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Lowther Medieval Castle and Village

Overlooking the Bampton Valley on the edge of the Lake District, the picturesque ruins of Lowther’s nineteenth-century castle are one of the region’s most popular attractions. Less well known are the earthworks immediately to the north, the remains of a medieval castle and village. Preliminary work suggests the site may date to the late eleventh or early twelfth century. If so, it could provide rare evidence of the conquest and colonisation of the Kingdom of Cumbria by King William Rufus in 1092 – a generation after the Normans seized control of the rest of England. The site is potentially of national significance but has never been fully investigated. Who built the castle and its settlement, when and why? The site appears to have been important to the Kingdom of Cumbria – is that why the Normans chose it? The Lowther Medieval Castle and Village project brings together historians and archaeologists from the North West to uncover the site’s biography at the crossroads of Medieval Britain, c.800-1300.

In 2023, funded by the Castle Studies Trust (CST), the team conducted archival research and a geophysical survey and excavations of the castle and village. Phase Two investigations in 2024 dug further into the site's history, funded by the CST and the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society (CWAAS), while Lowther Castle and Gardens Trust (LCGT) funded research into Lowther's life in the Kingdom of Cumbria. Further work is planned for 2025.

In 2023 the project was featured on BBC2’s Digging for Britain (see behind-the-scenes photographs below). You can learn more about the Norman Conquest of Cumbria in 1092 in BBC History Extra Podcast featuring project lead Dr Sophie Ambler and Professor Fiona Edmonds.

The Second Norman Conquest

Lowther's castle was likely built as part of the Norman conquest of the Kingdom of Cumbria in 1092, led by King William Rufus - a generation after the Normans conquered the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. What do we know about the Kingdom of Cumbria, and why did the Normans want to conquer it? Find out in a podcast for BBC History Extra, featuring project lead Dr Sophie Ambler and Professor Fiona Edmonds.

Listen on Spotify
Norman Conquest Bayeux Tapestry

History and Archaeology in Medieval Cumbria

The team aims to uncover important new evidence for a critical period in Britain’s past. Unlike the rest of England, Co. Cumbria was not conquered by the Normans in 1066. The region was historically part of the Kingdom of Cumbria, which stretched from Strathclyde across the Solway. Then, while the Normans were conquering lowland England, the area from Lowther northwards was conquered by the Scottish king Máel Coluim III. Cumbria was only annexed by the Normans in 1092, when William the Conqueror’s son, William Rufus, led an expedition to the area. According to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, the king then ‘sent many peasant people with their wives and cattle to live there and cultivate the land’. An earthwork survey has suggested the castle is an early Norman ringwork, with a planned settlement. Could Lowther’s medieval castle and village date from this era? There is little written evidence for Cumbria in the early and central Middle Ages: since this region was not part of William the Conqueror’s kingdom it was left out of Domesday Book, and few records have otherwise survived. Whatever the investigation finds, the archaeology at Lowther offers a fantastic opportunity to understand life in medieval Cumbria.

Lowther Medieval Castle and Village project

Uniting History and Archaeology, the project brings together Lancaster University, the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan), Allen Archaeology and Lowther Castle and Gardens Trust.

Press Release

Digging into Medieval Cumbria: Lowther Medieval Castle and Village Project 2023

Uniting History and Archaeology across the North West to uncover the hidden history of medieval Cumbria, the project team conducted archival investigation and a geophysical survey and excavation at Lowther in 2023. The project was featured on BBC2's Digging for Britain.

Project Team on Digging for Britain

The 2023 project was showcased on BBC2's flagship archaeology series, Digging for Britain (Series 11, Episode 1, which aired in January 2024). From left to right here: project lead Dr Sophie Ambler (Lancaster Unviersity), student archaeologists from UCLan, Digging for Britain presenter Professor Alice Roberts, and Jonny Milton (Allen Archaeology) and Dr Jim Morris (UCLan), who oversaw the excavations.

Lowther's medieval archive

Dr Sophie Ambler, Reader in Medieval History at Lancaster University, revealed the records of Lowther's medieval past on BBC2's Digging for Britain, presented by Professor Alice Roberts.

Lowther's medieval castle in the Lowther archive

This charter from the Lowther family archive records a grant in Lowther by Alice daughter of Peter of Thrimby to Hugh of Lowther, including a quitclaim to Hugh of rights in an eighth of an acre ‘above the castle’. This likely refers to the ringwork castle under investigation. Image: Carlisle Archive Centre, Carlisle, DLONS/L/5/1/26 LO35, Copyright Lowther Estates.

Student archaeologists examine medieval records

Lowther's medieval archive contains charters offering a glimpse into life in the medieval settlement. Student archaeologists from UCLan took a break from excavating the castle during filming for Digging for Britain to examine a selection of the records.

Geophysical survey

As part of the 2023 investigation, Robert Evershed from Allen Archaeology conducted a geophysical survey of the medieval village, assisted by student archaeologists from UCLan. The results reveal the remains of housing platforms and the trackway linking the castle and village.

Lowther's ringwork castle

Hidden in the woodlands of Lowther's north park are the earthworks of the monumental structure the project is investigating: a partial ringwork castle likely dating to the Norman conquest of Cumbria. The team opened a trench in the ringwork's northern bank as part of the 2023 excavations. Image © Anthony Rumsey.

Trench Two

Trench Two of the 2023 dig investigated the northern bank of the ringwork castle and the castle's interior. Here Dr Jim Morris (UCLan) examines evidence of the medieval floor surface with UCLan student archaeologists. Image © Anthony Rumsey.

Exploring the castle on Digging for Britain

In filming Digging for Britain, Dr Jim Morris (UCLan) showed the programme's presenter, Professor Alice Roberts, around the castle excavations at Lowther, where student archaeologists and Allen Archaeology were hard at work. Image © Anthony Rumsey.

Lowther's medieval castle reconstructed

In filming Digging for Britain, presenter Professor Alice Roberts sketched what Lowther's medieval castle may have looked like, drawing from descriptions by the project team. A partial ringwork castle sited on the edge of an escarpment, this was a simple structure comprising a monumental mound and bank surmounted by a timber palisade, likely with a gatehouse, watchtower and interior buildings. Image © Alice Roberts.

Excavation visits

Throughout the 2023 excavation, the project team welcomed visitors to the site and offered tours. Here, Dr Sophie Ambler (Lancaster Unviersity) introduces the site to delegates from the project's funders, the Castle Studies Trust.

Dig Diary

Read about the 2023 and 2024 investigations via the project's Dig Diary, hosted by the Castle Studies Trust, for more on the historical sources for medieval Cumbria and how the excavations at Lowther unfolded.

Dig Diary
Norman Conquest Bayeux Tapestry

Project Team

Funded by: Castle Studies Trust, the Cumbrian and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society (CWAAS), and the Lowther Castle and Gardens Trust.

Project Lead: Dr Sophie Thérèse Ambler, Reader in Medieval History and Director of the Centre for War and Diplomacy, Lancaster University

Archaeology Lead and Student Training: Dr Jim Morris, Senior Lecturer Archaeology and Course Leader Archaeology & Anthropology, UCLan

Site Director: Tobin Rayner, Allen Archaeology

Researcher: Dr Christina Cowart-Smith, expert on the history and archaeology of early medieval Britain

David Bliss, CEO Lowther Estates

Charlotte Fairbairn, Exhibition Curator, Lowther Castle and Gardens

Contact the project team

For general enquiries about the project, please contact Dr Sophie Thérèse Ambler: s.ambler@lancaster.ac.uk

For press enquiries, please contact Anne Rothwell: a.rothwell@lancaster.ac.uk