THE CASTLE GARTH, NEWCASTLE
External partner: Tyne & Wear County Council – Archaeology Section
The Castle Garth is one of the best-known landmarks of the city. A largely earth and timber castle of the late eleventh century was refortified in stone between 1168 and 1178. The keep, south postern gate and the substantial remains of the original north gate represent survivals of this phase. In the mid thirteenth century, a new north entrance was strengthened by the addition of the Black Gate, a barbican tower with drawbridge to the outside and turning bridge to the rear. The castle hall stood against the east curtain, in the area now occupied by the Vermont Hotel. Little survives of the rest of the circuit, the West wall being under the road and the south eastern corner of the perimeter being under the Moot Hall.
There is a great deal of easily accessible research and archive material on this important building, held locally by the University and the City. Detailed building recording has been done for the Keep but not for other sections of the Castle Garth, including the Black Gate. On the wider subject of the cultural management of the Garth and its historic buildings, there is a recent Conservation Plan and an Audience Development Plan which could inform further study.
The medieval buildings represent a rich resource for a number of research threads, which can be drawn together under two main headings.
Survey and research
The building complex is one of a dozen major castles in the region. Research questions include, understanding the buildings as projections of external power; analysing the structures in terms of function and military engineering; looking at how the building impacted on the surrounding area and particularly, the development of the urban focus which grew-up around the castle. Perception studies could examine the way the castle was viewed in the town and among successive generations of historians and antiquarians, right up to the present.
Heritage Resource Management
The management of the building as a major component of the City’s built environment is a subject of great topical interest. The current site managers are keen to discuss innovative display and interpretation methods, and how present arrangements for education, Disable Access and web-based dissemination might be developed. The proposed reforms of the heritage protection system might be examined using the resources available for this building, particularly the intended change from a license-based consent system for repairs and enhancement to one based on management agreements drawn-up by the range of stakeholders interested in the long-term future of the building.
A number of undergraduate dissertations, MA topics and projects could be envisaged, in the areas of archaeology, architecture, cultural resource management and heritage display.
For more information on the building, visit the Tyne & Wear Historic Environment Record at www.twsitelines.info. For more information on the Keep as a tourist attraction and educational resource visit http://museums.ncl.ac.uk/keep.
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