Askham Hall

Lowther Castle Stead is a medieval site in Cumbria, possibly a ringwork castle. Lancaster University Archaeology Unit carried out a survey of the earthworks in 1997.

Lowther Castle is a crenellated country house in the historic county of Westmorland, which now under the current unitary authority of Westmorland and Furness, in the ceremonial county of Cumbria, England . The estate has belonged to the Lowther family, latterly the Earls of Lonsdale, since the Middle Ages. It is a fully managed ruin, open to visits by the public to the shell of the castle and some of the gardens since 2011. Additional work was completed since that time, most recently on the extensive gardens. Francis Knollys escorted Mary, Queen of Scots to Lowther Hall (as the house was then known) on 13 July 1568 on her way to Wharton Hall and Bolton Castle. In the late 17th century, the 1st Viscount Lonsdale rebuilt the family home, then known as Lowther Hall, on a grand scale. The current building is a castellated mansion which was built by Robert Smirke for the 1st Earl of Lonsdale between 1806 and 1814, and it was only at that time that the site was designated a "castle". The family fortune was undermined by the extravagance of the 5th Earl of Lonsdale, a famous socialite, and the castle was closed in 1937. During the Second World War, it was used by a tank regiment. Its contents were removed in the late 1940s and the roof was removed in 1957. The shell is still owned by the Lowther Estate Trust. George Macartney, when visiting the summer retreat of the Chinese emperor in Chengde in 1793, could compare the magnificence of what he saw only with Lowther Hall: “If any place in England can be said in any respect to have similar features to the western park, which I have seen this day, it is Lowther Hall in Westmoreland, which (when I knew it many years ago) from the extent of prospect, the grand surrounding objects, the noble situation, the diversity of surface, the extensive woods, and command of water, I thought might be rendered by a man of sense, spirit, and taste, the finest scene in the British dominions.”In the 19th century, an East India Company ship, HCS Lowther Castle, was named after the estate.

Askham is a village and civil parish in the Eden district of Cumbria, England. It is in the historic county of Westmorland. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 360, decreasing slightly to 356 at the 2011 Census. It is situated on the eastern edge of the Lake District National Park, 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Penrith. Nearby are the remains of Lowther Castle, the site of the annual Lowther Show, a three-day event of country pursuits.

Helton is a village in the Eden district, in the English county of Cumbria. It is about a mile south of the village of Askham. Circa 1870, it had a population of 180 as recorded in the Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales. The village is situated on a steep slope running down from the limestone fells to the flood plain of the River Lowther. Helton is on Wideworth Farm Road, which forms part of the road north to Penrith, and south towards Bampton. A Wesleyan chapel was built in Helton in c.1857 and is a Grade II listed building, now converted for residential use .

Lowther is a civil parish in Westmorland and Furness, Cumbria. Within the parish are the settlements of Lowther Village, Newtown or Lowther Newtown, Hackthorpe, Whale, and Melkinthorpe. At the 2001 census the parish had a population of 402, increasing to 465 at the 2011 Census.The parish council meets at the Lowther Parish Hall in Hackthorpe. Lowther Endowed Primary School is also at Hackthorpe. Most of the land in the parish belongs to the Lowther family estates. The family seat of the Lowthers was formerly Lowther Castle which is now a ruin but set in spectacular parkland. Hackthorpe once had its own magistrates' court which is now part of the village's pub. A large part of the parish is within the Lake District National Park.

Whale is a hamlet in the Westmorland and Furness unitary authority area, Cumbria, England. Historically in Westmorland, it is about a mile south of the village of Askham. In the Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales of 1870-72 it had a population of 53.

Sockbridge and Tirril is a small civil parish in Eden District, Cumbria. It had a population of 397 in 2001, increasing to 415 at the 2011 Census. It comprises the adjoining settlements of Tirril, Sockbridge and Thorpe. All three were once separate places but are now, in effect, a single village. They are near Penrith. The two villages are separated by a river. The parish was formed in 1866 as Sockbridge and was previously a township in the parish of Barton.

The River Lowther is a small river which flows through limestone rock in Cumbria, England. It is a tributary of the River Eamont which in turn is a tributary of the River Eden which flows into the Solway Firth near Carlisle. The Lowther begins with the confluence of the Keld Gill and the Keld Dub near the village of Keld. It flows north-west until it passes between Bampton and Bampton Grange, before turning north until it flows into the River Eamont close to Penrith.It is the main spawning area for Eden spring salmon, but is primarily a trout fishery. The river is held back by the Wet Sleddale dam, and so flows at a fairly consistent level (between 0.33 m and 1.8 m for 90% of monitoring time), with the highest level ever recorded at the River Lowther (2.93 m) occurring at Eamont Bridge, Beehive, on Sunday 6 December 2015.Its name is recorded about 1175 as Lauder. It may come from Brittonic lǭwadr, "a washing or bathing place", which would give it the same etymology as Lauder, Scotland. Alternatively, it may come from Old Norse lauðr + á, meaning "foamy river".

Boredale Hause is a mountain pass between Place Fell and Angletarn Pikes in the east of the English Lake District. It links the Patterdale and Boredale valleys. There is a large confusion of paths on the hause, which is largely grassy.

Yanwath and Eamont Bridge is a civil parish in the Eden District of Cumbria, England, consisting of the small village of Yanwath and most of the neighbouring village of Eamont Bridge. In the 2001 census it had a population of 457, increasing to 535 at the 2011 Census. The parish was created in 1866 and was formerly a township of Barton. The boundaries are now partially marked by the Rivers Eamont and Lowther. The parish council meets at the village hall in Eamont Bridge. The parish combines with Sockbridge and Tirril and Clifton to make up the Eamont ward of Eden District Council. Half a mile north-west of Yanwath, Yanwath Hall is a fortified tower and hall house built in the early to mid 15th century, with 16th and 17th century alterations.

Yanwath is a village in the Westmorland and Furness District of Cumbria, England, 1 mile south of Penrith. There is a primary school at Yanwath, with 192 pupils.Yanwath Gate Inn, in the centre of the village, dates from the 17th century. It is a Grade II listed building.Half a mile north-west of the village, Yanwath Hall is a fortified tower house. Its oldest parts were built in the late 14th century. It is a Grade I listed building.

Clifton Hall was a fortified manor house in the village of Clifton, Cumbria. Dating from around 1400, it was constructed by either Elianor Engaine or her son-in-law William Wybergh, and was held by the Wybergh family until the 19th century. Initially taking the form of an "H"-plan design built around a central hall, around 1500 a three-storey stone pele tower was added, providing both additional security and acting as a status symbol for the family. At the start of the 17th century a new stone hall was added to the south of the tower. The Wyberghs were able to retain Clifton Hall, despite the challenges of the English Civil War, but the house was caught up in the Jacobite risings of 1715 and 1745. In the early 19th century most of Clifton Hall was pulled down to make way for a new farmhouse, and only the pele tower survived. In the 21st century the tower is in the care of English Heritage and operates as a tourist attraction.