Warthole Hall (The Gatehouse Record)

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as;
Wardhall; Warthol; Wardel; Wardell

In the civil parish of Plumbland.
In the historic county of Cumberland.
Modern Authority of Cumbria.
1974 county of Cumbria.
Medieval County of Cumberland.

OS Map Grid Reference: NY13103838
Latitude 54.73369° Longitude -3.34952°

Warthole Hall has been described as a probable Fortified Manor House.

There are no visible remains.

Description

Whellan in 1860 states that Leonard Dykes pulled the old 'castle' down and built a mansion with an ornamental stone front, (this was evidently in 1813) (Perriam and Robinson). The "low stony banks" recorded by Perriam and Robinson were seen and mapped from air photographs. They lie immediately souh-east of the recorded position of the Hall and are centred at NY13203847. Medieval or Post Medieval incomplete enclosures or field boundaries were seen as earthworks and had approximate maximum dimensions of 60m. More recent photography is showing features to the south of the site of the Hall in greater detail. Two of the enclosures contain ridge and furrow which is 7-8 m in width which is broader than other examples adjacent to the site. Possible hollow ways appear to run north-east to south-west across the area and small enclosures are more clearly visible. (PastScape)

The manor of Warthole belonged formerly to the abbey of Calder: since the Reformation it has been for several generations in the family of Dykes. Warthole Hall, which was their seat, had been for some years past occupied by day-labourers: the greater part of it was pulled down in 1813. (Lysons)

Warthole Hall ... built about 1670, probably by William Thackeray of Torpenhow, who introduced the Classical style into Cumberland, it replaced an earlier semi-fortified house (Anon 2004)

Comments

The house pulled down in 1813 seems to have been a Classical house of c. 1670. However Whellan was referring to the building pulled down c. 1670 to construct that Inigo Jones designed classical house. The actual form of that 'castle' is unknown. It had been a grange of Calder Abbey and, therefore, can not have been an ancient castle. The Dykes will, most likely, have built something in the local militaristic style (? a small tower, a large bastel house, a walled court with crenellated gatehouse) but quite what can not be known. The description of it as a 'castle' rather than as a tower may suggest a walled and/or moated court with crenellated gatehouse.

Sources of information, references and further reading

Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s) 9457.
County Historic Environment Record (or Sites and Monuments Record) number(s) 856.

Websites (Gatehouse is not responsible for the content of external websites.)
- Old Cumbria Gazetteer
Books
- Anon, 2004, Plumbland Parish Plan p. 5 online copy
  Perriam, Denis and Robinson, John, 1998, The Medieval Fortified Buildings of Cumbria (Kendal: CWAAS Extra Series 29) p. 25
  Whellan, W., 1860, The History and Topography of the Counties of Cumberland and Werstmorland (Pontefract) p. 291 online copy
  Lysons, Daniel and Samuel, 1816, 'Parishes: Newton-Regny - Ponsonb' Magna Britannia Vol. 4: Cumberland p. 149 online transcription
Periodical Articles
- Price, F.L., 1997 'William Thackeray and Warthole Hall, Plumbland' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol. 97 p. 255-6 online copy
  1895, Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of London Vol. 15 p. 238-9

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Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.
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