A fun day out exploring a castle is closer than you think, with a dozen historical sites within an hour's drive of Huddersfield.
From ancient gates and city walls to grand towers and magnificent medieval castles, there's a range of places to visit — and some are right on our doorstep.
Take a look below at 10 castles just a short drive away — how many can you tick off our list?
Built around 1070, the ruins of Pontefract Castle — once one of the most impressive castles in Yorkshire — include the curtain wall and inner walls and the ruins of the Round Tower, as well as the remains of the castle chapel. King Richard II is thought to have died at Pontefract Castle. The castle is also alleged to have been the place where Henry VIII's fifth wife, Catherine Howard, committed her first act of adultery with Sir Thomas Culpeper — adultery which ended in her execution!
2. Victoria Tower, Huddersfield
Victoria Tower - Samantha Jane Stevens (Image: Samantha Jane Stevens)
No list of castles near Huddersfield would be complete without Victoria Tower, a Huddersfield landmark and popular visitor attraction. The tower was built in the late 19th century as a momument to mark Queen Victoria's 60-year reign over the British Empire, and is the Grade-II listed building. Climb the hill and explore the tower, open to the public every weekend between September 5 and October 18 — if it's closed, it's still pretty impressive from the outside.
This ruined medieval castle, in Sandal Magna, Wakefield, was a setting in Shakespeare's Henry VI, was built by supporters of William the Conqueror, with a motte-and-bailey design. Today visitors can access the summit of the motte via a wooden walkway, and there's a visitor centre too.
4. Peveril Castle, Peak District
Peveril Castle, Peak District (Image: Chris Downer/geograph.org.uk)
Peveril Castle is a ruined early medieval castle overlooking the village of Castleton in the Peak District. It was founded some time between the Norman Conquest of 1066 and its first recorded mention in the Domesday Survey of 1086, by William Peveril, who held lands in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire as a tenant-in-chief of the king. Peveril Castle is protected as a scheduled monument and a Grade I listed building.
Clitheroe Castle in Clitheroe is a motte-and-bailey castle which was first built sometime in the 11th or 12th century, and has one of the smallest keeps in the country. It was anciently the seat of the Lords of Bowland. Today the castle buildings form Clitheroe Castle Museum, based in the former Steward's House. It has a large social history collection, as well as geology exhibits, natural history, local art and period costumes.
6. Skipton Castle, Skipton
Skipton Castle, Skipton (Image: Flickr/Tim Green)
Known as one of the best preserved mediecal castles in England, Skipton Castle is more than 900 years old and open for visitors to explore. Take a look round the banqueting hall, kitchen, bedchamber and privy, as well as the castle dungeons and watch towe. The castle withstood a three-year siege during the English Civil War. Admission costs £7/.80 for adults and £4.90 for children.
7. Clifford's Tower and York Castle walls, York
Clifford's Tower, York (Image: Flickr/Mark Kent)
Clifford's Tower is almost all that remains of York Castle, built by William the Conqueror, and offers panoramic views of the city from its high mound. A day out in York also offers th chance to walk its impressive city walls, with gatehouses, or bars, including Bootham Bar, Walmgate Bar, Monk Bar and Mickelgate Bar. Across from Clifford's Tower is the York Castle Museum, housed in a former debtors' prison and women's prison. The museum has a reconstructed Victorian street, Kirkgate, a World War One exhibit and an atmospheric exhibit about the inmates of the original prison cells.
8. Beaumont Park, Huddersfield
Beaumont Park, Huddersfield (Image: Flickr/Techiedog)
There are more castle-like walls and an impressive gate even closer to home at Beaumont Park — have you visited them? The park's lower entrance offers a grand gateaway and walls to walk along.
Conisborough Castle overlooks Conisborough in Doncaster, dominated by its impressive keep, built in the late 12th century. Visitors can go inside the keep to learn more about the world of the castle's first inhabitants, Lord Hameline and Lady Isabel de Warenne, with animated charcters projected onto the castle walls. There's plenty of green space to explore too, including the castle's defences, ditches and banks.
Ripley Castle and its beautiful surrounds are open to the public all year, and the castle is also a popular wedding and events venue. The Grade-I listed 14th century country house has its own gatehouse and guided tours around the privately-owned castle are available.
