3-021-303 - The Print Collector/Heritage Images

Prince Arthur's visit to the Isle of Man: Castle Rushen, 1869. Engraving from a photograph by Mr. G. A. Dean. 'This ancient fortress, which was founded by the Danish Kings of Man, in the tenth century, though its oldest remaining portion, the central keep, is of the thirteenth century, now contains the gaol, the courthouse, and the lunatic asylum of the island; the Governor's residence and the House of Keys, or local Parliament, have been removed to other buildings. The castle is built of dark-blue limestone, with massive architecture, its walls being 11 ft. or 12 ft. thick. It was formerly surrounded by a deep moat, with seven square towers and three round towers upon the external glacis. The central keep has four towers 70 ft. high, one of which contains the old chapel of the castle'. From "Illustrated London News", 1869.