The people of the sleepy Durham market town of Barnard Castle have a lot to be thankful for when it comes to Dominic Cummings, the Prime Minister's former aide who put their little town on the list of 'must see' British Heritage sites.
Now firmly 'on the map', Barnard Castle is enjoying some of its finest days since the Balliol family were successfully able to fight off Lord Eustace de Vescy at the siege of 1216.
Such fine days, in fact, that English Heritage reports tourism numbers to the historic site were up a whopping 20% on 2019 levels, as more than 30,000 tourists flocked to the beauty spot - an invasion six times larger than the infamous siege of 1569.
Despite adult tickets being available for as little as £7.60, not everyone has enough time to squeeze in a trip to the castle following their visit to one of the town's two opticians.
If you are sadly one of these people then fear not, because we've wrapped up some of the must-know information for visitors to the 900-year-old site, with the help of English Heritage.
Barnard Castle history
The first stones are thought to have been put down on the site in 1093 after the Norman Conquest of England. They were laid above the river Tees with the hope of controlling river crossings between the territories of two landowners.
It is thought to have been built by the Picard knight Guy de Balliol who was succeeded by his son Berndard, who gave the castle its name.
After his death in the mid-12th century, the castle underwent various improvements and developments until it was laid siege to in 1216 by northern forces loyal to King Alexander II of Scotland.
The siege was bloody but the defending Balliol family held off their advances, and the castle and those who lived in it entered into a period of prosperity.
From the early 12th century until the late 15th, the castle changed ownership multiple times with the comings and goings of various lords, eventually falling into the hands of King Richard III.
The king liked the castle and performed several repairs. He installed the still stunning projecting oriel window of the great chamber that overlooks the river and took great care of it until his death at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485.
The castle fell into the hands of the ruling Tudor family until the siege of 1569, which saw 5,000 northern rebels attack Barnard Castle's 800-strong army. After a heroic fight, the forces of the castle's keeper, Sir George Bowes, were beaten into submission and the castle fell into ruin.
After a brief stint being occupied by a chap known as Frank Shields the hermit, the castle slowly morphed into the gorgeous heritage site and example of medieval architecture you can see today.
What do visitors say about Barnard Castle?
Barnard Castle is a hit with TripAdvisor reviewers, with the ancient ruin laying claim to a very honourable 4.5 stars on the site after 792 reviews.
User dawmouse said in December 2021: "We went to Barnard Castle on a recent trip to Durham just to see what the fuss was about! Its a very nice little town with lovely local shops & well worth a visit for an afternoon strolling around & shopping."
Another, TeamWard, said: "Barnard Castle's Castle is well worth a visit, the place would have looked mighty impressive 400+ years ago with the sheer size of the area it covers, some excellent views of the river tees, plenty of ruins to explore and well supported by English Heritage and not Mr D M Cummings."
A third, called Steve-and-Andie, said: "You don't need your eyes tested to how lovely and peaceful this ruined castle is.
"Well maintained 12th century ruined castle with loads of information boards. Good views over the river Tees. Parking is a bit of a pain in town. Give yourself a good hour for your visit."
Not everyone was so impressed though. User R1chardN, said: "We wanted to include Barnard Castle in our sight seeing tour. The signage for the castle is almost non existent until you are on top of it. Then there was just a very small sign no bigger than a street sign. To add to our frustration the doors were shut and it was closed. I checked the English Heritage website but there was no mention of closure."
When is the best time to go to Barnard Castle?
English Heritage says many of its sites can get particularly busy on bank holidays and between 11am and 2pm. Instead it suggests visiting outside of these hours for a quieter trip.
For the best time to visit with virtually no one else there, you might want to consider going in the middle of a national lockdown.
