Auckland Castle occupies an area of flat ground between the
River Gaunless and
River Wear, south of their confluence. The town of Bishop Auckland abuts the castle to the west, and on the other three sides the land falls away steeply to the rivers. The present chapel survives from his building, where it served as the great hall. After the disestablishment of the Church of England at the end of the
First English Civil War in 1646, Auckland Castle was sold to Sir
Arthur Haselrig, who demolished much of the medieval building, including the original two-storey chapel, and built a
mansion. After the
Restoration of the Monarchy,
Bishop John Cosin in turn demolished Hazelrigg's mansion and rebuilt the castle, converting the banqueting hall into the
chapel that stands today. In 1756,
Bishop Richard Trevor bought the notable set of paintings,
Jacob and his twelve sons, by
Francisco de Zurbarán which still hang in the Long Dining Room. It is possible that the seventeenth century paintings were intended for South America. However they never reached their supposed destination, eventually coming into the possession of James Mendez who sold twelve of the thirteen to
Bishop Trevor in 1757. Bishop Trevor was unable to secure the 13th portrait,
Benjamin, which was sold separately to the
Duke of Ancaster and hangs in
Grimsthorpe Castle,
Lincolnshire. Bishop Trevor commissioned
Arthur Pond to produce a copy painting of "Benjamin". The copy, together with the 12 originals, hang in the castle's Long Dining Room, which Bishop Trevor had redesigned especially to take the pictures.
Shute Barrington, Bishop of Durham from 1791 to 1826, employed the eminent architect
James Wyatt to match the disparate architecture of the palace in the late 18th century, including its Throne Room and Garden Screen. In 1832, when
William van Mildert, the last bishop to rule the
county palatine of Durham, gave over
Durham Castle to found
Durham University, Auckland Castle became the sole episcopal seat of the
See of Durham. In 2001 the
Church Commissioners voted to sell the paintings, a decision that was revoked in 2011 following a donation of £15 million by investment manager and philanthropist
Jonathan Ruffer; new arrangements placed the paintings, along with the castle, under the Auckland Castle Trust, making them available to the public after centuries during which they hung in a private home where they could be seen only by invited guests or by special arrangement with the Bishop's staff.
2019 re-opening News reports in 2019 clarified the situation, stating that in 2012, Ruffer had purchased the castle and all of the contents, including the artwork, which included the works by Francisco de Zurbarán. The paintings, which had been on tour, were returned to the site in time for the re-opening of the castle to visitors on 2 November 2019 as the Auckland Project, after a multi-million pound restoration project, funded partly by the National Lottery. By the time of the opening day, a new high tower had been erected as a visitor centre; the structure has a lift and a staircase as well as balconies for views of the castle from above. The interior had been fully restored, including the bishops' "palatial" quarters. According to one news item, "each of the 14 restored rooms, recreated from contemporary accounts and personal recollections" features the career of one former bishop. The Faith Museum of world religion and a huge glass greenhouse were under construction on Castle property. Other attractions already operating at or near the Castle include the Mining Art Gallery (in a nearby former bank building) an open-air theatre,
Kynren, depicting "An Epic Tale of England" with a cast of 1,000; and the Bishop Trevor Gallery at the Castle; the latter started displaying the
National Gallery's Masterpiece touring exhibit in October 2019. In October 2023, the Faith Museum opened to the public. Designed by
Niall McLaughlin Architects, it covers 6000 years of British religious history, from the
Neolithic period to 2000AD. It is housed in the Scotland Wing of the castle, as well as a new stone-built extension. In May 2024, the 17th century walled gardens reopened, with a new glasshouse and faith garden. The Great Garden is set to open in 2025.
Bek's chapel In February 2020, it was announced that the foundations of Bek's chapel had been found at the castle by archeologists. It had long been known that the chapel, which would have been one of the largest in Europe, was located on the castle grounds, but its location was unknown. The chapel was built by the warrior-bishop
Antony Bek in roughly 1300 at a cost of £148. There was a special exhibition at Auckland Castle from 4 March 2020 to 6 September 2020 to display items found in the excavations. == Archaeology ==