Pendragon Castle is now a ruin in the Mallerstang valley to the south of Kirkby Stephen. It occupies a site close to a young River Eden with the peaks of Wild Boar Fell and Mallerstang Edge towering over it. The Castle is steeped in history.
According to legend the original castle was built by Uther Pendragon, father of King Arthur, in the 5th century and may have been the site of his death when a well was poisoned by the Saxons. However, there is no evidence to support the legend that there was a castle here before the 12th century.
Pendragon Castle has had several notable owners including Sir Hugh de Morville - one of the knights who murdered Sir Thomas Beckett in 1170. He was Lord of Westmorland and Hugh's Seat - a peak on the Mallerstang ridge - is named after him. Lady Anne Clifford was a very well known landowner who rebuilt the Castle after it had been destroyed by a Scott's raiding party. She added a brewhouse, bakery, stables and coach house and was a frequent visitor until her death in 1676.
A long distance walk - the Lady Anne's Way - traces her journey between her many properties from Skipton to Penrith.
The Castle is on private land but you can walk around the Castle walls but care must be taken as some of the walls are unstable.
