The Vicar's Pele Tower

One of the most prominent of Ponteland’s landmarks is the ruined Vicar’s Pele Tower which overlooks the main street. It probably dates back to the 14th century but the still existing remains appear early 17th century. It is now a roofless-three storied shell and its masonry is a patchwork that have been carried out over the centuries.

Vicar’s Pele Towers were very common in Northumberland. There were repeated Scottish raids into the county from the late 1200’s through to the 1600’s. The parish priest at this time was one of the only “officials” in the community and these towers were a place of refuge for them in an attack.

The earliest mention of the pele associated with the vicar of Ponteland occurs in a list of the castle fortalices in Northumberland which is preserved in the Harleian manuscripts. This list,said by Bates to have been drawn up in the first seven months of 1415, identifies the owners and occupiers of the properties viz: - “Turris de Ponteland - vicar eiusdem”

After the unification of the Kingdoms of England and Scotland under one monarch in 1603, the role of these towers changed from defensive to domestic and they were often incorporated as an adjunct to a hall or house. This happened in Ponteland where the tower and house became the village’s vicarage.

In Ponteland, it was Merton College Oxford who owned the benefice. This meant that they appointed the vicar at Ponteland who was often a fellow of the College and seldom visited Ponteland. Due to their absences, the vicarage and the tower were not well maintained. There was a report on the condition of the buildings in 1787:

“The house consists of two parlours, a kitchen and five bedchambers, with closets and garrets, all in good dimension, but the house in some degree out of repair. Stable for five horses in good repair. Cowhouse for two cows in good repair. Coach house ruinous. Dove-cot in good repair. Garden very good but the walls rather out of repair and the
whole of the premises carry about them marks of a ten years non-residence.”

A mid-19th century drawing shows the old vicarage as a substantial 7-bayed two storied house with the pele tower attached at the northern end.

In 1865 this old vicarage was demolished and replaced by a new one a little to the north. The architect from Alnwick decided to retain the old tower as a garden feature.

On 18th October 1954 the ‘new vicarage’, the pele tower and the old stable block were sold to Castle Ward Rural District Council for the sum of £5,700. Whilst the vicarage was converted to offices, little was done to the tower. Its condition deteriorated further and certain parts of the structure eventually became unsafe. Restoration work was carried out in 1974 but this was rather clumsy and with openings enlarged and concrete lintels inserted.

With the approach of the Millennium, there were proposals in the 1990’s to restore the tower to its 19th century appearance. These however were thwarted when the building attained Ancient Monument status. Although this change of status ensures the tower’s long-term survival, it also brought with it restrictions on any physical changes to the fabric of the building, meaning that the restoration work could not go ahead.