A pleasant little village lying just outside the perimeter of the Lake District National Park. Two miles north of the A66, and five miles west of Penrith. It still retains its central small village green and ancient market cross, many of the houses here have been built of stone, complete with slate roofs. Quite a few are listed buildings.
Greystoke Castle...the seat of the Howard's of Greystoke stands in about 6000 acres, and its park is said to be the biggest enclosure in England without a road or a right of way running through. Its wall runs for miles, but of the castle itself little more than the flag can be seen. It is reached by a main drive directly from the village, and through a rather grand archway. Its 19th century facadehides a mediaeval pele tower. It is not old as castles go, having been burned down intentionally in the Civil War and by accident since, but it is certainly old in family history and in comparatively recent years built up again as anoble structure. Here, lived the proud nobility of Cumbria, the Greystokes, the Dacres, and the Howards who still live there to this day, and can claim an ubroken line of descent going back over 900 years..to 1066 in fact. The castle is not open to the public at any time of the year. Greystoke Castle was at one time a stronghold of King Charles II until it was successfully besieged by part of Cromwell's army during their encampment in the district. The castle now boasts of a resident ghost, with a disused room in the old tower being the supposed venue of its annual appearance. Tradition has it that this is the ghost of a guest who once spent a Sunday hunting with Charles Howard, Duke of Norfolk. After an evening of merriment and feasting, he retired to his room at a late hour. Servants knocking on his door the following morning failed to wake him, and finally an entrance was made to his room. His bed had certainly been slept in, his clothes were lying about, but no trace was ever found of him. Since then a ghost has appeared in this room annually and it was said that anyone sleeping in the same room was greatly disturbed during the night...even by people unaware of the tragedy.
In the old chapel in the grounds, so legend has us to believe, a monk was once bricked up in an underground passage leading from the chapel to the haunted bedroom mentioned in the previous story. In past years, residents in the castle have regularly heard knockings on the wall which is believed to be the one covering up the entranceto the passage. The interest of visitors is often aroused when passing down the main Keswick-Penrith road. Close to Greystoke village when they catch sight of what appear to be the castellated walls of two forts or castles. Both are farms, however. They were built by Charles Howard, 11th Duke of Norfolk (sometimes known as the Drunken Duke), in 1783. At that time he was Whig MP for Carlisle. The farm, having the appearance of a castle, was named Bunkers Hill after the first Battle in the American War of Independence, and the other is named after the American General Israel 'Puffin' Putnam, the farm now being known as Fort Putnam. Charles Howard was a great friend of Charles James Fox and together they planned the efforts of the Whig Party to obtain justice for the American Colonies and also at the same time to upset the policies of Lord North of the Tory Party. When the Colonies put up such a fine performance at Bunkers Hill, the two farms were erected as memorials and, one assumes, as a perpetual irritant to the local Tories!
Close by is another farm, which with its diminutive spire looks like a church. It is known as Spire House and was also built by Charles Howard and tenanted in the late 18th century by a member of a religious sect which maintained that worship in a church was unnecessary. This man apparently became such a bore that when he went off to a religious meeting some distance away Charles Howard had his workmen alter the farm to the way in which you see it today.
Close by on Church road will be seen the blue Whinstone 'Sanctuary Stone'. It has hatchet marks on it pointing towards the church. The right of sanctuary is said to have been granted in early times to all churches. Once behind (or beyond) the stone, individuals, or more likely, fugitives from the law could claim sanctuary within the church's precincts. Another stone hereabouts is the 'Spillers'. This has been hollowed out on top and is thought was once used as a plague stone where coins could be left to avoid possible contagion.
The lovely church here has been dedicated to St Andrew, and records show it dates back to 1255. Visitors will immediately notice that it is larger than most Cumbrian churches, and this is because it was a Collegiate (or Mother Church) in the Middle Ages. The copper and brass ornaments were made at the Old Smithy at Blencow, a village just to the north of Greystoke.
One person who perhaps knew this church as a child has though no memorial in it. She was Isabel Foster, who was born at Greystoke. She married a Fleet Street, London, cutler, and was burned for her faith with six others at Smithfield in the reign of Mary.
The ancient village school here was erected by the Howard family in 1838.
The famous jockey Gordon Richards owns a very successful racing stable here training some 700 winners in the last few years, including two Grand national winners.
The Boot and Shoe Pub, origins unknown, is a regular haunt for locals and visitors and was until very recently run by three generations of the same family.
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