The Castle Howard Story
The Howards of Castle Howard stem from Lord William Howard (1563-1640), youngest son of Thomas Howard, 4th Duke of Norfolk who had been beheaded in 1572. "Belted Will", as he was known, took possession of Henderskelfe in Yorkshire, the site of Castle Howard today, as part of the inheritance of his wife, Elizabeth Dacre whom he married in 1577. The construction of Castle Howard took more than 100 years before it could be said to have been finally completed, and spanned the lifetime of three earls and numerous architects and craftsmen although Sir John Vanbrugh, an English architect and dramatist, was credited with the original design. As the house was built and decorated the grounds were filled with lakes, temples, monuments and a grand mausoleum. A thriving estate grew up encompassing several villages and acres of farmland.
All of the lakes and ponds at Castle Howard are artificial. The South Lake, below the Temple Terrace, was fashioned in the early 1720s; New River, beyond, was widened from a natural stream a decade later, prior to the construction of New River Bridge in the 1740s. The Great Lake was built by the 5th Earl and will be the setting for the swim section of the inaugural triathlon.
The cycle section, set in the Howardian Hills, initially takes in the Avenue, the main road that approaches the castle and runs in a straight line from south to north for five miles. First laid out in the early years of the 18th century, today the Avenue is lined with Beech and Lime trees. The Avenue will play host to the first three and last miles of the bike section for all adult races.
The run section initially circumnavigates Ray Wood, set on the site of ancient woodland that, in the 1940s, was clear felled, but twenty years later re-planted under the aegis of award-winning plantsman James Russell. Next, runners will pass The Temple of the Four Winds, known originally as the Temple of Diana. The building, a cube with dome and porticos, is modeled in part on Andrea Palladio's famous 16th century Villa Rotonda in Vicenza. 2.5 km into the run, competitors will pass the Mausoleum. In the 1720's the 3rd Earl announced his decision to build a grand funeral monument for himself and his family. Initially he consulted Vanbrugh, but following his death in 1726, the Earl turned to Nicholas Hawksmoor to realise his dream. The result is one of the finest, free-standing mausoleums in northern Europe. A hop over New River Bridge, a circumnavigation of South Lake and the Atlas Fountain later and you will be ready for the finishing straight in front of Castle Howard itself!
To name our different races we have turned to the film industry where Castle Howard has featured prominently in recent history. Garfield 2: The Prince and the Paw-per in the UK (2006) is a theatrical sequel to the 2004 live-action feature film Garfield: The Movie. The exterior castle scenes were shot at Castle Howard. In addition Castle Howard played host to filming of the new movie, Brideshead Revisited (2008). As in the 1981 ITV production of the same name, Castle Howard featured as Brideshead Castle, home to the aristocratic Marchmain family.
Today Castle Howard is owned and administered by a private company, of which the Hon Nicholas and Simon Howard are the directors, undertaking the challenging tasks of running the estate and preserving the House both as a family home (now lived in by the Hon Simon Howard and his wife Rebecca) and as the grand spectacle it has always been.
