96 A SKETCH OF OLD NEWCASTLE. 



With regard to the castle itself little is known. It 

 would be tedious to attempt an examination of the docu- 

 ments which lead to the conclusion that much of the 

 original structure was of wood, the keep, however, being 

 of stone. Several grants of timber seem to have been 

 made in the reign of John for repairing and fortifying his 

 castles, and among them Newcastle. That monarch ap- 

 pears to have paid a visit, in passing, to this castle, and 

 some royal mandates are dated from it. It has been sup- 

 posed that the rude figure of a castle in the borough arms 

 is not altogether imaginary, but is a fac-simile of the old 

 structure ; and if so, it would confirm the notion that it 

 was in part of wood, the gables presenting an appearance 

 similar to the old timbered houses which formerly pre- 

 vailed, and of which some interesting specimens are still 

 to be seen in this and several neighbouring counties. The 

 following singular description will still further confirm the 

 opinion. It is copied from an entry in an old book of 

 the date of 1602 (probably written in it soon after the 

 year 1610) when the site of the castle, and some mills 

 contiguous, were granted by the crown to Ralph Sneyd, 

 Esq., of Keele. 



" There be many that need be tould what John of Gaunt 

 his castle was, and will sore lament it now is not, to give 

 the sojourner largess of bread, beef, and beer. Our grand- 

 dames doe say that their grandames did delight to tell 

 what it had been, and how well it was counted off before 

 their daye ; althof they say onlie of it what they had 

 been tould ; as how that the Newcastle was no more nor 150 

 paces from south to north, but well nigh 200 from est 

 to west ; and had two transepts and four bays with dun- 

 gen tower of twentie paces square, which rose in three 

 storys of the full height of 70 feet : that it did stand 



