{"id":18124,"date":"2023-01-06T12:28:45","date_gmt":"2023-01-06T11:28:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homesandantiques.com\/?p=38670"},"modified":"2023-01-06T13:36:42","modified_gmt":"2023-01-06T12:36:42","slug":"explore-lindisfarne-castle-on-the-northumbrian-coast","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/homesantiques\/rss_feed\/explore-lindisfarne-castle-on-the-northumbrian-coast\/","title":{"rendered":"Explore Lindisfarne Castle on the Northumbrian coast"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Janet Gleeson\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Friday, 06 January 2023 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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Crouched on a craggy hill top, visible from the mainland yet cut off at low tide, Lindisfarne Castle\u2019s dramatic location on Holy Island lies at the heart of its history.<\/p>\n

\u2018The site allows for useful strategic viewing of the eastern and northern horizon, and the fact you can see it but it\u2019s inaccessible at times also has a spiritual connotation,\u2019 says Nick Lewis, Lindisfarne\u2019s Collections and House Officer.<\/p>\n

Lindisfarne provided protection against invasion from the Scots, later becoming a Cromwellian stronghold, a haven for Jacobites (for one day), and a sparsely armed garrison until the early 19th century.<\/p>\n

Then, after a spell as coastguard lookout, it fell into disrepair, until the crumbling crenellations captured the attention of the owner of Country Life magazine, Edward Hudson, who was travelling north for a holiday in 1901.<\/p>\n

\u2018I think he would have seen it from the train, as many people still do, and the drama of its location was the key to his interest,\u2019 says Nick. Hudson had a strong idea of what he wanted from a country retreat and, having decided to take on the dilapidated ruin, he commissioned his friend Edwin Lutyens to transform the building to suit his needs.<\/p>\n

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Drawing inspiration from Durham Cathedral, the architect created an entrance hall divided by a columned arcade that seemed to sprout from the rock beneath. \u2018The arches aren\u2019t load bearing; they are purely there to add drama when you come in,\u2019 reveals Nick.<\/p>\n

Two separate buildings were linked with a long gallery, laid with Lutyens\u2019 trademark herringbone brick floor, and a dining room was fashioned from the old Tudor kitchen.<\/p>\n

A gun magazine and other small rooms were knocked together to make a drawing room, which Lutyens named the Ship Room after the model East Indiaman he suspended from the vaulted ceiling.<\/p>\n

The two men collaborated on the furnishings, too. \u2018Some furniture, such as the dining table and kitchen dresser<\/a>, were bespoke Lutyens pieces. The dresser was made in 1912 and has never moved since,\u2019 says Nick. Antiques<\/a> were also used, both men favouring large 17th and 18th-century country farmhouse pieces.<\/p>\n

In the kitchen they positioned a high-backed curved settle to create a draft screen. Principal bedrooms were furnished with 18th-century tester beds, one of which contains a gun cabinet in its foot. A long refectory table became a side table in the gallery. \u2018I wonder whether they purposely chose robust furniture because of the environment it was going to be in,\u2019 says Nick.<\/p>\n

But Lindisfarne was always intended as a holiday retreat, and here and there practicality was abandoned in favour of fun. A colourful wind indicator map, painted by MacDonald Gill, depicts a detailed map of Northumberland during the time of the Armada, with Holy Island and a compass at the centre.<\/p>\n

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Connected to a weather vane on the roof, the pointer moves according to the wind direction. The workings run under the floorboards and can make an alarming grinding sound when the wind blows.<\/p>\n

Nick believes Lutyens\u2019 sense of humour is also evident in the Aumbry (a cupboard used traditionally to store the objects used for the Eucharist) that stands in the entrance hall.<\/p>\n

\u2018The timber part is from a church, but the pewter pieces aren\u2019t. The drip tray is completely alien, and the globe, crudely attached, may be from a gin bar or may even be knocked up from Hudson\u2019s favourite coffee percolator.\u2019<\/p>\n

Given his key role in the castle\u2019s reconstruction, it\u2019s surprising to discover how little is known about Edward Hudson. \u2018He was an elusive man with few close friends. In photos he\u2019s often wearing a peaked cap and has his head down in shadow,\u2019 says Nick.<\/p>\n