Knaresborough Castle: History of one of Yorkshire’s oldest structures that has existed for over 900 years as told by local historian

Knaresborough has attracted many visitors not just from across the country but all over the world due to its picturesque landscapes and rich heritage.

One of the town’s most popular attractions is Knaresborough Castle, the view of the Viaduct and Nidd Gorge.

Historian Paul Chrystal, 69, from Edinburgh, has educated himself and others on the history of Yorkshire for more than 30 years. He first got into history when was asked by a publishing company to write a book about Knaresborough.

He has since written more than 100 books on the history of a variety of areas in Yorkshire including York, Harrogate and Hull.

Mr Chrystal told The Yorkshire Post what makes Knaresborough a tourist attraction.

“It’s got a disproportionate amount of [places] that are worth seeing with the castle and a lot of history attached to it. In that respect, it’s well worth a visit,” he said.

“You’d be hard pushed to spend more than a day here but it’s close to Harrogate which is a fine town, it’s close to Leeds and the Yorkshire Dales.

“[The castle] is nice to look at. It looks impressive from wherever you stand; you can look at it from street level, and it looks good from Nidd Gorge which is 120 feet below. It is awe-inspiring.

“[The viaduct] is quite impressive. People don’t realise it’s the second of two viaducts; the first one fell into the river just before it was opened in 1848.

“It took three and a half years to rebuild, and it reopened around about 1851. It’s one of the best views of Yorkshire there is, when you look at it from the top of the gorge behind the castle it looks great.”

Knaresborough Castle was originally built by a Norman baron in 1100 and was maintained by various kings including Richard II, Edward II and King John.

The castle was initially given as a reward by William the Conqueror to a man who had helped him during his invasion of Britain.

“It’s quite a prominent castle,” Mr Chrystal said,

“Richard II did most of the work on it, before that it was mainly built as a reward by William the Conqueror to a guy who helped him during the invasion of Britain in the Battle of Hastings.

“It was a bit of a luxury for the landed gentry that existed in Yorkshire when William came from France. It was important in that respect, later on it became a bit strategic and it became something of a fortress.

“[The castle] was the place where a couple of the murderers of Thomas Becket sought refuge in the castle because obviously they had been hunted down by people involved in the church and they were trying to bring them to justice.

“Edward II was the first king who got involved with it, King John in 1205 appointed a bloke called Brian and he extended the castle when it was first built, he dug the moat. It was completely rebuilt by Edward II by 1307 and 1312.

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“The vessels fell into ruin, disrepair and by the time of the Civil War in 1640 it was still occupied as a fortification but it was run by the royalist.

“Oliver Cromwell destroyed it; he was a parliamentarian, he’d won the war, that’s why you see it in ruins today, because of what Cromwell did to it.

“After that it didn’t have any sort of importance or strategic value, it lapsed into what it is today: a tourist attraction.”

Mr Chrystal has published two books in 2023 called Old Knaresborough and Old Harrogate which are sold in Waterstones based in Harrogate and has previously published another called Knaresborough Through Time.

He is currently working on another book called 111 Places In Hull You Must Visit that is set to be published next year.