Thropton Tower (The Gatehouse Record)

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as;
Throptone; The Old Hall

In the civil parish of Thropton.
In the historic county of Northumberland.
Modern Authority of Northumberland.
1974 county of Northumberland.
Medieval County of Northumberland.

OS Map Grid Reference: NU02970219
Latitude 55.31393° Longitude -1.95499°

Thropton Tower has been described as a certain Pele Tower.

There are no visible remains.

This is a Grade 2 listed building protected by law*.

Description

Mentioned in the 1415 Survey as the "Turis de Thropton". Described in the 1541 Survey as "a little tower of the Lord Ogle, decayed in the roofs and scarcely in good repair" (Bates 1891).
Thropton Tower is mentioned in 1415. Early in the C16th it was held by Sir Edward Radcliffe, who did not inhabit it and had a garrison of 20 men. In 1541 it was called a little tower of the inheritance of Sir Cuthbert Radcliffe. It may have formed part of Thropton Old Hall, demolished in 1811 when the Catholic presbytery was rebuilt, or it may have been the bastle near the W end of the village (Dodds 1940)
"The Presbytery stands upon the site of Thropton Old Hall. I still receive letters addressed to the Old Hall. Under the house is an old well. I know of no other remains of an earlier building. The chapel was built in 1745. The present house was built later (F1 ASP 13-FEB-57)
NU 0297 0219. The presbytery, with chapel adjoining stands at the E end of the village of Thropton. There are no traces of a preceding structure to be seen in the construction of, or round, the present buildings. The site is a strong position for a tower, being in the fork of two rivers. On the S side is the river Coquet flowing W to E along a wide valley. To the W the ground rises gently to a ridge. Along the N side of the ridge, the Wreigh Burn flows eastwards curving around the E side of Thropton through a little dene to join the Coquet to the S. The site also commands the valley of the Back Burn a little to the N of the village. In the E and NE rise steep slopes of moorland (F1 ASP 13-FEB-57)
Roman Catholic presbytery and attached chapel, possibly on the site of a tower recorded in the survey of 1415. The tower may have formed part of Thropton Old Hall, demolished in 1811, or may have been a bastle. The presbytery was built circa 1811 and adjoins the east side of a church built in the late 18th/early 19th century. Listed Grades IIstar and II (Listed Building Report). (PastScape)

Sources of information, references and further reading

National Heritage List for England Listed Building number(s) 1041911
Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s) 4802.
County Historic Environment Record (or Sites and Monuments Record) number(s) N2859.

Books
- Dodds, John F., 1999, Bastions and Belligerents (Newcastle upon Tyne: Keepdate Publishing) p. 364
  Salter, Mike, 1997, The Castles and Tower Houses of Northumberland (Malvern: Folly Publications) p. 99
  King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol. 2 p. 354
  Graham, Frank, 1976, The Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne: Frank Graham) p. 325-6
  Long, B., 1967, Castles of Northumberland (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) p. 162
  Dodds, Madeleine Hope (ed), 1940, Northumberland County History (Newcastle-upon-Tyne) Vol. 15 p. 364
  Bates, C.J., 1891, Border Holds of Northumberland (London and Newcastle: Andrew Reid) p. 17, 24, 44 (Also published as the whole of volume 14 (series 2) of Archaeologia Aeliana view online)
Periodical Articles
- Hadcock, R.N., 1939, 'A map of mediaeval Northumberland and Durham' Archaeologia Aeliana (ser4) Vol. 16 p. 148-218 esp 182
  Bates, C.J., 1891, 'Border Holds of Northumberland' Archaeologia Aeliana (ser2) Vol. 14 p. 17, 24, 44 online copy
Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents - This section is far from complete and the secondary sources should be consulted for full references.)
- 1541, View of the Castles, Towers, Barmekyns and Fortresses of the Frontier of the East and Middle Marches Survey of the East and Middle Marches
  1509, Holdis and Towneshyppes too lay in Garnysons of horsmen Survey of Tevedale
  1415, Nomina Castrorum et Fortaliciorum infra Comitatum Northumbrie online transcription

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