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The big facts page

158 facts about Manx castles and forts, all checked

Every fact on this site in one place, each linked to its source. Our build checks each one against the source text; see the sources page. Things that can change carry the date we checked them, and where sources disagree you’ll find each one.

Jump to: The island | The Iron Age | Vikings and Norse life | Castle Rushen | Peel Castle | Tudor and Civil War | The Watch and Ward | Mounds and tombs | Old stories (1874) | Visiting (dated) | The national curriculum in England

The island

  1. 1 The Isle of Man is 52 kilometres long and 22 kilometres wide: 32 miles by 14 miles. Manx National Heritage: About the Isle of Man
  2. 2 It sits in the middle of the Irish Sea, between England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales. Manx National Heritage: About the Isle of Man
  3. 3 About 80,000 people live there. Manx National Heritage: About the Isle of Man
  4. 4 The island has a 10,000-year history, with a strong Celtic and Viking past. Manx National Heritage: About the Isle of Man
  5. 5 It is governed by its own parliament, Tynwald, which Manx National Heritage calls the oldest continuous parliament in the world. Manx National Heritage: About the Isle of Man
  6. 6 The Manx have their own language, Manx Gaelic. “Traa dy liooar” means “time enough”. Manx National Heritage: About the Isle of Man
  7. 7 The island’s landscape keeps up to 8,000 years of human activity, from the Mesolithic to today. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  8. 8 Johnson puts this down to a varied landscape and a lack of intensive farming. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)

The Iron Age

  1. 9 Iron-working reached the British Isles from about 700 BC and soon replaced bronze for most tools and weapons. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Celtic Farmers, Iron Age
  2. 10 Manx National Heritage dated the Manx Iron Age to 600 BC to AD 500. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Celtic Farmers, Iron Age
  3. 11 The first few centuries were unsettled, and many settlements were built at sites that could be defended. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Celtic Farmers, Iron Age
  4. 12 The Roman occupation of Britain had little direct effect on the Isle of Man. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Celtic Farmers, Iron Age
  5. 13 A Roman naval presence in the Irish Sea may even have helped keep things steady. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Celtic Farmers, Iron Age
  6. 14 Manx society hardly changed until the Vikings arrived, around AD 800. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Celtic Farmers, Iron Age
  7. 15 Iron Age sites on the island include the hillforts at South Barrule and Cronk Sumark and the coastal forts of Cronk ny Merriu, Close ny Chollagh and Burroo Ned. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Celtic Farmers, Iron Age
  8. 16 “Iron Age fortification” covers sites of very different size, purpose and date. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  9. 17 Builders used natural features such as hilltops, cliffs and headlands. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  10. 18 The defences were usually one or more banks or walls with a ditch outside. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  11. 19 The outside of the bank was sometimes faced with an upright stone wall. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  12. 20 Some held villages of roundhouses; others enclosed just one building. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  13. 21 There are 20 recorded promontory forts on the island, and some were reused in Viking times. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  14. 22 The island’s National Monuments Record listed 22 forts in 2002, plus 10 possible sites. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  15. 23 More promontory forts may have been lost where soft cliffs of sand and clay are wearing away in the north. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  16. 24 South Barrule is the earliest and only large summit hillfort on the island. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  17. 25 Its stone-faced turf rampart enclosed at least 85 house sites. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  18. 26 Peter Davey counts at least 80 roundhouses inside two wide-spaced ramparts. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  19. 27 South Barrule’s outer defence was a belt of four or five lines of sloping timber stakes, called “chevaux de frise”. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  20. 28 Davey compares South Barrule with forts in southern Britain, especially Wales, such as the big forts on the Llŷn Peninsula. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  21. 29 Cronk Sumark is a small summit hillfort with vitrified ramparts: stone melted together by great heat. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  22. 30 Its inside has never been excavated, but it is thought to have been built before 300 BC. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  23. 31 Until it was drained in the 1600s, Cronk Sumark looked over a big wetland called the Curragh. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  24. 32 Davey compares Cronk Sumark with Scottish vitrified forts, such as Dunadd. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  25. 33 Davey notes the fort in the north is Scottish in character and the one in the south is Welsh. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  26. 34 Davey calls the Iron Age the most puzzling and hard-to-find period in Manx prehistory. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  27. 35 Archaeologist Peter Gelling dug many sites that looked Iron Age, and found at least half belonged to other times. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  28. 36 At Cronk ny Merriu, an Iron Age bank and ditch cut off a headland to make a fort. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Cronk ny Merriu
  29. 37 Its first defence was a stockade. A later rampart had a line of timber posts inside and a raised walkway. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  30. 38 At Close ny Chollagh, a stone-faced rampart enclosed four stone houses. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  31. 39 A brooch dates the last Iron Age use of Close ny Chollagh to about AD 50. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  32. 40 Johnson says Close ny Chollagh’s four stone roundhouses were lived in into the 1st century AD. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  33. 41 Close ny Chollagh is not a natural headland: a ditch dug from the end of a deep sea inlet made it defensible. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  34. 42 Ballanicholas is an inland promontory fort, almost filled by a single timber house. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  35. 43 Chapel Hill at Balladoole had Iron Age stone-faced earth ramparts around several stone houses. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications
  36. 44 Big Iron Age timber farmhouses at Ballacagen and Ballanorris were up to 30 metres across. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Farmsteads
  37. 45 They probably had low dome-shaped roofs covered with turf. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Farmsteads
  38. 46 The family lived round the central hearth; the outer ring stored things and probably housed the animals in winter. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Farmsteads
  39. 47 Locally made pottery went out of use by 500 BC; people used containers of organic materials instead. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Celtic Farmers, Iron Age
  40. 48 Prized jewellery of jet, amber, bronze and glass was traded from Britain. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Celtic Farmers, Iron Age
  41. 49 Cass ny Hawin was used in the Mesolithic, the Iron Age and the Viking Age. Manx National Heritage: Cass ny Hawin
  42. 50 It overlooks an inlet, perhaps to warn off raiders. Manx National Heritage: Cass ny Hawin
  43. 51 Erosion 200 metres south of the fort revealed a hunter-gatherer camp from around 5700 BC. Manx National Heritage: Cass ny Hawin

Vikings and Norse life

  1. 52 At the Braaid you can see an Iron Age roundhouse and two Norse longhouses side by side. Manx National Heritage: The Braaid
  2. 53 The Braaid’s main longhouse was 20 metres long and 8 metres wide inside, with walls 2 metres thick. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  3. 54 A second building, 16.5 metres long, is thought to have been a house for animals. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  4. 55 The Manx Museum says the island has more Viking silver per square kilometre than England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland. Manx National Heritage: Manx Museum
  5. 56 Odin’s Raven, a replica Viking ship at the House of Manannan, sailed from Norway to the Isle of Man in 1979. Manx National Heritage: House of Manannan
  6. 57 The Chronicles of the Kings of Man and the Isles tell the story of a Norse dynasty founded by Godred Crovan. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  7. 58 That kingdom ended with the Treaty of Perth in 1266. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  8. 59 Davey says the Chronicles’ story cannot be checked against archaeology. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  9. 60 King Olaf founded Rushen Abbey in 1134, linked to Furness Abbey in England. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  10. 61 The island’s capital moved from Peel to Castletown. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)

Castle Rushen

  1. 62 Castle Rushen in Castletown is one of the best-preserved medieval castles in the British Isles. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen
  2. 63 It was built about 800 years ago for a Viking king. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen
  3. 64 It has been a Civil War fortress and the island’s Victorian prison. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen
  4. 65 Its walls are three feet thick. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen
  5. 66 Manx National Heritage’s access guide says Castle Rushen was founded by the Norse King Reginald in the late 1100s. Manx National Heritage: Access Guide for Castle Rushen (2026)
  6. 67 Its group guide says the oldest part dates from the time of Magnus, the last Norse King of Mann. Manx National Heritage: Group visitor information for Castle Rushen
  7. 68 Visit IOM says it is thought to date from the late 12th or early 13th century. Visit IOM: Castle Rushen
  8. 69 Davey says Castle Rushen cannot be dated by archaeology even to the nearest hundred years. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  9. 70 Robert the Bruce attacked it in 1313. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  10. 71 It was a fortress, a royal home, a mint and even a prison. Manx National Heritage: Access Guide for Castle Rushen (2026)
  11. 72 It was built for a King of Man and the Isles, close to the limestone building stone at Scarlett. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  12. 73 It stands on a narrow spit of land that was easy to defend yet easy to reach. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  13. 74 The first stage, around 1200, was a great tower inside a ditch. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  14. 75 In the 1330s and 1340s the tower was raised and towers were added to the south, west and east. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  15. 76 From the 1360s to the 1390s came the curtain wall, gatehouse, barbican and a new ditch. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  16. 77 In 1536 to 1540 a round tower was built in the moat, with a sloping bank of earth called a glacis. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  17. 78 From 1639 to 1651 the defences were adapted, and a gun platform called the “New Worke” was built on the shore. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  18. 79 Its two main building periods match two big threats: the Anglo-Scottish wars of the 1300s and the Civil War of the 1600s. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  19. 80 By the early 1800s the keep had become the island’s prison, for the next 100 years. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  20. 81 The castle stopped being a prison when Victoria Road prison opened in Douglas in 1891. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  21. 82 In 1904 to 1910 the architect Armitage Rigby restored it and removed the prison buildings. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  22. 83 It was used as a museum until the Manx Museum opened in Douglas in 1922. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  23. 84 In 1988 it became a Manx National Heritage site, and it opened to the public as one in 1991. Visit IOM: Castle Rushen
  24. 85 The island’s courts stopped using its courtroom in 2013. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  25. 86 New Lieutenant Governors are usually sworn in there. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  26. 87 Almost every door and window of the medieval castle can still be traced. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  27. 88 Davey calls it the Manx equivalent of the Anglo-Norman castle at Trim in Ireland. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  28. 89 Unlike Peel, Castle Rushen was built to a single plan: a “statement of royal power”. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  29. 90 There are 100 steps from the ground floor to the flag tower, the highest point. Manx National Heritage: Access Guide for Castle Rushen (2026)
  30. 91 Things to spot include the murder holes in the inner gatehouse and a gatehouse toilet, the “garderobe”. Manx National Heritage: Group visitor information for Castle Rushen
  31. 92 The Treasury was once the most secure room on the island. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen
  32. 93 The town of Castletown grew up around the castle. Manx National Heritage: Access Guide for Castle Rushen (2026)
  33. 94 Its wooden-framed turret clock probably dates from the late 1500s and is one of only a handful of its kind to survive. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen’s medieval clock to undergo specialist conservation
  34. 95 The clock had no face until about 1720; today’s one-handed face dates from the 1980s. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen’s medieval clock to undergo specialist conservation
  35. 96 It is believed to be a gift from Queen Elizabeth I, but no document has yet been found to prove it. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen’s medieval clock to undergo specialist conservation
  36. 97 Its style, design and radiocarbon dating fit that belief. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen’s medieval clock to undergo specialist conservation
  37. 98 The specialists looking after it also restored the Great Clock of Westminster, known as Big Ben. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen’s medieval clock to undergo specialist conservation

Peel Castle

  1. 99 Peel Castle stands on St Patrick’s Isle, joined to Peel by a causeway. Visit IOM: Peel Castle
  2. 100 It is the biggest and most complex heritage site on the island, inside a 700-metre curtain wall. Manx National Heritage: Peel Castle
  3. 101 Inside are almost two hectares of fortifications built over 700 years, with a cathedral, a church, chapels and graveyards. Manx National Heritage: Peel Castle
  4. 102 It was a place of worship before it became the fortress of Magnus Barefoot, an 11th-century Viking King of Mann. Manx National Heritage: Access Guide to Peel Castle (2026)
  5. 103 Visit IOM says Vikings first built it in the 11th century, in wood; many stone walls and towers came in the 1300s. Visit IOM: Peel Castle
  6. 104 Its round tower was built about 900 years ago, to protect people from raiders. Manx National Heritage: Peel Castle
  7. 105 You can go down into the crypt of the Cathedral of St German, built 800 years ago. Manx National Heritage: Peel Castle
  8. 106 A ghostly black dog, the moddey dhoo in Manx, is said to haunt the isle. Manx National Heritage: Peel Castle
  9. 107 Look out to sea for seals. Manx National Heritage: Peel Castle
  10. 108 There is a 16th-century great garrison hall. Manx National Heritage: Group visitor information for Peel Castle
  11. 109 The curtain wall also surrounds the later apartments of the Lords of Mann. Manx National Heritage: Group visitor information for Peel Castle
  12. 110 Davey says Peel’s buildings face north in style, reflecting the earliest Norse kings and the bishop. Peter Davey, “Manx archaeology in the high Middle Ages” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  13. 111 You climb 24 historic steps to reach the ticket barrier. Manx National Heritage: Access Guide to Peel Castle (2026)
  14. 112 Work on the Barbican Wall is planned from November 2026 to spring 2027, with scaffolding at the entrance. Manx National Heritage: Peel Castle · checked 3 Nov 2026

Tudor and Civil War

  1. 113 Derby Fort on St Michael’s Isle was built on the orders of King Henry VIII to keep out French or Spanish invaders. Manx National Heritage: St Michael’s Isle (Fort Island)
  2. 114 It was one of many such forts built along the coasts of the British Isles. Manx National Heritage: St Michael’s Isle (Fort Island)
  3. 115 In the 1640s James Stanley, Earl of Derby, had it refurbished during the English Civil War. Manx National Heritage: St Michael’s Isle (Fort Island)
  4. 116 After the war it became a lighthouse, until about a century ago. Manx National Heritage: St Michael’s Isle (Fort Island)
  5. 117 St Michael’s Isle is first mentioned in the Chronicles as the site of a battle in 1250. Manx National Heritage: St Michael’s Isle (Fort Island)
  6. 118 Its St Michael’s Chapel was built on the site of a Celtic keeill. Manx National Heritage: St Michael’s Isle (Fort Island)
  7. 119 In the Civil War Castle Rushen was a Royalist outpost; James Stanley and Countess Charlotte hurriedly added defences. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM
  8. 120 William Christian, Illiam Dhone, was charged with defending the island against Parliament’s forces. Manx National Heritage: Hango Hill
  9. 121 In 1651 he negotiated the island’s surrender, against the wishes of the Earl’s widow. Manx National Heritage: Hango Hill
  10. 122 He was later tried and executed at Hango Hill. Some now see him as a Manx patriot. Manx National Heritage: Hango Hill
  11. 123 Hango Hill is a Bronze Age burial mound with a later summerhouse on it. Manx National Heritage: Hango Hill
  12. 124 In the 1600s at least two batteries of cannon were made on the Calf of Man. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)

The Watch and Ward

  1. 125 Digs led to a view that several promontory forts, apparently Iron Age, were lived in again in the Middle Ages. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  2. 126 Andrew Johnson suggests the reused forts were lookout posts in a coastal watch called the Watch and Ward. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  3. 127 Manx National Heritage describes the later Cronk ny Merriu building as part of a system of coastal lookout posts. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Cronk ny Merriu
  4. 128 Cronk ny Merriu overlooks Port Grenaugh, the only possible landing place on a rocky stretch of coast. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  5. 129 A silver penny of Edward I was later found by chance near Cronk ny Merriu’s rampart. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  6. 130 The Cronk ny Merriu house was 11 by 4.3 metres inside, with raised benches along its long walls. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  7. 131 Hango Broogh may have been a beacon: a fire pit held charred gorse, good for lighting quickly. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  8. 132 A document of 1627 lists the wardens of the day watch and the night watch. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  9. 133 Day watchers sat on hills with views out to sea; night watchers stood near the places boats could land. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  10. 134 Several hills are named Cronk ny Arrey Laa, “hill of the day watch”. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  11. 135 Burroo Ned is cut off by a 150-metre rampart; holes in the rock may have held signal posts. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  12. 136 At Vowlan near Ramsey, the first site to be dug, the excavator Bersu thought six buildings were huts for guards left by Viking raiders. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)
  13. 137 Johnson argues the forts make poor farms: exposed, hard to reach and with no water supply. Andrew Johnson, “Watch and Ward on the Isle of Man” (Scottish Society for Northern Studies, 2002)

Mounds and tombs

  1. 138 Broogh Fort is a flat-topped mound 20 metres across and 4 metres high, inside an 8-metre ditch. Manx National Heritage: Broogh Fort
  2. 139 It is probably a medieval motte, though it may have been a Bronze Age burial site or an Iron Age ringfort. Manx National Heritage: Broogh Fort
  3. 140 It has never been properly excavated, so what it was for is still unclear. Manx National Heritage: Broogh Fort
  4. 141 Balladoole was used for living, defence and burial. Manx National Heritage: Balladoole
  5. 142 King Orry’s Grave is a Neolithic tomb about 6,000 years old. Manx National Heritage: King Orry’s Grave
  6. 143 Despite the name, there is little evidence to link it with the half-legendary King Orry. Manx National Heritage: King Orry’s Grave

Old stories (1874)

  1. 144 In 1874 a guidebook reported the claim, made by many writers, that Castle Rushen was built in 960 by King Godred, and doubted it. Jenkinson’s Practical Guide to the Isle of Man (1874), Castletown, on A Manx Notebook
  2. 145 The same guide said some writers compared the castle to Elsinore in Denmark. Jenkinson’s Practical Guide to the Isle of Man (1874), Castletown, on A Manx Notebook
  3. 146 It also said Queen Elizabeth presented the clock in 1597. Jenkinson’s Practical Guide to the Isle of Man (1874), Castletown, on A Manx Notebook

Visiting (dated)

  1. 147 Castle Rushen is closed for the winter and reopens in March 2027. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen · checked 3 Nov 2026
  2. 148 Peel Castle also reopens in March 2027. Manx National Heritage: Peel Castle · checked 3 Nov 2026
  3. 149 At Castle Rushen, children aged 16 or under go free with an adult. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen · checked 3 Nov 2026
  4. 150 Fort Island is open access all year round, with no admission fee. Manx National Heritage: St Michael’s Isle (Fort Island) · checked 3 Nov 2026
  5. 151 The Manx Museum in Douglas is open daily, 9.30am to 4.30pm, with free entry. Manx National Heritage: Manx Museum · checked 3 Nov 2026
  6. 152 The House of Manannan in Peel is open daily, 9.30am to 4.30pm. Manx National Heritage: House of Manannan · checked 3 Nov 2026
  7. 153 The causeway bridge to Fort Island is narrow and in places has no walls, so drive slowly. Manx National Heritage: St Michael’s Isle (Fort Island)
  8. 154 Peel Castle is all open-air, with uneven paths and no handrails around the site. Manx National Heritage: Access Guide to Peel Castle (2026)
  9. 155 The field at Cass ny Hawin may have livestock in it; do not bother the animals. Manx National Heritage: Cass ny Hawin

The national curriculum in England

  1. 156 England’s KS2 curriculum includes a local history study, which can be a site beyond 1066 that matters in the locality. GOV.UK (DfE): National curriculum in England, history programmes of study
  2. 157 KS2 also covers the Viking and Anglo-Saxon struggle for the Kingdom of England, including Viking raids. GOV.UK (DfE): National curriculum in England, history programmes of study
  3. 158 And it lists Iron Age hill forts: tribal kingdoms, farming, art and culture. GOV.UK (DfE): National curriculum in England, history programmes of study