Heiferlaw Tower

Heiferlaw Tower, also called Highfarlaw and Heffordlaw, a ruined tower standing on a hilltop a few miles north of Alnwick, was built by the fourth Earl of Northumberland for the monks of Alnwick Abbey between 1470-89 (according to the built-in armorial panel), probably as a lookout and beacon to warn of attack from Scotland; the earl's tower at Hulne Priory is of a similar date. Little is known of its history but the tower was clearly habitable, the main chamber being at first floor level with a fireplace and large S facing mullion window. Bedchambers would have been on the second floor, while the ground floor was probably used for storage and animals, to provide an element of defensibility, perhaps with a ladder providing access to the first floor although a staircase was evidently added later.

Just outside the boundaries of the Alnwick parks, the ruined tower was one of the sites favoured by the first Duchess for picnics in the mid 18th century, others being at Brizlee and Ratcheugh. At the end of the century it was again used as a watch tower, this time to warn of seaborne invasion by the French during the Napoleonic wars. It is currently disused, but clearly visible to passers by, an interesting and historic monument.

We carried out historic archival research and inspected this important ruined building, and prepared a prioritised conservation strategy to guide future repairs and maintenance. The immediate threats were due to washing out of masonry joints and corework, and the growth of woody vegetation, reminders that even ruined monuments require regular maintenance to arrest the decay process.

In the long term such monuments should ideally be brought back into a socially beneficial sustainable use to ensure that they are properly maintained.