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Wolsty Castle, Holme Low
Wolsty Castle
Wulsty Castle
locality:-   Wolsty
civil parish:-   Holme Low (formerly Cumberland)
county:-   Cumbria
locality type:-   castle (ruin) 
coordinates:-   NY10505060
1Km square:-   NY1050
10Km square:-   NY15
evidence:-   old map:- OS County Series (Cmd 27 3) 
placename:-  Wolsty Castle
source data:-   Maps, County Series maps of Great Britain, scales 6 and 25 inches to 1 mile, published by the Ordnance Survey, Southampton, Hampshire, from about 1863 to 1948.
"Wolsty Castle (Remains of)"
evidence:-   old map:- Saxton 1579
placename:-  Wulsty Castle
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, Westmorlandiae et Cumberlandiae Comitatus ie Westmorland and Cumberland, scale about 5 miles to 1 inch, by Christopher Saxton, London, engraved by Augustinus Ryther, 1576, published 1579-1645.
image
Sax9NY15.jpg
Building with two towers, symbol for a castle.  "Wulsty cast:"
item:-  private collection : 2
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Mercator 1595 (edn?) 
placename:-  Wulsty Castle
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, Northumbria, Cumberlandia, et Dunelmensis Episcopatus, ie Northumberland, Cumberland and Durham etc, scale about 6.5 miles to 1 inch, by Gerard Mercator, Duisberg, Germany, about 1595.
image
MER8CumB.jpg
"Wulsty ca."
tower 
item:-  JandMN : 169
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Keer 1605
placename:-  Wulsty Castle
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, Westmorland and Cumberland, scale about 16 miles to 1 inch, probably by Pieter van den Keere, or Peter Keer, about 1605 edition perhaps 1676.
image  click to enlarge
KER8.jpg
"Wulsty cast"
dot, circle and tower; village 
item:-  Dove Cottage : 2007.38.110
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Speed 1611 (Cum/EW) 
placename:-  Wulsty Castle
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, Kingdome of Great Britaine and Ireland, scale about 36 miles to 1 inch, by John Speed, about 1610-11, published by Thomas Bassett, Fleet Street and Richard Chiswell, St Paul's Churchyard, London, 1676?
image  click to enlarge
SPD6Cm.jpg
"Wulsty ca"
dot, circle, and tower 
item:-  private collection : 85
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Speed 1611 (Cmd) 
placename:-  Wulsty Castle
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, Cumberland and the Ancient Citie Carlile Described, scale about 4 miles to 1 inch, by John Speed, 1610, published by J Sudbury and George Humble, Popes Head Alley, London, 1611-12.
image
SP11NY14.jpg
"Wulsty cast."
circle, buildings, towers 
item:-  private collection : 16
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   table of distances:- Simons 1635
placename:-  Wulstye Castle
source data:-   Table of distances, uncoloured engraving, Cumberland, with a thumbnail map, scale about 41 miles to 1 inch, by Mathew Simons, published in A Direction for the English Traviller, 1635.
image  click to enlarge
SIM4.jpg
"Wulstye Ca: SW"
and tabulated distances; W on thumbnail map 
item:-  private collection : 50.11
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Jenner 1643
placename:-  Wulsty Castle
source data:-   Tables of distances with a maps, Westmerland, scale about 16 miles to 1 inch, and Cumberland, scale about 21 miles to 1 inch, published by Thomas Jenner, London, 1643; published 1643-80.
image
JEN4Sq.jpg
"Wulsty ca"
circle 
evidence:-   old map:- Jansson 1646
placename:-  Wulsty Castle
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, Cumbria and Westmoria, ie Cumberland and Westmorland, scale about 3.5 miles to 1 inch, by John Jansson, Amsterdam, Netherlands, 1646.
image
JAN3NY15.jpg
"WulstÿCast."
Buildings and tower with flag. 
item:-  JandMN : 88
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Seller 1694 (Cmd) 
placename:-  Wulsty Castle
source data:-   Map, uncoloured engraving, Cumberland, scale about 12 miles to 1 inch, by John Seller, 1694.
image  click to enlarge
SEL9.jpg
"Wulsty Cast"
circle; castle 
item:-  Dove Cottage : 2007.38.89
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Morden 1695 (Cmd) 
placename:-  Wulsty Castle
source data:-   Map, uncoloured engraving, Cumberland, scale about 4 miles to 1 inch, by Robert Morden, 1695, published by Abel Swale, the Unicorn, St Paul's Churchyard, Awnsham, and John Churchill, the Black Swan, Paternoster Row, London, 1695-1715.
image
MD12NY15.jpg
"Wulsty Castle"
Circle, building with two towers. 
item:-  JandMN : 90
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Badeslade 1742
placename:-  Wulsey Castle
source data:-   Map, uncoloured engraving, A Map of Cumberland North from London, scale about 11 miles to 1 inch, with descriptive text, by Thomas Badeslade, London, engraved and published by William Henry Toms, Union Court, Holborn, London, 1742.
image  click to enlarge
BD10.jpg
"Wuls[e]y Castle"
circle, italic lowercase text; castle 
item:-  JandMN : 115
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Bowen and Kitchin 1760
placename:-  Wulsty Castle
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, A New Map of the Counties of Cumberland and Westmoreland Divided into their Respective Wards, scale about 4 miles to 1 inch, by Emanuel Bowen and Thomas Kitchin et al, published by T Bowles, Robert Sayer, and John Bowles, London, 1760.
image
BO18NY04.jpg
"Wulsty Cast."
circle and ?flag 
item:-  Armitt Library : 2008.14.10
Image © see bottom of page
evidence:-   old map:- Donald 1774 (Cmd) 
placename:-  Wolsty Castle
source data:-   Map, hand coloured engraving, 3x2 sheets, The County of Cumberland, scale about 1 inch to 1 mile, by Thomas Donald, engraved and published by Joseph Hodskinson, 29 Arundel Street, Strand, London, 1774.
image
D4NY15SW.jpg
"Wolsty Castle"
square within a square; roman fort 
item:-  Carlisle Library : Map 2
Image © Carlisle Library
evidence:-   old text:- Clarke 1787
placename:-  Wulsty Castle
source data:-   Guide book, A Survey of the Lakes of Cumberland, Westmorland, and Lancashire, written and published by James Clarke, Penrith, Cumberland, and in London etc, 1787; published 1787-93.
image CL13P105, button  goto source
Page 105:-  "..."
"I do not find any ancient authors mention a castle here [Castlerigg], Speed, who speaks of twenty-five in Cumberland, hath found out every one I ever heard or knew of, except Kirkoswald; how that has escaped him I cannot tell. I shall here put down their names, and, as well as I can, their most ancient owners, and supposed founders."
"..."
image CL13P106, button  goto source
Page 106:-  "..."
"14. WULSTY, - Mentioned by Speed. I cannot find it, unless we would suppose it to be Kirkoswald, a place he does not name."
"..."
evidence:-   old text:- Camden 1789
placename:-  Vulstey Castle
source data:-   Book, Britannia, or A Chorographical Description of the Flourishing Kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland, by William Camden, 1586, translated from the 1607 Latin edition by Richard Gough, published London, 1789.
image CAM2P172, button  goto source
Page 172:-  "..."
"... Holme, or as it is commonly called Holme Cultrain abbey; and Vulstey castle was built by the abbots in the neighbourhood to secure their treasure, books, and records, from the sudden inroads of the Scots. In this castle are said to be concealed a prey to the moths the works of Michael Scotus, who professed a religious life here about the year 1290, so deeply immersed in mathematical studies and sciences, that he obtained the character of a magician with the vulgar, whose foolish credulity reported him to have wrought wonders. ..."
evidence:-   old text:- Capper 1808
item:-  book; charter
source data:-   Gazetteer, A Topographical Dictionary of the United Kingdom, compiled by Benjamin Pitts Capper, published by Richard Phillips, Bridge Street, Blackfriars, London, 1808; published 1808-29.
image CAP101, button  goto source
"... About 5 miles distant from the sea-shore are the vestiges of an ancient castle, built by the abbots of Holm-Cultram, for securing their books and charters from the depredations of the Scots. ..."
evidence:-   old text:- Gents Mag
placename:-  Holmcoltran Wolmsty
item:-  licence to crenellate
source data:-   Magazine, The Gentleman's Magazine or Monthly Intelligencer or Historical Chronicle, published by Edward Cave under the pseudonym Sylvanus Urban, and by other publishers, London, monthly from 1731 to 1922.
image G856B467, button  goto source
Gentleman's Magazine 1856 part 2 pp.467-475  "..."
"LICENCES TO CRENELLATE, FROM THE PATENT ROLLS IN THE TOWER OF LONDON. (Continued from p.330.)"
"[Edward III continued]"
"..."
"22. Abbas de Holmcoltran manerium infra limites de Holmcoltran Wolmsty ... Cumbr."
"..."
evidence:-   text:- Curwen 1913
placename:-  Wolmsty
item:-  licence to crenellate
source data:-   Book, The Castles and Fortified Towers of Cumberland, Westmorland, and Lancashire North of the Sands, by John F Curwen, published for the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society by Titus Wilson, Kendal, Westmorland, 1913.
Licence to crenellate granted by Edward III; 13 October 1348:-  "Abbas de Holmcoltram ... manerium infra limites de Holmcoltram ... Wolmsty, Cuberland."
evidence:-   text:- Jackson 1990
placename:-  Wristie castle
placename:-  Woolstey castle
placename:-  Ulstey castle
source data:-  
notes:-  
 The moat and one piece of wall remain; there were curatin walls, hall, tower, gateway, etc

Perriam, D R &Robinson, J: 1998: Medieval Fortified Buildings of Cumbria: CWAAS:: ISBN 1 873124 23 6; illustration
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