Captains Tower And Inner Bailey Walls

Captains Tower and the Inner Bailey Walls are a gate tower and curtain walls located in Carlisle. The walls date from the 12th century, while the tower was built in the 13th century and modified in the 14th century, with some alterations made in the 19th century. The walls were partly rebuilt between 1821 and 1824 and again from 1834 to 1835. They are constructed from squared blocks of red and calciferous sandstone, featuring battered sections, partial buttressing, and broad pilasters. The tower includes a buttress, pilasters, and a flat lead roof.

The inner bailey is roughly triangular, consisting of north, south, and west walls. The west walls face the outer bailey and contain a central three-storey square tower, which has an earlier blocked gateway visible. The front of the tower has had its portcullis slot and platform removed around 1919, revealing a pointed archway beneath a blocked doorway and windows from 1819. Crenellation was also removed in 1819. The rear of the arch features blind 14th-century tracery under a Tudor mullioned window.

The interior was not inspected. The north wall is extensively buttressed, with some sections having collapsed in 1821 and subsequently rebuilt. Queen Mary's Tower, located at the angle of the south and north walls, was demolished in 1834-1835 and rebuilt in 1835 as a plain crenellated wall. The south walls appear to be from the 12th century and include broad pilasters. Earth embankments for gun placements are located behind the west and south walls, and a broad stepped ramp provides access to the west wall. Beneath the northern part of the west walls are arched casements. The north parapet wall retains two 18th-century 24-pounder cannons. For more detailed information, refer to McCarthy et al (1990).