Mow Cop Castle
Encyclopedia
Folly
In architecture, a folly is a building constructed primarily for decoration, but either suggesting by its appearance some other purpose, or merely so extravagant that it transcends the normal range of garden ornaments or other class of building to which it belongs...
at Mow Cop
Mow Cop
Mow Cop is an isolated village which straddles the Cheshire–Staffordshire border, and is thus divided between the North West and West Midlands regions of England...
, near Harriseahead
Harriseahead
The village of Harriseahead on the northern edge of the Potteries is of historical interest.-Harriseahead:Harriseahead is a village in the county of Staffordshire, England,just north of Stoke on Trent and about 2 miles south-west of Biddulph and very close to the border with Cheshire.The etymology...
in the county of Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
, England.
Traces of a prehistoric camp have been found here, but in 1754, Randle Wilbraham of nearby Rode Hall
Rode Hall
Rode Hall is a country house in the parish of Odd Rode, Cheshire, England. It consists of two houses, formerly separate, and now joined together. The older house was built for Randle Wilbraham in the early 18th century; it was recorded as being "recently completed" in 1708. It is a long low...
built an elaborate summerhouse looking like a medieval fortress and round tower
Round tower
Round tower may refer to:Types of tower:* Irish round tower, a type of early mediaeval stone tower* Broch, a type of Iron Age drystone structure found in Scotland* Round-tower church, a type of church found mainly in England...
.
The Castle was given to the National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
in 1937. The same year over ten thousand Methodists met on the hill to commemorate the first Primitive Methodist Camp Meeting there.
The area around the castle was nationally famous for the quarrying of high-quality millstones ('querns
Quern-stone
Quern-stones are stone tools for hand grinding a wide variety of materials. They were used in pairs. The lower, stationary, stone is called a quern, whilst the upper, mobile, stone is called a handstone...
') for use in water mills. Excavations at Mow Cop have found querns dating back to the Iron Age
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
.
Though visitors were originally allowed inside the folly the area surrounding it has been fenced off due to an instance of suicide off the cliff edge.
On the turn of the millennium in the year 2000 a large fire was lit beside the folly as part of a network of communicating fires across the country.
Mow Cop and its folly are central images in Alan Garner
Alan Garner
With his first book published, Garner abandoned his work as a labourer and gained a job as a freelance television reporter, living a "hand to mouth" lifestyle on a "shoestring" budget...
's novel, Red Shift
Red Shift (novel)
Red Shift is a fantasy novel by Alan Garner. It spans over a thousand years but one geographical area: Southern Cheshire, England. Garner evokes the essence of place, allowing his characters to echo each other through time, as if their destinies may be predefined by the soil on which they walk...
.