When the Pennines Held a Fortress – Brough Castle

Brough Castle occupies a commanding position at the western end of the Stainmore Pass, a route that has connected Cumbria with the North East since Roman times. The first fortification here was the Roman fort of Verteris, built to control movement across the Pennines and protect the vital trans-Pennine road. When the Normans arrived after the Conquest, they recognised the strategic value of the site and constructed a motte-and-bailey castle on the same ground. Much of the medieval structure we see today dates to the early twelfth century, when the powerful Clifford family rebuilt and strengthened the keep and surrounding defences. Like many border castles, Brough suffered its fair share of misfortune – it was attacked and burned several times, including a major fire in 1521 that left it badly damaged. Lady Anne Clifford, one of the great figures of northern history, restored the castle in the seventeenth century, ensuring it remained habitable, but after her death it once again fell into decline. By the eighteenth century it was abandoned, leaving the atmospheric ruins that stand now: walls that trace the outline of great halls, towers that once commanded the valley, and the unmistakable footprint of a stronghold built to control a crucial route between kingdoms.

Capturing Brough Castle from above reveals just how perfectly the structure blends into its surroundings. The ruins sit on a grassy mound overlooking the village, with sweeping views across the Eden Valley and the rolling Pennine fells. From the air, the plan of the castle becomes strikingly clear – the stout keep rising at one end, the remains of the gatehouse at the other, and stretches of curtain wall that once enclosed a busy courtyard. The soft autumn colours added a warmth to the landscape, picking out the winding paths that lead visitors around the ruins. Flying here is a reminder of how castles were designed not only for defence but for dominance of the landscape; even in collapse, Brough still projects authority over the valley. It’s one of those places where history and scenery come together effortlessly, and seeing it from the air gives a sense of the scale and significance that centuries of weathering can’t erase.