welsh which seemed odd in the heart of South Yorkshire.

The name Conisbrough comes from the Old English Cuningesburh meaning the defended burh of the King which suggests that the area once belonged to one of the English kings prior to the Norman Conquest after which much of the lands were given to Norman Lords. The area, strategically placed on one of few historic crossings of the River Don, has been home to a fortification since at least 600 AD

At the time of the Norman Conquest, the manor of Conisbrough was held by King Harold he of the arrow in his eye and was defeated at the Battle of Hastings.

The current castle was probably on the site of an earlier Norman Castle and was built by William de Warenne who was 1st Earl of Surrey. He was the son-in-law of William the Conqueror. The Warenne family owned other castles in the area as well as others around Britain and one keep in Normandy. The third Earl died without male heir in 1147, the castle passing to his daughter, Isabel de Warenne the Countess of Surrey. The current castle was built by Hamelin Plantagenet who was Isabel's second husband and the illegitimate half-brother of King Henry II. The unique style of keep has been attributed to Hamelin's own design, similar to the keep at Mortemer.

The Yorkshire lands of the Warenne family were seized later by Thomas Earl of Lancaster and the castle fell to Edward II . It continued to change hands over many years. Edward III gave it to his son during his tenure work to improve the accommodation in the inner ward was carried out. During the War of the Roses the castle was fought over and became Crown property again.

By the reign of Henry VIII the castle like many others was in a dilapidated state and the remains today are much as they were at the time of Henry. This decay continued through Elizabeth I reign and well into the 17th century. The gatehouse collapse and much of the curtain wall fell. Little damage was done during the English Civil War. No bombardment nor slighting which saved it from further decline.

Once inside the walls we found ourselves in a wide green area with the keep prominent in the middle. I was surprised to see how many visitors there were in the castle. Inside the keep were a series of floors each with ornate fireplace, small chapels and small side rooms. A film show was projected on to the walls telling the story of the many owners of the castle. At the top was an open walk around the tower with views over the town below and the Yorkshire countryside .

An enjoyable day and the start of a countdown to the holidays. 8 days to go and counting .......................................

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Photos

Conisbrough Castle
The Norman Keep

Conisbrough Castle
The impressive staircase

Conisbrough
What is inside the doorway?

Conisbrough
The war memorial in Coninsbrough

Comments

[D MJ Binkley]

Castle
Rich in history. So many stories to tell.

[JenGog]

rich in history
Yes if stones could talk :)