Carlisle is one of England’s major historic centres and is today a bustling, modern, market town with a population of approximately 70,000. It is a regional centre and capital of Cumbria, a mainly rural county located in the north-west of England close to the border with Scotland. The area offers much to the visitor being in close proximity to such wonderful areas as the Lakes District National Park and attractions such as the 11th century Carlisle Castle, the 12th century Cathedral and Hadrian’s Wall, one of Britain’s major Roman ruins and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The city has a long history and abounds with historic attractions, beginning with the Romans, when it was a military centre that served the forts on Hadrian’s Wall, which can be seen at the nearby Birdoswald Roman Fort and Visitors Centre. It later became the northern stronghold of the British during its conflicts with the Celts and later the Scots, with the building of an earth and timber castle by the Normans in 1092, on the site of an earlier Roman Fort. During the 12th century the castle was re-fortified in stone and eventually completed by Henry VIII in 1540, when the rounded battlements of the keep were added. The castle today maintains its impressive battlements, and protects the Border Regiment Museum that stands inside the compound. The museum relates to the history of Cumbria’s County Infantry Regiment, the Border Regiment and the King’s Own Royal Border Regiment and local Militia.
The full history of this fascinating border city, which has been fought over for centuries is well displayed in the Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery. The museum contains almost 200,000 items of interest covering Cumbrian pre-history, Roman history around Carlisle and Hadrian’s Wall, the Dark Age, Medieval Cumbia, the Civil War, Jacobite Rising and a wide collection of items reflecting everyday life from 1800 to the present day.
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