Got lucky on the Farnes tonight 👌🏻😎

The Abbey was very wealthy and a popular pilgrimage site, mainly down to there being a bit of Simon de Montfort’s foot kept there! A few properties in the town were acquired by the Abbot for pilgrim accommodation, one is now a travel agent and has a De Vesci cross on the wall inside

Matthew Mills was the mason who carved the 18thC statues/garden gnomes on the castle (as opposed to the 14thC ones) and those dotted around Hulne Park 👌🏻

Not loads to tell tbh. The farmhouse was built by the Selby family (lords of the manor of Holy Island, Prideaux Selby the ornithologist etc) and their coat of arms is above the door. The gothic style of the outhouse looks similar to their folly the other side of Clayport, near Swansfield House

Ah man I put the blurry version up, hang on

Did you know about the WW1 convalescent camp north of the castle? It was massive.

If you can try to get hold of the Alnwick Town Map, produced by the Historic Towns Trust and Alnwick Society, shows all know buildings both extant and lost

Here’s the plan from the archaeology survey (1887)

The monument to the battle on Ratten Row was put there in the 1850s I think, preferred this old 18thC one tbh!

J Patten did this nice artists impression of it back in 1939 as well

Ah man just seen this, and I’ve just been in town so would’ve come for a crack! The ones in the cemetery wall are visible from Sainsburys car park, and there’s more at the north end of the town, bottom of the Peth below the castle 👌🏻

Saw a couple of mute swans gliding over the island causeway this morning, made me think of this 🤣

Looks like the Farnes conclave has ended and they’ll soon be announcing the new head puffin

Decent views up at Ros Castle and Cuthbert’s Cave yesterday 👌🏻

Getting the Farnes closed down for the winter, cracking day out here, and plenty of seals 👌🏻

First post on Bluesky is massively inappropriate