Knaresborough Castle has stood on top of the cliff overlooking the river Nidd gorge since around 1070. Now a ruin the castle was once an important royal fortress with 12 towers and a keep. It was here that Thomas Becket’s assassins ran to ground in December 1170. Reduced to ruin in the Civil War, the Kings Tower and Elizabethan Courthouse are all that remain of this key historic site. The castle grounds offer attractive public gardens overlooking the stunningly beautiful gorge providing the ideal picnic spot. The museum, housed in the courthouse, covers the history of Knaresborough and its people including Blind Jack (John Metcalf 1717-1810) who overcame his disability to become one of the best known pioneer road builders of his age.