Things people “know” about Manx castles and forts

Myth Castle Rushen was built in 960.

Fact 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 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

Myth Peel Castle was always made of stone.

Fact 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

Myth King Orry is buried in King Orry’s Grave.

Fact Despite the name, there is little evidence to link it with the half-legendary King Orry. Manx National Heritage: King Orry’s Grave King Orry’s Grave is a Neolithic tomb about 6,000 years old. Manx National Heritage: King Orry’s Grave

Myth The Romans changed everything on the island.

Fact 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 Manx society hardly changed until the Vikings arrived, around AD 800. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Celtic Farmers, Iron Age

Myth Every Iron Age fort on the island was a big hilltop fort.

Fact South Barrule is the earliest and only large summit hillfort on the island. Manx National Heritage (archived gov.im page, 2012): Iron Age Fortifications 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

Myth Castle Rushen’s clock has always had a face.

Fact 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

Myth We know for certain that Queen Elizabeth I gave the clock.

Fact 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

Myth The old promontory forts were only ever Iron Age homes.

Fact 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) 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)

Myth Every mound called a fort was a fort.

Fact 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 It has never been properly excavated, so what it was for is still unclear. Manx National Heritage: Broogh Fort

Myth Castle Rushen was only ever a castle.

Fact 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 The island’s courts stopped using its courtroom in 2013. Manx National Heritage: Castle Rushen Assessment of Significance (2017), on Planning Portal IoM