We started our day in Alnwick Castle which is the seat of the Duke of Northumberland. They live in the castle from October through the spring and it is quite a home. It is by far the biggest enclosed castle that we have visited on this trip and is likely comparable in size to Windsor.

The castle was started in 1096 and expanded through the years. It was purchased by Henry Percy in 1309 and he made significant upgrades to improve its defenses. It is in an important location on the old north road and a big part of the border defenses. The barbican was added in 1475 which provided a more fortified way into the castle ground.

Once gunpowder became more accessible the castle is not quite as impregnable as once thought and they started falling into to disrepair. Alnwick was not taken by force but due to the changing times the family just moved around to other houses. The castles were not as comfortable as more modern manor houses so the aristocracy started leaving their castles behind.

In 1776 (an easy date to remember) George III elevates the Percy family from Earls to a Dukedom. It is at this time they restore the castle and make it a palatial home in the Italian palisade style popular at the time.

Inside the castle we were able to walk through the Victorian kitchen and several downstairs areas such as the larder and scullery. interesting but nothing compared to the state apartments. Sadly they did not allow photos in the upstairs rooms. They were completely over the top. I borrowed the pictures from the website so you could see what I mean.

The gardens were also added when the dukedom was created. The gardens were created by Capability Brown the leading garden designer of the day. He also designed the gardens at Highclere (downtown Abby), Blenheim and Chatsworth.

The gardens included water features, formal hedge gardens, a tree lined bower (which was my favorite part) and a walled flower garden. All were beautiful. There were little hidden paths and out of the way benches just begging to be used. I would have loved to had time to sit in the garden and read a book.

We also had a bit of time in town. We headed up to a great second hand bookstore which is housed in the old rail station. Sadly I already have too many books to just buy anything. I had hoped to find some wonderful first edition that I couldn’t live without or worthy of the space in my luggage but no such luck. I did enjoy looking nonetheless.

We didn’t do well managing our time and grabbed sandwiches at Greggs again. Super easy to grab and go but I do wish they were just a bit better.

From Alnwick we headed to Cragside, which was the most unusual stop on the trip. Cragside is a late 19th century house built by Lord William Armstrong and it is billed as England’s original smart home. Julien referred to Armstrong as an international arms dealer but he was an engineer who worked with hydraulic lifts (including the one used by the Tower Bridge in London) and ship building and cannon making. Several of his ships were still in use by the Japanese during WWII.

The house is built into a cliff hence the name and weirdly set up. So again an odd stop for an Alison Weir tour. It did make more sense after touring Bamburg Castle the next day which was bought, restored, repaired and updated by the Armstrong family.

The grounds were more impressive than the house. A stream ran through it and the grounds were lined with rock steps up and down from the stream. They were not easy trails but they were nice and secluded. I have never worked so hard to visit formal gardens at any other estate. You went down to the stream from the house and then back up and up and up the other side to the gardens. I was very glad they were worth it or I would have been completely disappointed with our Cragside stop. The gardens were lovely with both well laid out floral designs and then areas with just hodgepodge flowers. Well worth the effort. We voided the up and down by walking along the road.

After Cragside we headed back to the hotel for a buffet dinner, historian debate and our end of trip quiz. The historians debated who was the best monarch of England. Julian put in a good argument for William the Conquerer, however Tracy had talked about the harrowing of the north in which William killed thousands in revenge for how they fought against him becoming king. Mike did a good job for his king but sadly I can’t remember who he was but he championed the common man. Nicola had Edward IV and even threw out how hot the actor playing him in the White Queen trying to drum up support for her efforts. Alison took it very serious and read several pages of notes on all the good things about Henry VIII. Sarah had Elizabeth and in a group of women that was a sure thing. Mike had bribed some from him table to vote for him. I voted for Nicola out of solidarity for our shared love and of Margaret Beaufort even though she had nothing to do with Edward IV. However, Sarah of course won by a landslide championing Queen Elizabeth.

The group of five at my table did well on the quiz (embarrassingly we forgot about the Neville family) and came in 2nd. Just missing out on the prizes by two questions. I am pretty sure I listen to all the talks but I think I might nap more than I think. Win or lose the quiz is good fun.