Isle of Wight: The Seaside Town of Cowes

There is something almost other worldly about visiting seaside towns outside of the summer months but that is just what we did on a rainy afternoon during our trip to the Isle of Wight in March.  We’d been blessed with some gorgeous weather on our arrival in the Isle of Wight and on the day we took a ride on the Isle of Wight steam railway and we certainly hadn’t let the weather dampen our visit to Carisbrooke Castle but that was about to be put to the test!

Stephen could not have parked further away if he’d tried and we had quite a walk into the little seaside town of Cowes.  I immediately liked the old-town look of the place that was maintained even thought some of the buildings were quite new.

We took a walk along the promenade.  The sea and sky were similar shades of steel grey and it was a really windy and chilly day. 

 

We found a pebble beach which I found quite intriguing.  It looks like quite a struggle between nature and humanity as people have obviously been trying to control the drift!  Stephen thought he’d be romantic and picked up a shell for me.  It was pretty bashed up and scratched but I guess that is what you get with a pebble beach.  I think I might just prefer the sandy beaches in South Africa with their shiny shells!

  

 

There was a lot of lovely Art Deco architecture and Victorian features and I imagine that Cowes was quite the place to be back in Victorian times or in the interbellum period.

I found this forlorn looking chap sitting on a bench after a visit to a public convenience and we decided it was definitely time for something warm to drink.  We went to Chocs Away for a cup of hot chocolate.  It was literally a cup of melted chocolate and it was absolutely divine.  Yum. 

After that, we walked back through Cowes.  It really is a picturesque little town and must be really pretty and vibrant in the summer months.

Isle of Wight: Carisbrooke Castle (part 3)

Carisbrooke Castle: part 1 ¦ part 2

Carisbrooke Castle is my favourite of all of the castles I have visited on the British Isles.  The castle is in an excellent condition and it has the most incredible views when you reach the top of the motte and keep.

There are 71 stone steps leading up the motte and it was built around 1100.  The steps are really steep and you need to be quite fit to make it up there!!  I love this photo of Stephen as it reminds me of the Visit Kent adverts (you would have to visit London to see the posters of the little children climbing the castle steps).

The well in the keep is 48 metres deep and I have to admit, I got pretty dizzy looking into it.  That was nothing compared to the feeling of vertigo I got when taking some of the photos from on top of the wall around the keep.

It felt like you could see forever from on top of the keep.  The village below was so picturesque and it looked like I was looking into another time and place. 

The best views were definitely of the castle itself.

I wasn’t joking about the vertigo though!  I always forget that heights make me slightly queasy until I suddenly look down and felt the earth tilt.  I stumbled down from the top of the keep and Stephen had a good giggle at my expense as I held on to him and tried to get the world to stop spinning.

Carisbrooke Castle has the most excellent wall walk that goes right around the whole castle.  It was starting to rain though so we just took a short walk to look around the back of the ruins of Carey’s Mansion.

I think these ruins are quite exquisite and have to wonder how they fell into ruin.  The mansion was built in the late 16th century for Carey who was governor of the island and cousin to Elizabeth I.

 

Not long after receiving the Death Stare from Stephen, we decided to go home.  I’m sure the bloggers amongst you have received death stares from significant others before – the look that threatens untold fury and vengeance unless the bloggers puts the camera away!

Isle of Wight: Carisbrooke Castle (part 2)

After walking around a bit in the grounds of Carisbrooke Castle for a while, we decided to hurry inside as it was beginning to rain.  The two-storey building to the left is known as the Great Hall and was built in the late thirteenth century.  The Great Hall would have been the heart of the castle in medieval times and most people ate there.  The three story building in front is the Constable’s Lodging which was built in 1397 and is in the medieval style. 

The Great Hall now houses the Carisbrooke Castle Museum which is spread over a couple of floors.  Much of the museum is dedicated to King Charles I who was imprisoned in the castle in the last year of his life. The story of King Charles I is fascinating and I would really recommend visiting the Wikipedia link above.  In modern terms, Charles I thought he had a God-given right to extort money and privileges from his subjects and that his power should be absolute.  A bunch of people called the Parliamentarians (or Roundheads) disagreed and this lead to the First and Second Civil Wars.  Charles I escaped to the Isle of Wight in 1647 but was imprisoned and finally returned to London for his execution.  His daughter, Princess Elizabeth, died in Carisbrooke Castle in 1950 after catching a chill.

With the rain clearing up somewhat, we took a walk around some of the more functional areas of the castle.  This is where much of the work would have been done in the past and the buildings were incredibly well preserved.

This is the Well House and the well’s treadmill is still powered by Carisbrooke’s famous donkeys.

They were rather cute little things and apparently they are given lots of rest and not overworked.  They looked to be happy enough.

This is the old coach house which is now a tea room.  We were having far too much fun “castle hopping” to stop for tea though as our next stop was the Keep and Motte.

With a quick snap of the south east tower, we moved over to the north eastern corner of the castle for the most awesome views yet.  More on that next time!

Isle of Wight: Carisbrooke Castle (part 1)

I’m finally able to continue posting about our adventures in the Isle of Wight in March.  This is the first part of our visit to Carisbrooke Castle.

The day after our exciting adventure on the Isle of Wight Steam Railway, Stephen and I drove on up to Carisbrooke Castle.  Carisbrooke is built atop a hill and the main walls and keep have been a that location since about 1100 CE.  I have a lifelong fascination with castles and ruins and I would rate Carisbrooke the best of all the castles I have seen in terms of ruins and ancient-but-standing structures.  Perhaps I should let my photos do the talking?

I love how this photo turned out.  It was very exciting walking into the castle and this photo seemed to represent the wonder that lay beyond the gate.

The first known usage of the hilltop dates back to the sixth century AD when the site was used as an Anglo-Saxon cemetery.  It was later used as a defence base against Danish raids and that base was used after the Norman conquest in 1066 as the basis for the first Norman castle on the island.  This was then replaced by the present castle in around 1100 and this gatehouse has been around since that time.  Originally, it was only a tower and the round projecting drum towers were added later.

We took a quick walk around the North West bastion before entering the castle through the gatehouse. 

We caught our first glimpse of the ruins of Carey’s Mansion.  Carey was governor of the island and cousin to Elizabeth I.  His mansion was originally two storeys high and was built between 1584 and 1586.

We turned around to look at the inner gates of the gatehouse.  That is the original medieval gate and you can click on the photos to see them in higher resolution.

The original Chapel of St Nicholas was on the site long before the rest of the castle was built around it in 1100 but it has been rebuilt several times and was last rebuilt in 1904.  In the photos above, you can see Bernini’s bust of Charles I and main war memorial on the island.

 

We then visited Princess Beatrice’s gardens which were completely redesigned and replanted in 2009.  The gardens looked quite exquisite and I am sure that they must look absolutely amazing now in summer.

That building in the right hand corner is the Great Hall and Constable’s Lodging.  That is where we shall visit next time!