Marmion Tower
Encyclopedia
Marmion Tower is a 15th century gatehouse
near to the village of West Tanfield
in North Yorkshire
, England
.
It was the entrance to and formerly adjoined to a now vanished manor house by the River Ure
, owned by the Marmion family from which the gatehouse gets its name. It is thought that is that the manor house was called Tanfield Castle, a fortified manor, but are no remains of the castle itself, for which license to crenellate was granted in 1348, and there are some doubts that the 'castle' was ever built. . The entry in Domesday Book records that the manor at West Tanfield was held in 1086 by Count Alan of Richmond Castle.
The Marmion family owned the manor for much of the 13th and 14th centuries, but the gatehouse dates from the 15th century. It was probably built by William Fitz Hugh, who died in 1452.
The tower has three levels and is built in stone. The gateway is barrel vaulted and has a guardroom to the south. The stair leads to the rooms above and ends in a turret above the battlements. It is noted for its well preserved oriel window
on the first floor and other features include the garderobe (latrine) and a porter's "squint".
The tower is now under the care of English Heritage
.
Gatehouse
A gatehouse, in architectural terminology, is a building enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a castle, manor house, fort, town or similar buildings of importance.-History:...
near to the village of West Tanfield
West Tanfield
West Tanfield is a village and civil parish in the Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England. Situated about 6 miles north of Ripon on the A6108, which goes from Ripon into Wensleydale, West Tanfield is on the edge of both the Yorkshire Dales and the Vale of York...
in North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire
North Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
It was the entrance to and formerly adjoined to a now vanished manor house by the River Ure
River Ure
The River Ure is a river in North Yorkshire, England, approximately long from its source to the point where it changes name to the River Ouse. It is the principal river of Wensleydale, which is the only one of the Dales now named after a village rather than its river...
, owned by the Marmion family from which the gatehouse gets its name. It is thought that is that the manor house was called Tanfield Castle, a fortified manor, but are no remains of the castle itself, for which license to crenellate was granted in 1348, and there are some doubts that the 'castle' was ever built. . The entry in Domesday Book records that the manor at West Tanfield was held in 1086 by Count Alan of Richmond Castle.
The Marmion family owned the manor for much of the 13th and 14th centuries, but the gatehouse dates from the 15th century. It was probably built by William Fitz Hugh, who died in 1452.
The tower has three levels and is built in stone. The gateway is barrel vaulted and has a guardroom to the south. The stair leads to the rooms above and ends in a turret above the battlements. It is noted for its well preserved oriel window
Oriel window
Oriel windows are a form of bay window commonly found in Gothic architecture, which project from the main wall of the building but do not reach to the ground. Corbels or brackets are often used to support this kind of window. They are seen in combination with the Tudor arch. This type of window was...
on the first floor and other features include the garderobe (latrine) and a porter's "squint".
The tower is now under the care of English Heritage
English Heritage
English Heritage . is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport...
.
External links
- Marmion Tower, English Heritage