Whiteclose

Has been described as a Questionable Pele Tower, and also as a Questionable Bastle

There are no visible remains

NameWhiteclose
Alternative NamesWithiescloss; Withies Closs
Historic CountryCumberland
Modern AuthorityCumbria
1974 AuthorityCumbria
Civil ParishArthuret

Possible site of a tower at Withiescloss, (Whiteclose). The tower is marked on a map of 1590, but is depicted as a house on the 1607 plot. Probably a stonehouse or bastle. (PastScape)

Gatehouse Comments

Shown on map of 1590 marked as 'withiescloss' and as a house 'white close' on 1607 platt. PastScape locates this as "area centred NY46887063" but given the tendency for house sites to maintain location Gatehouse favours a location under the modern farm. It is difficult to really known what the symbols on the 1590 map actually meant. They mainly refer to sites that are now lost and which were never gentry status sites. This suggests these were not pele towers. It is more likely they were some form of bastle or stonehouse. The lack of survival of such houses in this area, as opposed to their fairly frequent survival in the higher Pennine lands, may reflect the good agricultural quality of this land producing wealth (once the area was politically stabilised and decriminalised) which allowed for the building of brand new farmhouses and farmbuildings in the C18/C19.

- Philip Davis

Not scheduled

Not Listed

Historic England (PastScape) Defra or Monument number(s)
County Historic Environment Record
OS Map Grid ReferenceNY477708
Latitude55.029369354248
Longitude-2.83417010307312
Eastings346770
Northings570850
HyperLink HyperLink HyperLink

No photos available. If you can provide pictures please contact Castlefacts

Most of the sites or buildings recorded in this web site are NOT open to the public and permission to visit a site must always be sought from the landowner or tenant.

Calculate Print

Books

  • Salter, Mike, 1998, The Castles and Tower Houses of Cumbria (Malvern: Folly Publications) p. 99 (slight)
  • Perriam, Denis and Robinson, John, 1998, The Medieval Fortified Buildings of Cumbria (Kendal: CWAAS Extra Series 29) p. 244
  • King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol. 1 p. 94
  • Jeffrey, A., 1864, History and Antiquities of Roxburghshire Vol. 4 p. 232 (facsimile of map) online copy

Journals

  • Graham, T.H.B., 1914, 'The Debatable Land Part II' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol. 14 facing p. 148 online copy [online copy of 1607 platt > http://www.geog.port.ac.uk/webmap/thelakes/html/maps/m067.htm] [online copy of 1552 map > http://www.geog.port.ac.uk/webmap/thelakes/html/maps/m068.htm]

Primary Sources

  • 1590, A Platt of the opposete Borders of Scotland to ye west marches of England (The Aglionby Platt) British Library online Gallery and [Old Cumbria Gazetteer > http://www.geog.port.ac.uk/webmap/thelakes/html/maps/m048.htm] (see also [Gatehouse Essay 'The Aglionby Platt' > http://www.gatehouse-gazetteer.info/APHome.html])