Wark Castle: The Decline

A letter from Lord Dacre to Cardinal Wolsey in 1517 on the state of Wark illustrated a serious problem. Huge sums were spent repairing the castle during times of conflict but during periods of relative peace the buildings were completely neglected. Dacre said that the king's money should be spent during peacetime so that money would be saved during wartime. The fact that this was not acted upon is made clear by a report by Rowland Johnson in 1561 who said that the castle was 'in most places fallen down, and having no flankers and the rest that yet stands more like to fall than to continue '.

Towards the end of the 16th century border warfare started to subside and the castle was allowed to deteriorate further. In 1580 a report stated that both Norham and Wark Castles were so ruined that 'no man dare dwell in them, and if speedy remedy be not had, they will falle flatte to the grounde'. Some repair work was carried out shortly after this but by the beginning of the 17th century the conflicts with Scotland had been resolved and Wark was no longer of any strategic importance.

The castle fell slowly into decay. Stone was robbed to build houses and walls in the village. In the mid-19th century parts of the northern curtain wall were dismantled because they had become dangerous to people crossing on the ferry below. Some parts of the castle were used for allotments and grazing but the remainder was wholly neglected.