Читать книгу The Lune Valley and Howgills. 40 scenic fell, river and woodland walks онлайн

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Later, the valley fell under the authority of Tostig, Earl of Northumberland and brother of Harold Godwinson, the last Anglo-Saxon king of England. Tostig’s ambitions for the throne ended with his death at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in September 1066, but Harold’s victory was short-lived, for within the month William, Duke of Normandy landed at Pevensey, and on 14 October defeated Harold at Hastings.

St Mary’s Church in Kirkby Lonsdale is a fine Norman building, although an even older church previously stood on the site (Walk 23)

The Normans quickly established their authority in the southern part of England, but the north was a different matter. The Lune Valley became seen as a strategic frontier passage, and for a time, the Welsh Marches apart, it was one of the most heavily fortified areas in the country, with some ten motte and bailey castles being built in and around the valley between Tebay and Lancaster.

But normality slowly returned, and the Norman age saw the founding of many religious communities up and down the country, with isolated riverside settings often chosen as the site of an abbey. Much of the upper Lune was incorporated within the estates of monasteries as far away as Byland in Yorkshire, yet only three houses were established within the valley itself. The ruins of a small Gilbertine priory can be seen at Ravenstonedale, while St Mary’s at Lancaster is a priory church founded under the Benedictines. The third monastery was on the coast at Cockersand, established by the Premonstratensian order.