Helbeck Hall (The Gatehouse Record)

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as;
Hill Beck; Helsbeck; Hillbeck; Hillebeck; Hellbeck

In the civil parish of Helbeck.
In the historic county of Westmorland.
Modern Authority of Cumbria.
1974 county of Cumbria.
Medieval County of Westmorland.

OS Map Grid Reference: NY79211578
Latitude 54.53678° Longitude -2.32280°

Helbeck Hall has been described as a probable Pele Tower.

There are no visible remains.

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

Description

Hellbeck was the seat of the Helbeck family until 1314 when the last Helbeck married a Blenkinsop. It may contain the remains of a tower house. (PastScape–ref. Perriam and Robinson)

Hellbeck Hall, was situated on the slopes at the foot of the Pennine Range, a short distance to the N.E, from Brough. Of the old house there is hardly any portion left: it has been supplanted by an eighteenth century building. The de Hellebecks continued as lords here until the end of the reign of Edward II., when a daughter was left as heiress. By marriage, a Benkinsop from Northumberland was brought into Westmorland. The Blenkinsops continued as a family of note for fourteen generations at Hellbeck: some-times they served the shire in Parliament; they could bring on the field a force of 120 horse, and did good service against the Scots during the disturbances in the early part of the reign of Henry VIII. But evil times fell upon the Blenkinsops. They were Papists and Royalists, and suffered much from pains and penalties, and were ruined in the Civil War. (Taylor 1892)

Sources of information, references and further reading

National Heritage List for England Listed Building number(s) 1327012
Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s) 14845.
Further information may be available from the holder of the county Historic Environment Record.

Websites (Gatehouse is not responsible for the content of external websites.)
- Old Cumbria Gazetteer
Books
- Perriam, Denis and Robinson, John, 1998, The Medieval Fortified Buildings of Cumbria (Kendal: CWAAS Extra Series 29) p. 282
  Salter, Mike, 1998, The Castles and Tower Houses of Cumbria (Malvern: Folly Publications) p. 97 (slight)
  King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol. 2 p. 495 (possible)
  Curwen, J.F., 1932, 'Parishes (East Ward): St Michael, Brough' The Later Records relating to North Westmorland: or the Barony of Appleby p. 94-109 online transcription
  Harvey, Alfred, 1911, Castles and Walled Towns of England (London: Methuen and Co)
  Taylor, M.W., 1892, Old Manorial Halls of Westmorland and Cumberland (Kendal: CWAAS Extra Series 8) p. 157 online copy
Periodical Articles
- Collingwood, W.G., 1926, 'An Inventory of the Ancient Monuments of Westmorland and Lancashire North-of-the-Sands' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol. 26 p. 2 online copy
Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
- Manuscripts of the Reverend Thomas Machell, vicar of Kirkby Thore (d 1698) Vol. 1 (preserved at the Cumberland Record Office) p. 111

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The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.

Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.
Minor archaeological investigations, such as watching brief reports, and some other 'grey' literature is most likely to be held by H.E.R.s but is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded here, or elsewhere, but some suggestions can be found here.

The possible site or monument is represented on maps as a point location. This is a guide only. It should be noted that OS grid references defines an area, not a point location. In practice this means the actual center of the site or monument may often, but not always, be to the North East of the point shown. Locations derived from OS grid references and from latitude longitiude may differ by a small distance.
Further information on mapping and location can be seen at this link.

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*The listed building may not be the actual medieval building, but a building on the site of, or incorporating fragments of, the described site.

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