# Marmion Tower
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{{Short description|15th-century gatehouse in England}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}
{{Use British English|date=March 2025}}
{{good article}}
{{Infobox military installation
| name = Marmion Tower
| location = [West Tanfield](/source/West_Tanfield), [North Yorkshire](/source/North_Yorkshire), [England](/source/England)
| coordinates = {{coord|54.2034|N|1.5937|W|type:landmark_region:GB|display=inline,title}}
{{gbmapping|SE 266 787}}
| image = West Tanfield, The Marmion Tower - geograph.org.uk - 5954383.jpg
| caption = Marmion Tower, seen from the east
| map_type = North Yorkshire
| map_size = 240
| map_alt =
| map_caption = Shown within North Yorkshire
| type = Gatehouse
| materials = [Magnesian limestone](/source/Magnesian_Limestone)
| height =
| condition = Ruined
| ownership = [English Heritage](/source/English_Heritage)
| open_to_public = Yes
| events =
}}
'''Marmion Tower''', also known historically as '''Tanfield Castle''', is a 15th-century [gatehouse](/source/gatehouse) near the village of [West Tanfield](/source/West_Tanfield) in [North Yorkshire](/source/North_Yorkshire), England. It survived the destruction of the surrounding fortified manor and is now managed by [English Heritage](/source/English_Heritage).
==History==
Marmion Tower is a stone gatehouse, built in the early 15th century as the entrance to the fortified manor of [West Tanfield](/source/West_Tanfield).[{{harvnb|Emery|1996|p=412}}; {{NHLE|num=1011669|desc=Marmion Tower (former gatehouse of Tanfield Castle fortified manor)|mode=cs2|access-date=3 July 2016}}] West Tanfield occupied a strategic crossing point on the north bank of the [River Ure](/source/River_Ure), and [Sir John Marmion](/source/John_Marmion%2C_3rd_Baron_Marmion_of_Winteringham) and later his daughter-in-law Maud were given licences by [the Crown](/source/the_Crown) to [crenellate](/source/Crenelation) the manor house there in 1314 and 1348 respectively.[{{harvnb|Emery|1996|p=412}}; {{cite web|url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/marmion-tower/history/|title=History of Marmion Tower|publisher=English Heritage|mode=cs2|access-date=3 July 2016}}]
thumb|left|upright|Plan of the ground floor
When the antiquary [John Leland](/source/John_Leland_(antiquary)) visited the site in the mid-16th century, he described how "the castelle of Tanfeld, or rather as it is nowe, a meane manor Place, stondith hard on the ripe of Ure, wher I saw no notable building but a fair toured Gateway and a Haule of squarid stone."[{{harvnb|Emery|1996|p=412}}]
The tower and the manor passed into the Parr family and, on the death of [William Parr, 1st Marquess of Northampton](/source/William_Parr%2C_1st_Marquess_of_Northampton) (brother of Queen [Katherine](/source/Katherine_Parr)), into the hands of the Crown, before being held by the Cecils and the Elgins.[{{cite web|url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/yorks/north/vol1/pp384-389|title=Parishes: West Tanfield|publisher=British History Online|editor=William Page|year=1914|mode=cs2|access-date=3 July 2016}}] The Brudenell family owned it from 1747 onwards, until in 1886 it was sold to Mr. Thomas Arton.[{{harvnb|Grose|1787|p=160}}]
By 1786, the rest of the manor except for the gatehouse had been destroyed; Grose recorded a local tradition stating that [Thomas Cecil](/source/Thomas_Cecil%2C_1st_Earl_of_Exeter) and Sir Christopher Wandesford had used the stone in the construction of [Snape Castle](/source/Snape_Castle) and [Kirklington Hall](/source/Kirklington%2C_North_Yorkshire) respectively in the late 16th century.[ In 1976, the tower passed into the guardianship of the state and was then restored and opened to the public.][{{cite news|periodical=Country Life|title=A Tower Restored|date=23 September 1982|page=876|mode=cs2}}; {{cite web|url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/marmion-tower/history/|title=History of Marmion Tower|publisher=English Heritage|mode=cs2|access-date=3 July 2016}}] In the 21st century it is operated by [English Heritage](/source/English_Heritage) and protected under UK law as a Grade I [listed building](/source/listed_building) and [scheduled monument](/source/scheduled_monument).[{{NHLE|num=1011669|desc=Marmion Tower (former gatehouse of Tanfield Castle fortified manor)|mode=cs2|access-date=3 July 2016}}]
==Architecture==
alt=|thumb|Oriel window, Marmion Tower
The tower is three storeys high, {{convert|34|by|31|feet}} across and built from [magnesian limestone](/source/Magnesian_Limestone); it was raised in height at some point after its original construction.[{{harvnb|Emery|1996|p=412}}; {{cite web|url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/yorks/north/vol1/pp384-389|title=Parishes: West Tanfield|publisher=British History Online|editor=William Page|year=1914|mode=cs2|access-date=3 July 2016}}] On the ground floor, the tower contained a vaulted [porter's lodge](/source/porter's_lodge), {{convert|20|by|8|ft}} wide, with a fireplace, latrine and a "squint" to allow the porter to look into the passageway.[{{harvnb|Emery|1996|p=412}}; {{cite web|url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/vch/yorks/north/vol1/pp384-389|title=Parishes: West Tanfield|publisher=British History Online|editor=William Page|year=1914|mode=cs2|access-date=3 July 2016}}; {{cite web|url=http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/marmion-tower/history/|title=History of Marmion Tower|publisher=English Heritage|mode=cs2|access-date=3 July 2016}}] A [newel](/source/newel) staircase in the north-west corner connected to the first and second floors.[ As well as acting as a gatehouse, the tower would originally have provided self-contained accommodation, possibly serving as a private apartment.]