Piel Castle is located in northwest England on Piel Island just off the coast of the Furness Peninsula. Its alternate name was called Fowdray Castle (Fowdray Island). Earlier this day, I visited Furness Abbey, which founded the building of this castle in the early 1300s. The castle was built to protect Furness Abbey and its trade routes from Scotland raiders. The castle was built in phases with a large keep and an inner and outer bailey; these were built to add more defense. It was also used for smuggling goods.
The castle fell into ruin shortly before the destruction of the monastaries in the early 1500s. It then changed hands a few times. In the early 1800s, the walls of the castle fell into the sea due to the erosion of the land around it. Poet William Wordsworth wrote the poem "Peele Castle" inspired by it during a visit.
Later that century, the castle went under renovation work to prevent further erosion, and after World War I, the castle was gifted to the community. It was opened as a tourist destination in the 1970s.
The castle is made from the stones appearing on the beach mixed with red stone, similar to the stone used in Furness Abbey. There is a rumour that a tunnel exists between the abbey and the castle, but this does not exist, although there may have been tunnels around the abbey.
To get to Piel Island, visitors must wait for a small boat that ferries between the island and the mainland on the other side of the island at Furness Peninsula. The drive out to the Peninsula has sea views with decaying ships beached in the mud.
At the end of the road is a lifeboat station and a jetty down to the boat. There is an information board just above this that explains the ferry times. Generally, the ferry runs from 11:00 in the morning every day and probaly finishes at 4:00, and this runs between Easter and October, but some of the information online isn't correct so there are phone numbers to ring on the information panel.
The boat ride only takes about ten minutes to get to the island where there is a similar jetty up to the pub and a pathway to the castle ruins. Navigating on a narrow pathway between bushes and tall grass, visitors can see the ruins of the castle keep and some walls.
The castle cannot be entered as it is blocked and in a very ruined state, but there is a doorway that can be walked through to access the inner/outer bailey and see good views over the sea.
The mowed grass appears to follow one of the older walls.
On the far edge of the castle, I heard noises of seals. These seals were beached on another part of the land further out.
When finished, I walked back past the ruins of the castle on the narrow pathway following the edge of the sea.
Piel Island only has the castle ruins, a row containing three or four terraced houses, and a pub "The Ship Inn" with beautiful views overlooking the sea. Food and drinks can be ordered here, and I had some chips and a drink to cool me down on the hot day. While sitting here, I saw dolphins jumping around a small boat, water skiis, sailboats, and a couple of wind-surfers.
Lastly, Piel Castle has its own King. The "King of Piel" is the landlord of the pub and who is crowned the king of the island. This tradition comes from Lambert Simnel, who pretended to take over the throne of England. There is a large oak chair in the pub, and anyone can be knighted here with the cost to buy everyone a round of drinks; any knight ship-wrecked here may demand a room and food for the night. The crown and other items for the "King of Piel" are located in a room of the pub behind the cabinet, and there is another large cabinet of curiousities relating to the island and sea life in this room.
I recommend a visit to this interesting castle and island as it was a real treat and a great start to the day exploring the castle and having a bite to eat and a drink at the pub with the amazing views in the sunshine.
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