The name 'Morpeth' has different meanings in French and English. The first time it was written, it was in French.
In 1095 William Rufus was faced with a rebellion in the North of England and had to besiege several castles, including Morpeth, which were all destroyed. The crushing of rebellions at that time were ruthless and those defending Morpeth castle suffered.
E. K. Walls Dictionary of Place Names gives Morpeth, Northumberland ' as Morthpath '(1200) and 'Morpath', interpreted even in Old English as 'murder path'.  However 'Mor' in Old English means 'moor or waste upland'. The plain fact is that moorlands can contain meres or bogs, a lot which have been subject to drainage.
The 'Mor' of Morpeth could be 'boggy land' and so the 'path' of the name could be 'miry or muddy path'.
So both interpretations, of Moor Path and Murder Path could be possible.
However, in 1665, a traveller named John Stainsby wrote that 'Morpeth in Northumberland, alias Murder path from the many robberies and murders committed in these parts'.  

I leave you to draw your own conclusions.

Morpeth actually has, or rather had, two castles, and it is the earlier one that I will be dealing with here.  Information on the later castle will be posted in two separate articles, one of which will concentrate on the history of the castle, while the other will concentrate on the architecture.  So watch this forum for further details.

The first castle at Morpeth is situated on a spur north-west of the Postern Burn on a motte with an oval summit.  The summit measures 30m from east to west by 22m wide, and rises 25m above the ground to the east but just 3m above a ditch dividing it from a small triangular bailey to the south-west.  Beyond this is a ditch 4m deep and 9m wide, and then a kidney-shaped outer bailey 45m long by 18m wide.

Click to view attachment


Although the earthworks are extensive, they are not easy to photograph, being surrounded almost entirely with trees and bushes.  It is not easy to get an impression of the size of the mound in the picture below, but the gap between the trees is about 3m wide and the height of the mound with uncut grass is about 6m, and at an angle steeper than 45 degrees.  The whole area of earthworks now form part of an area known as Carlisle Park.
The site, known as Ha’ Hill or Haw Hill (shown in the top section of the plan below), is assumed to be the site of the castle of William de Merlay to whom William I granted the barony of Morpeth.  The castle was confiscated by William II after the Merlays joined the Mowbray rebellion of 1095, but was later returned.  Here in 1138 Ralph de Merlay received eight monks from Fountains Abbey who were to found the nearby abbey of Newminster.  Excavations in 1830 revealed scalloped capitals and billet mouldings, possibly from a 12th century stone hall.  The castle was burned by King John in 1216 and the estate confiscated.

Click to view attachment


Bibliography

Harry Rowland : 'Moor Path' or 'Murder Path' ?  The Town's Name is Questioned : An Article from the Morpeth Herald, 2002
T.H. Rowland : Medieval Castles, Towers, Peles & Bastles of Northumberland : Sandhill Press, First Edition, 1987 ; Reprinted, 1994
Mike Salter : The Castles & Tower Houses of Northumberland : Folly Publications, December 1997

Morpeth Castle : New Castle – architecture

A defaced curtain wall 1m thick surrounds a quadrangular inner ward 70m long by
up to 63m wide.  The southern half of the western section of the wall has gone.
The rest is devoid of any features of interest.  The smaller D-shaped outer court
to the north-east has at the far end a short section of walling with two large
external buttresses, possibly part of a curtain, but said to have been part of a barn,
perhaps built against such a curtain if it existed.
The gatehouse lies at the north end of the east wall of the inner ward.  It measures
13.2m by 8.8m over walls 2m thick above the plinth, and is faced with squared
sandstone blocks.  A late 19th century outbuilding adjoins the gatehouse at the
north-west corner, and until 1990 there was a wing of the 1920s abutting the inside
of the curtain, south of the gatehouse.
The tall windows, corbelled parapet and corner turrets which make up the imposing
front of the tower today, all date from the Victorian rebuilding, around 1860, but its
appearance in the Middle Ages was not much different.  The design of the windows
has changed, but they occupied roughly the same positions as now.



Morpeth Castle gatehouse, view through archway - September 2002

Looking at the rear wall of the tower, above the Victorian windows, two small windows
can be seen on the top floor.  These date from the 17th century when an attic floor was
inserted.  They had later been blocked up and were only found when ivy was stripped
away.  Unfortunately, English Heritage did not consider it appropriate to open them up
completely, so the compromise of fitting a small window inside them was agreed upon.
The gateway passage has four-centred arches at either end and is covered by a vault
of similar section.  There were doors at each end, as there are now, but no portcullis
or internal machicolations.


Click to view attachment
Above : Ground Floor Plan of Morpeth Castle, gatehouse.


The rooms flanking the passage have vaults of similar section, but steeper.  That on the
south side has a fireplace and evidence of a loft.  There does not appear to have been any
access from the vaulted guardrooms to the floors above.
Access to the upper floors is now via a slope and stairway in the southern side of the building.  
The present door surround itself is Victorian, but the doorway is in the same position as the
original.
Once inside the tower, you find yourself in a lobby at the foot of a newel staircase.  This leads
up to the second floor and roof-walk.  Directly beyond the entrance is a passageway, with three
small windows on the left, and two doorways on the right.  The second doorway, although much
altered, was originally the grander of the two.  This room was originally used as a courtroom, the
first door being used by prisoners and their guards, and the second door being used by judges.

Click to view attachment

Above : First Floor Plan of Morpeth Castle, adapted from a leaflet by The Landmark Trust

This courtroom would have been one large chamber, but with a free-standing screen or partition
roughly in the same position as the wall dividing what are now the kitchen and lounge areas.  
There were fireplaces at each end of the chamber, the one in the sitting room having lost long-since
lost its original mouldings.  Directly opposite the second door is an aumbrey, in which the seals and paraphernalia of justice would have been displayed.
The first floor also has latrines in the north-west and south-east corners, which are clearly marked
on the plan above.  As part of the Victorian alterations, this floor was divided into two rooms of
equal size, with a straight staircase between them leading to the second floor.  The Landmark Trust
had this removed in order to restore the castle to its original medieval plan.  The walls have been
re-plastered and lime-washed, and almost all the joinery is new, including the oak-boarded ceiling.


Click to view attachment
Above : Second Floor Plan of Morpeth Castle, adapted from a leaflet by The Landmark Trust

To reach the second floor, you have to return to the spiral staircase in the lobby.  The decision to
reinstate the original access caused The Landmark Trust a minor problem.  Either in the 17th c
entury or around 1860, the level of the second floor had been lowered by about 1m.  The door
from the spiral stairway was blocked at the same time.  This original doorway was unblocked, but
it was decided to retain the existing floor level, hence the need for the insertion of a couple of steps.
The second floor was probably divided into two or more rooms, with windows in each wall.  
However, the present arrangement is entirely new.  There was a latrine in the north-east corner
of the main bedroom, and there remains a stone sink or “slope-stone” in the window sill of the bathroom.  This indicates that this level was always used for domestic purposes.  It possibly
formed a self-contained apartment or lodging for one of the castle officials.


Click to view attachment
Above : Third Floor Plan of Morpeth Castle, adapted from a leaflet by The Landmark Trust

The attic chambers are accessed via a new staircase from the second floor, which is in a slightly
different position to the previous one.  The room plans, partitions and floorboards are all new.  The
two 17th century windows were partly unblocked and the skylights renewed.



Morpeth Castle battlements, September 2002

To gain access to the roof-walk, one has to return to the second floor and use the spiral stairway.  
The walkway runs right round the tower inside the parapet, which has square corner turrets.  The r
oof had been renewed in slate around 1860, but by 1989 was in poor condition.  
The Landmark Trust took the opportunity to replace the roof with local stone, of the kind that the
roof would have been originally covered.  They came from the Ladycross Quarry near Allendale,
south-west of Hexham.  At the same time the lead was renewed and the wall-walk paved with
York stone slabs.

Bibliography

Morpeth Castle : The Landmark Trust  
T.H. Rowland : Medieval Castles, Towers, Peles & Bastles of Northumberland
: Sandhill Press, First Edition, 1987 ; Reprinted, 1994
Mike Salter : The Castles & Tower Houses of Northumberland
: Folly Publications, December 1997

Morpeth Castle : The Later Castle - History


The Merlays built the new castle at Morpeth on a large site on the south-east side of the Burn (the lower section of the plan above) after their estates were restored to them by the young King Henry III in 1218.  It passed by marriage in 1271 to William de Greystoke.  The Greystokes held other castles, and Morpeth was left mainly in the hands of a constable and small garrison, with a steward or bailiff to oversee management of the Greystoke estate.
In 1317 Morpeth was held by Gilbert de Middleton and used to incarcerate Henry de Beaumont, brother of the Bishop of Durham.  In 1337 John de Kirkby complained that the constable of the castle, Sir Matthew Redman, had illegally detained within it John’s wife, chattels and title deeds.



Morpeth Castle gatehouse, from the bailey – September 2002

The tower of Morpeth mentioned in 1343, was newly constructed by William de Greystoke, also known as the “Good Baron”.  This tower may have been the tower-house or keep shown on the map of 1604 standing in the middle of the inner ward, the surviving gatehouse being built half a century later.  It passed by marriage around 1497 to Lord Dacre of Gilsland, and John Leland described the castle as being “well maintained”.  In 1515-16 Lord Dacre entertained Margaret, widowed Queen of Scotland, at the castle.
It was confiscated after the 1569 rebellion and Sir Ralph Eure was granted the use of it whilst he was serving as Warden of the Middle March.  The castle was eventually restored to the Dacres’ successors, the Howards of Naworth, but it remained occupied by the Greys until the 1630s.
Despite being described in 1644  as “a ruinous hole, not tenable by nature, far less art”, the castle was garrisoned for Parliament by a force of 500 Scots under Lieutenant-Colonel Somerville.  After a 20 day siege, during which the defenders lost 23 men, to the attackers 191, it was surrendered on terms to the Marquis of Montrose.  Much of the building was demolished afterwards, and for the next 200 years was in a state of decay, being used as a convenient source of stone for building local houses.
Around 1860, the Earl of Carlisle, a descendant of Lord Howard, made the gatehouse habitable for his estate steward.  The castle was sold in 1916 and then in 1946 was purchased by the Borough Council and leased out.  By the 1980s expensive repairs were needed, particularly to the roof.  The gatehouse became vacant and quickly fell into disrepair.



Morpeth Castle gatehouse, from the site of the Old Castle – September 2002

In 1988 the Landmark Trust, a charity dedicated to repairing unusual historic buildings, was given a 99-year lease.  Restoration was completed in 1991, and the gatehouse is now let out as holiday flats, accommodating up to seven people.  In the restoration, the Landmark Trust set out to recover a little of the tower’s medieval layout, but also to retain something of the later houses that were made within it, in the 17th century and especially in 1860.
The restoration of the castle was carried out under the supervision of Stewart Tod & Partners, architects from Edinburgh.  The builders were Bowden & Co. from Newcastle-upon-Tyne.  Archaeological investigations were carried out by Peter F. Ryder, of Riding Mill.  These were funded by English Heritage, which also gave a grant towards the cost of the repairs.


Bibliography

Morpeth Castle : The Landmark Trust  
T.H. Rowland : Medieval Castles, Towers, Peles & Bastles of Northumberland : Sandhill Press, First Edition, 1987 ; Reprinted, 1994
Mike Salter : The Castles & Tower Houses of Northumberland : Folly Publications, December 1997

A recent addition to my collection, from Grose's Antiquities, 1785.

It seems very odd seeing a gatehouse stand alone like that.

See earlier posts.

I'd seen that, but in the print it seems to stand alone. The banking could almost be a hillside, if you see what I mean, it just seems unusual.

A print of the castle from 1813.

The latest addition to my collection - a 1930s postcard of Morpeth Castle.

Nice one, I like this place, it's like a 14thc Scottish tower complete with garret, but adapted as a gatehouse, arched entrance and all.

The more i look at it the more I kinda like it, thanks Andrew

I've just purchased a print of the Morpeth Castle in 1890. I rather like this one.

It is a good one.

Another old postcard of Morpeth Castle, recently purchased and postmarked 1907.