Commemorative plaque 41116

This blue commemorative plaque records: Wetherby Castle 1140-1155 During the civil wars which followed the death of Henry I, the Percy family built a castle on this site to guard the ford across the River Wharfe against raids by armies from Scotland which then controlled England to the north of Yorkshire. Built without royal permission, it was demolished by order of Henry II. Only the foundations of the keep remain.

Wetherby Castle, constructed by the Percy family between 1140-1155, served as a strategic defensive structure during the civil wars post-Henry I's death; its unauthorized construction led to its demolition by Henry II, highlighting tensions between feudal lords and the crown in medieval England.