Alnwick Castle

 Alnwick Castle is on the Northumberland coast north of Newcastle. I have been there several times, but we always seem to arrive in the late afternoon, so I hadn't been around it before today.

The first castle was built just after the Conquest in 1096 and was captured by the Scots under David I. But it was strengthened when the Percy family took it in 1305, turning Alnwick into a major fortress along the Anglo-Scottish border. The family still lives there; the Duke of Northumberland today, and it is the second-largest lived-in castle in England. Not that they are living in a medieval castle. The interior was modernised in the 19th century. The state rooms are superb (sadly no photos allowed), with a fine collection of paintings and a library with 15,000 books. I like to point this out to my wife!

If it looks familiar, it was a filming location for Harry Potter. I fell asleep during two films when taking my daughter, so I don't remember!

Inside the castle is a small regimental museum of the Northumberland Fusiliers.

And I can usually find a Balkan link in the museums I visit. In this case, there is a 76mm field gun outside, captured from the Bosnian Croats when the regiment was on peacekeeping duties.

The castle has another small room dedicated to the Percy Volunteers, a militia regiment raised to defend the coast during the Napoleonic Wars. Green jackets as well.

The castle also has a gun terrace with artillery.

A very fine castle to visit, with lots of activities. I passed on the Quidditch, but was tempted by the archery. There was also a medieval camp.

The town has an excellent second-hand book store, Bartters Books, in the old station. 

I am staying over near Newcastle tonight, before the football in Sunderland tomorrow, so I stopped off for some tea in Warkworth (another Percy castle), which I have been around. A decent game of cricket was going on just in front.

I am planning a return visit to the Sunderland Air Museum before the game tomorrow afternoon, and a battlefield visit, which I am planning for next week's midweek Scourge of Princes game. The Battle of Newburn Ford was fought in 1640 during the Second Bishops' War. The anniversary was yesterday. It was a rather uneven struggle and a rare Scots victory during the various wars of the period. The Scots even captured Newcastle afterwards.