Northumberland () is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

Northern England Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North Country, or simply the North, is the northern area of England. It broadly corresponds to the former borders of Angle Northumbria, the Anglo-Scandinavian Kingdom of Jorvik, and the ...

, one of two counties in England which border with

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. Notable landmarks in the county include

Alnwick Castle Alnwick Castle () is a castle and country house in Alnwick in the English county of Northumberland. It is the seat of the 12th Duke of Northumberland, built following the Norman conquest and renovated and remodelled a number of times. It is a G ...

Bamburgh Castle Bamburgh Castle is a castle on the northeast coast of England, by the village of Bamburgh in Northumberland. It is a Grade I listed building. The site was originally the location of a Celtic Brittonic fort known as ''Din Guarie'' and may have ...

Hadrian's Wall Hadrian's Wall ( la, Vallum Aelium), also known as the Roman Wall, Picts' Wall, or ''Vallum Hadriani'' in Latin, is a former defensive fortification of the Roman province of Britannia, begun in AD 122 in the reign of the Emperor Hadrian. R ...

and

Hexham Abbey Hexham Abbey is a Grade I listed place of Christian worship dedicated to St Andrew, in the town of Hexham, Northumberland, in the North East of England. Originally built in AD 674, the Abbey was built up during the 12th century into its curre ...

. It is bordered by land on three sides; by the Scottish Borders region to the north,

County Durham County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...

and

Tyne and Wear Tyne and Wear () is a metropolitan county in North East England, situated around the mouths of the rivers Tyne and Wear. It was created in 1974, by the Local Government Act 1972, along with five metropolitan boroughs of Gateshead, Newcastl ...

to the south, and

Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in North West England, bordering Scotland. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local government, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumb ...

to the west. The fourth side is the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...

, with a stretch of coastline to the east. A predominantly

rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are describ ...

county with a landscape of moorland and farmland, a large area is part of

Northumberland National Park Northumberland National Park is the northernmost national park in England. It covers an area of more than between the Scottish border in the north to just south of Hadrian's Wall, and it is one of least visited of the National Parks. The park ...

. The area has been the site of a number of historic battles with Scotland.

Name

The name of Northumberland is recorded as ''norð hẏmbra land'' in the

Anglo-Saxon Chronicle The ''Anglo-Saxon Chronicle'' is a collection of annals in Old English, chronicling the history of the Anglo-Saxons. The original manuscript of the ''Chronicle'' was created late in the 9th century, probably in Wessex, during the reign of Alf ...

, meaning "the land north of the

Humber The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers Ouse and Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between th ...

". The name of the kingdom of ''

Northumbria la, Regnum Northanhymbrorum , conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Northumbria , common_name = Northumbria , status = State , status_text = Unified Anglian kingdom (before 876)North: Anglian kingdom (af ...

'' derives from the Old English meaning "the people or province north of the Humber", as opposed to the people south of the

Humber Estuary The Humber is a large tidal estuary on the east coast of Northern England. It is formed at Trent Falls, Faxfleet, by the confluence of the tidal rivers Ouse and Trent. From there to the North Sea, it forms part of the boundary between the ...

History

The land has long been an English frontier zone, and it is now bordered to the north by

. Northumberland has a rich

prehistory Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...

with many instances of

rock art In archaeology, rock art is human-made markings placed on natural surfaces, typically vertical stone surfaces. A high proportion of surviving historic and prehistoric rock art is found in caves or partly enclosed rock shelters; this type also ...

hillfort A hillfort is a type of earthwork used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze Age or Iron Age. Some were used in the post-Roma ...

s such as

Yeavering Bell Yeavering Bell is a twin-peaked hill near the River Glen in north Northumberland, England, to the west of Wooler, and forming part of the Cheviot Hills. The summit, 1158 feet (361 metres) above sea level, is encircled by the wall of a late-prehi ...

, and

stone circle A stone circle is a ring of standing stones. Most are found in Northwestern Europe – especially in Britain, Ireland, and Brittany – and typically date from the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, with most being built from 3000 BC. The be ...

s such as

the Goatstones The Goatstones is a Bronze-Age four-poster stone circle located near Ravensheugh Crags in Northumberland, England. It is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) to the north of Hadrian's Wall in the parish of Wark on Tyne, Wark-on-Tyne. The name is thought to be ...

and

Duddo Five Stones Duddo Five Stones () is a stone circle north of Duddo in North Northumberland, approximately 4miles (6 km) South of the Scottish Border. The stones were known as the Four Stones until 1903, when the fifth stone was re-erected to improve th ...

. Most of the area was occupied by the

Brythonic Brittonic or Brythonic may refer to: *Common Brittonic, or Brythonic, the Celtic language anciently spoken in Great Britain *Brittonic languages, a branch of the Celtic languages descended from Common Brittonic *Britons (Celtic people) The Br ...

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

Votadini The Votadini, also known as the ''Uotadini'', ''Wotādīni'', ''Votādīni'', or ''Otadini'' were a Brittonic people of the Iron Age in Great Britain. Their territory was in what is now south-east Scotland and north-east England, extending fro ...

people, with another large tribe, the

Brigantes The Brigantes were Ancient Britons who in pre-Roman times controlled the largest section of what would become Northern England. Their territory, often referred to as Brigantia, was centred in what was later known as Yorkshire. The Greek geogr ...

, to the south. During Roman occupation of Britain, most of the present county lay north of

. It was controlled by Rome only for the brief period of its extension of power north to the

Antonine Wall The Antonine Wall, known to the Romans as ''Vallum Antonini'', was a turf fortification on stone foundations, built by the Romans across what is now the Central Belt of Scotland, between the Firth of Clyde and the Firth of Forth. Built some twe ...

. The Roman road

Dere Street Dere Street or Deere Street is a modern designation of a Roman road which ran north from Eboracum (York), crossing the Stanegate at Corbridge (Hadrian's Wall was crossed at the Portgate, just to the north) and continuing beyond into what is n ...

crosses the county from

Corbridge Corbridge is a village in Northumberland, England, west of Newcastle and east of Hexham. Villages nearby include Halton, Acomb, Aydon and Sandhoe. Etymology Corbridge was known to the Romans as something like ''Corstopitum'' or ''Coriosopit ...

over high moorland west of the

Cheviot Hills The Cheviot Hills (), or sometimes The Cheviots, are a range of uplands straddling the Anglo-Scottish border between Northumberland and the Scottish Borders. The English section is within the Northumberland National Park. The range includes T ...

Melrose, Scottish Borders Melrose ( gd, Maolros, "bald moor") is a small town and civil parish in the Scottish Borders, historically in Roxburghshire. It lies within the Eildon committee area of Scottish Borders Council. History The original Melrose was ''Mailros'', mean ...

( la, Trimontium). As evidence of its border position through medieval times, Northumberland has more castles than any other county in England, including those at

Alnwick Alnwick ( ) is a market town in Northumberland, England, of which it is the traditional county town. The population at the 2011 Census was 8,116. The town is on the south bank of the River Aln, south of Berwick-upon-Tweed and the Scottish bor ...

Bamburgh Bamburgh ( ) is a village and civil parish on the coast of Northumberland, England. It had a population of 454 in 2001, decreasing to 414 at the 2011 census. The village is notable for the nearby Bamburgh Castle, a castle which was the seat of ...

Dunstanburgh Dunstanburgh Castle is a 14th-century fortification on the coast of Northumberland in northern England, between the villages of Craster and Embleton. The castle was built by Earl Thomas of Lancaster between 1313 and 1322, taking advantage of t ...

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

and Warkworth. Anglo-Saxon Chronicle - nord hymbra land

Later, the region of present-day Northumberland formed the core of the Anglian kingdom of

Bernicia Bernicia ( ang, Bernice, Bryneich, Beornice; la, Bernicia) was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England. The Anglian territory of Bernicia was ap ...

(from about 547), which united with

Deira Deira ( ; Old Welsh/Cumbric: ''Deywr'' or ''Deifr''; ang, Derenrice or ) was an area of Post-Roman Britain, and a later Anglian kingdom. Etymology The name of the kingdom is of Brythonic origin, and is derived from the Proto-Celtic *''daru' ...

(south of the

River Tees The River Tees (), in Northern England, rises on the eastern slope of Cross Fell in the North Pennines and flows eastwards for to reach the North Sea between Hartlepool and Redcar near Middlesbrough. The modern day history of the river has be ...

) to form the kingdom of

in the 7th century. The historical boundaries of Northumbria under King

Edwin The name Edwin means "rich friend". It comes from the Old English elements "ead" (rich, blessed) and "ƿine" (friend). The original Anglo-Saxon form is Eadƿine, which is also found for Anglo-Saxon figures. People * Edwin of Northumbria (died ...

(reigned 616–633) stretched from the

in the south to the

Forth Forth or FORTH may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''forth'' magazine, an Internet magazine * ''Forth'' (album), by The Verve, 2008 * ''Forth'', a 2011 album by Proto-Kaw * Radio Forth, a group of independent local radio stations in Scotla ...

in the north. After the battle of Nechtansmere its influence north of the Tweed began to decline as the Picts gradually reclaimed the land previously invaded by the Saxon kingdom. In 1018 its northern part, the region between the

Tweed Tweed is a rough, woollen fabric, of a soft, open, flexible texture, resembling cheviot or homespun, but more closely woven. It is usually woven with a plain weave, twill or herringbone structure. Colour effects in the yarn may be obtained ...

and the Forth (including

Lothian Lothian (; sco, Lowden, Loudan, -en, -o(u)n; gd, Lodainn ) is a region of the Scottish Lowlands, lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills and the Moorfoot Hills. The principal settlement is the Sco ...

, which includes present-day

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

), was ceded to the Kingdom of Scotland. Northumberland is often called the "cradle of Christianity" in England because Christianity flourished on

Lindisfarne Lindisfarne, also called Holy Island, is a tidal island off the northeast coast of England, which constitutes the civil parish of Holy Island in Northumberland. Holy Island has a recorded history from the 6th century AD; it was an important ...

—a tidal island north of

, also called Holy Island—after King

Oswald of Northumbria Oswald (; c 604 – 5 August 641/642Bede gives the year of Oswald's death as 642, however there is some question as to whether what Bede considered 642 is the same as what would now be considered 642. R. L. Poole (''Studies in Chronology an ...

(reigned 634–642) invited monks from

Iona Iona (; gd, Ì Chaluim Chille (IPA: �iːˈxaɫ̪ɯimˈçiʎə, sometimes simply ''Ì''; sco, Iona) is a small island in the Inner Hebrides, off the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. It is mainly known for Iona Abbey, though there ...

to come to convert the English. The monastery at Lindisfarne was the centre of production of the

Lindisfarne Gospels The Lindisfarne Gospels (London, British Library Cotton MS Nero D.IV) is an illuminated manuscript gospel book probably produced around the years 715–720 in the monastery at Lindisfarne, off the coast of Northumberland, which is now in the B ...

(around 700). It became the home of

St Cuthbert Cuthbert of Lindisfarne ( – 20 March 687) was an Anglo-Saxon saint of the early Northumbrian church in the Celtic tradition. He was a monk, bishop and hermit, associated with the monasteries of Melrose and Lindisfarne in the Kingdom of Nor ...

(about 634–687, abbot from about 665), who is buried in

Durham Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Christ, Blessed Mary the Virgin and St Cuthbert of Durham, commonly known as Durham Cathedral and home of the Shrine of St Cuthbert, is a cathedral in the city of Durham, County Durham, England. It is the seat of t ...

is the historic capital of Northumberland, the royal castle from before the unification of the Kingdoms of England under the monarchs of the

House of Wessex The House of Wessex, also known as the Cerdicings and the West Saxon dynasty, refers to the family, traditionally founded by Cerdic of Wessex, Cerdic, that ruled Wessex in Southern England from the early 6th century. The house became dominant in so ...

in the 10th century. The Earldom of Northumberland was briefly held by the Scottish royal family by marriage between 1139–1157 and 1215–1217. Scotland relinquished all claims to the region as part of the

Treaty of York The Treaty of York was an agreement between the kings Henry III of England and Alexander II of Scotland, signed at York on 25 September 1237, which affirmed that Northumberland (which at the time also encompassed County Durham), Cumberland, and ...

(1237). The Earls of Northumberland once wielded significant power in English affairs because, as powerful and militaristic

Marcher Lord A Marcher lord () was a noble appointed by the king of England to guard the border (known as the Welsh Marches) between England and Wales. A Marcher lord was the English equivalent of a margrave (in the Holy Roman Empire) or a marquis (in F ...

s, they had the task of protecting England from Scottish retaliation for English invasions. Northumberland has a history of revolt and rebellion against the government, as seen in the

Rising of the North The Rising of the North of 1569, also called the Revolt of the Northern Earls or Northern Rebellion, was an unsuccessful attempt by Catholic nobles from Northern England to depose Queen Elizabeth I of England and replace her with Mary, Queen of ...

(1569–1570) against

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

. These revolts were usually led by the Earls of Northumberland, the Percy family.

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

makes one of the Percys, the dashing

Harry Hotspur Sir Henry Percy (20 May 1364 – 21 July 1403), nicknamed Hotspur, was an English knight who fought in several campaigns against the Scots in the northern border and against the French during the Hundred Years' War. The nickname "Hots ...

(1364–1403), the hero of his ''

Henry IV, Part 1 ''Henry IV, Part 1'' (often written as ''1 Henry IV'') is a history play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written no later than 1597. The play dramatises part of the reign of King Henry IV of England, beginning with the battle at ...

''. The Percys were often aided in conflict by other powerful Northern families, such as the Nevilles and the Patchetts. The latter were stripped of all power and titles by the victorious Parliamentarians after the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

of 1642–1651. After the

Restoration Restoration is the act of restoring something to its original state and may refer to: * Conservation and restoration of cultural heritage ** Audio restoration ** Film restoration ** Image restoration ** Textile restoration * Restoration ecology ...

of 1660, the county was a centre for

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

in England, as well as a focus of Jacobite support. Northumberland was long a wild county, where outlaws and

Border Reivers Border reivers were Cattle raiding, raiders along the Anglo-Scottish border from the late 13th century to the beginning of the 17th century. They included both Scotland, Scottish and England, English people, and they raided the entire border ...

hid from the law. However, the frequent cross-border skirmishes and accompanying local lawlessness largely subsided after the

Union of the Crowns The Union of the Crowns ( gd, Aonadh nan Crùintean; sco, Union o the Crouns) was the accession of James VI of Scotland to the throne of the Kingdom of England as James I and the practical unification of some functions (such as overseas dip ...

of Scotland and England under King James I and VI in 1603. Northumberland played a key role in the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...

from the 18th century on. Many

coal mines Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

operated in Northumberland until the widespread closures in the 1970s and 1980s.

Collieries Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

operated at

Ashington Ashington is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, with a population of 27,864 at the 2011 Census. It was once a centre of the coal mining industry. The town is north of Newcastle upon Tyne, west of the A189 and bordered to the ...

, Bedlington, Blyth, Choppington, Netherton, Ellington and

Pegswood Pegswood is a historic mining village and civil parish in Northumberland, England, and the site of the former Pegswood Colliery. Pegswood is two miles (3 km) east of Morpeth and three miles (5 km) west of Ashington, with a population ...

. The region's coalfields fuelled industrial expansion in other areas of Britain, and the need to transport the coal from the collieries to the Tyne led to the development of the first railways.

Shipbuilding Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...

and

armaments A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, s ...

manufacture were other important industries before the deindustrialisation of the 1980s. Northumberland remains largely rural, and is the least-densely populated county in England. In recent years the county has had considerable growth in tourism. Visitors are attracted both to its scenic beauty and to its historical sites.

Archaeology

Nearly 2000-year-old

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

boxing gloves were uncovered at

Vindolanda Vindolanda was a Roman auxiliary fort (''castrum'') just south of Hadrian's Wall in northern England, which it originally pre-dated.British windo- 'fair, white, blessed', landa 'enclosure/meadow/prairie/grassy plain' (the modern Welsh word woul ...

in 2017 by the Vindolanda Trust experts, led by

Andrew Birley Andrew Robin Birley (born 28 October 1974) is a British archaeologist and the Director of Excavations on the site of Vindolanda. He is the son of Robin Birley and grandson of Eric Birley, who founded the department of Archaeology at Durham Unive ...

. According to the Guardian, being similar in style and function to the full-hand modern boxing gloves, these two gloves found at Vindolanda look like leather bands dating back to 120 AD. It is suggested that, based on their difference from gladiator gloves, the gloves were not used in mortal combat, but rather in a sport for promoting fighting skills. The gloves are currently displayed at Vindolanda's museum.

Physical geography

Northumberland has a diverse physical geography. It is low and flat near the

coast and increasingly mountainous towards the northwest. Being in the far north of England, above 55°

latitude In geography, latitude is a coordinate that specifies the north– south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from –90° at the south pole to 90° at the north pol ...

, and having many areas of high land, Northumberland is one of the coldest areas of the country. But as the county lies on the east coast, it has relatively low rainfall, with the highest amounts falling on the high land in the west.Met Office, 2000.
Annual average rainfall for the United Kingdom
" About a quarter of the county forms the

, an area of outstanding landscape that has largely been protected from development and agriculture. The park stretches south from the Scottish border and includes

. Most of the park is over above sea level. The

Northumberland Coast The Northumberland Coast is a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) covering of coastline from Berwick-Upon-Tweed to the River Coquet estuary in the Northeast of England. Features include: Alnmouth, Bamburgh, Beadnell, Budle Bay, ...

is also a designated

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is an area of countryside in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Areas are designated in recognition of thei ...

(AONB). A small part of the

North Pennines The North Pennines is the northernmost section of the Pennine range of hills which runs north–south through northern England. It lies between Carlisle to the west and Darlington to the east. It is bounded to the north by the Tyne Valley and ...

AONB is also in the county.

Natural England Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, ...

recognises the following natural regions, or national character areas, that lie wholly or partially within Northumberland: *

North Northumberland Coastal Plain The North Northumberland Coastal Plain is a major natural region that lies on England's northeasternmost stretch of coastline on the North Sea. To the west lie the Cheviot Fringe, the Northumberland Sandstone Hills and Mid Northumberland; to the s ...

South East Northumberland Coastal Plain South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz ...

Cheviot Fringe Cheviot Fringe ( ) is a geographical region and a Natural England designated National Character Area (or NCA) located in the county Northumberland in northern England. The region consists of the undulating lowlands between the Cheviot Hills and ...

Northumberland Sandstone Hills The Northumberland Sandstone Hills are a major natural region in the English county of Northumberland. The hills form distinctive skylines with generally level tops, northwest facing scarps and craggy outcrops offering views to the Cheviots furth ...

* Mid Northumberland *

Tyne Gap The River Tyne is a river in North East England. Its length (excluding tributaries) is . It is formed by the North Tyne and the South Tyne, which converge at Warden Rock near Hexham in Northumberland at a place dubbed 'The Meeting of the Water ...

and

Border Moors and Forests Border Moors and Forests NCA is an upland plateau region in Northern England between the North East and North West regions, and touching the Anglo-Scottish border. The region, like much of the northern English uplands, is sparsely populated, w ...

Lowlands

Geology

The

, in the northwest of the county, consist mainly of resistant

Devonian The Devonian ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic era, spanning 60.3 million years from the end of the Silurian, million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Carboniferous, Mya. It is named after Devon, England, whe ...

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

and

andesite Andesite () is a volcanic rock of intermediate composition. In a general sense, it is the intermediate type between silica-poor basalt and silica-rich rhyolite. It is fine-grained (aphanitic) to porphyritic in texture, and is composed predomi ...

lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or un ...

. A second area of

igneous Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ''ignis'' meaning fire), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic. Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or ...

rock underlies the

Whin Sill The Whin Sill or Great Whin Sill is a tabular layer of the igneous rock dolerite in County Durham, Northumberland and Cumbria in the northeast of England. It lies partly in the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and partly in Nort ...

(on which Hadrian's Wall runs), an intrusion of

Carboniferous The Carboniferous ( ) is a geologic period and system of the Paleozoic that spans 60 million years from the end of the Devonian Period million years ago ( Mya), to the beginning of the Permian Period, million years ago. The name ''Carbonifero ...

dolerite Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro, is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-grained ...

. Both ridges support a rather bare

moorland Moorland or moor is a type of habitat found in upland areas in temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands and montane grasslands and shrublands biomes, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils. Moorland, nowadays, generally ...

landscape. Either side of the Whin Sill the county lies on

Carboniferous Limestone Carboniferous Limestone is a collective term for the succession of limestones occurring widely throughout Great Britain and Ireland that were deposited during the Dinantian Epoch of the Carboniferous Period. These rocks formed between 363 and ...

, giving some areas of

karst landscape Karst is a topography formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, dolomite, and gypsum. It is characterized by underground drainage systems with sinkholes and caves. It has also been documented for more weathering-resistant ro ...

.Northumberland National Park Authority, n.d.
The topology and climate of Northumberland National Park
" Lying off the coast of Northumberland are the

Farne Islands The Farne Islands are a group of islands off the coast of Northumberland, England. The group has between 15 and 20 islands depending on the level of the tide.

, another dolerite outcrop, famous for their bird life. The

Northumberland Coalfield The Northumberland Coalfield is a coalfield in north-east England. It is continuous with the Durham Coalfield to its south. It extends from Shilbottle in the north to the boundary with County Durham along the River Tyne in the south, beyond which ...

extends across the southeast corner of the county, from the River Tyne as far north as

Shilbottle Shilbottle is a village in Northumberland, north-east England, south-east of Alnwick, and from the coast at Alnmouth, close to the A1 road (Great Britain), A1. History Coal mining began in the district around 1728; by the end of the 18th cent ...

. There were smaller-scale workings for

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

within the Tyne Limestone Formation as far north as

Scremerston Scremerston is a village in Northumberland, England. The village lies on the North Sea coast just under south of Berwick-upon-Tweed and from the Anglo-Scottish border. It is adjacent to the A1, providing access to Newcastle upon Tyne to the ...

. The term 'sea coal' likely originated from chunks of coal, found washed up on beaches, that wave action had broken from coastal outcroppings.

Ecology and environment

There is a variety of nature reserves in Northumberland including

Holy Island Sacred space, sacred ground, sacred place, sacred temple, holy ground, or holy place refers to a location which is deemed to be sacred or hallowed. The sacredness of a natural feature may accrue through tradition or be granted through a bless ...

National Nature Reserve and Farne Islands National Nature Reserve. Moreover, 50% of England's

red squirrel The red squirrel (''Sciurus vulgaris'') is a species of tree squirrel in the genus ''Sciurus'' common throughout Europe and Asia. The red squirrel is an arboreal, primarily herbivorous rodent. In Great Britain, Ireland, and in Italy numbers ...

population lives in the Kielder Water and Forest Park.

Green belt

Northumberland's

green belt A green belt is a policy and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts are greenways or green wedges, which hav ...

is in the south of the county, surrounding Cramlington and other communities along the county border, to afford a protection from the

Tyneside Tyneside is a built-up area across the banks of the River Tyne in northern England. Residents of the area are commonly referred to as Geordies. The whole area is surrounded by the North East Green Belt. The population of Tyneside as published i ...

conurbation. The belt continues west along the border, past

Darras Hall Darras Hall is an upland housing estate located in the village of Ponteland. It is on the southwestern outskirts of the village, northwest of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is generally regarded as the most expensive and exclusive place to live in the ...

, and on to Hexham, stopping before

Haydon Bridge Haydon Bridge is a village in Northumberland, England, with a population of about 2000, the civil parish Haydon being measured at 2,184 in the Census 2011. Its most distinctive features are the two bridges crossing the River Tyne, River South T ...

. Its border there is shared with the

AONB. There are also some separated belt areas, for example to the east of Morpeth. The green belt was first drawn up in the 1950s.

Economy and industry

Northumberland's industry is dominated by some multinational corporations:

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...

, MSD, GE and Drager all have significant facilities in the region. Tourism is a major source of employment and income in Northumberland. In the early 2000s the county annually received 1.1 million British visitors and 50,000 foreign tourists, who spent a total of £162 million.

Coal mining Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

in the county goes back to

Tudor times The Tudor period occurred between 1485 and 1603 in England and Wales and includes the Elizabethan period during the reign of Elizabeth I until 1603. The Tudor period coincides with the dynasty of the House of Tudor in England that began with t ...

. Coal mines continue to operate today; many of them are open-cast mines. Planning approval was given in January 2014 for an open-cast mine at

Halton Lea Gate Halton Lea Gate is a small village in Northumberland, England, on the A689 road close to the boundary of the counties of Northumberland and Cumbria. The village is part of the parish council area called Hartleyburn, and borders the North Pennin ...

near Lambley. A major employer in Northumberland is

Hexham Hexham ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Northumberland, England, on the south bank of the River Tyne, formed by the confluence of the North Tyne and the South Tyne at Warden, Northumberland, Warden nearby, and ...

-based Egger (UK) Limited.

Pharmaceuticals, healthcare and biotechnology

Pharmaceutical A medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy (pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the medical field and re ...

, healthcare and emerging medical

biotechnology Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used b ...

companies form a very significant part of the county's economy. Many of these companies are part of the approximately 11,000-worker

Northeast of England Process Industry Cluster The North East of England Process Industry Cluster (NEPIC) is an economic cluster created following the industrial cluster ideas and strategy of Michael Porter. This Process Industry Cluster has been created by the chemistry using industries ...

(NEPIC) and include Aesica Pharmaceuticals, Arcinova, MSD,

Piramal Healthcare The Piramal Group is an Indian multinational conglomerate that has presence across various sectors such as healthcare, life sciences, drug discovery, financial services, alternative investment and real estate. History In the early 1980s, Ajay ...

Procter & Gamble The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer hea ...

Shire Plc Shire plc was a UK-founded Jersey-registered specialty biopharmaceutical company. Originating in the United Kingdom with an operational base in the United States, its brands and products included Vyvanse, Lialda, and Adderall XR. Shire was ac ...

(formerly SCM Pharma), Shasun Pharma Solutions, Specials Laboratory, and

Thermo Fisher Scientific Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is an American supplier of scientific instrumentation, reagents and consumables, and software services. Based in Waltham, Massachusetts, Thermo Fisher was formed through the merger of Thermo Electron and Fisher S ...

. The cluster also includes Cambridge Bioresearch, GlaxoSmithKline, Fujifilm Diosynth Biotech, Leica Bio, Data Trial, High Force Research, Non-Linear Dynamics, and Immuno Diagnostic Systems (IDS). The towns of Alnwick, Cramlington, Morpeth, Prudhoe all have significant pharmaceutical factories and laboratories.

Newcastle University Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a UK public university, public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is ...

and

Northumbria University , mottoeng = A lifetime of learning , established = 1877 - Rutherford College of Technology1969 - Newcastle Polytechnic1992 - gained university status , type = Public , budget = � ...

are the leading academic institutions nearby. The local industry includes commercial or academic activity in pre-clinical research and development, clinical research and development, pilot-scale manufacturing, full-scale active pharmaceutical ingredient/intermediate manufacturing, formulation, packaging, and distribution.

Businesses

Ashington has the

Alcan Lynemouth Aluminium Smelter The Alcan Lynemouth Aluminium Smelter is a mothballed industrial facility near Ashington, Northumberland, on the coast of North East England, south of the village of Lynemouth. The smelter is owned by the Canadian aluminium company Alcan, which ...

, next to the Lynemouth Power Station.

Hammerite Hammerite is a brand of hammer paint made by Hammerite Products, a subsidiary of AkzoNobel. Company history Hammerite paint was first developed in 1962 by Allen Forster and later manufactured at the Finnigan's factory in Prudhoe, Northumberla ...

and Cuprinol are made in

Prudhoe Prudhoe ( ) is a town in south Northumberland, England, about west of the city of Newcastle upon Tyne and just south of the River Tyne. Situated on a steep, north-facing hill in the Tyne valley, Prudhoe had a population of 11,675 at the 201 ...

by ICI Paints. A

factory in

Seaton Delaval Seaton Delaval is a village in Northumberland, England, with a population of 4,371. The largest of the five villages in Seaton Valley, it is the site of Seaton Delaval Hall, completed by Sir John Vanbrugh in 1727. In 2010 the armed robbery of ...

makes

Hugo Boss Hugo Boss AG, often styled as BOSS, is a luxury fashion house headquartered in Metzingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The company sells clothing, accessories, footwear, and fragrances. Hugo Boss is one of the largest German clothing companies, ...

aftershave and

Clairol Clairol is the American personal care-product division of company Wella, specializing in hair coloring and hair care. Clairol was founded in 1931 by Americans Joan Gelb and her husband Lawrence M. Gelb, with business partner and lifelong friend ...

and Nice 'n Easy hair dye at a site formerly owned by Shultons, who originated

Old Spice Old Spice is an American brand of male grooming products encompassing aftershaves, deodorants and antiperspirants, shampoos, body washes, and soaps. It is manufactured by Procter & Gamble. Old Spice was launched as Early American Old Spice by W ...

and were bought by P&G in 1990. McQuay UK makes air conditioning systems on the Bassington Industrial Estate at the A1068/A1172 junction in

Cramlington Cramlington is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, 6 miles (9 kilometres) north of Newcastle upon Tyne, and 10 miles (16 kilometres) north of its city centre. The name suggests a probable founding by the Danes or Anglo-Saxons. T ...

, and

Avery Dennison Avery Dennison Corporation is a multinational manufacturer and distributor of pressure-sensitive adhesive materials (such as self-adhesive labels), apparel branding labels and tags, RFID inlays, and specialty medical products. The company is a ...

UK make labels on the Nelson Industrial Estate off of the A192. Schweppes'

Abbey Well Abbey Well (also sometimes branded as Schweppes Abbey Well) is a brand of bottled water produced by Coca-Cola European Partners in the United Kingdom. History Abbey Well was originally produced by Waters & Robson in the 1980s. The name comes f ...

mineral water is made by

in the east of

Morpeth Morpeth may refer to: *Morpeth, New South Wales, Australia ** Electoral district of Morpeth, a former electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in New South Wales * Morpeth, Ontario, Canada * Morpeth, Northumberland, England, UK ** Morpeth (UK ...

. The National Renewable Energy Centre (Narec) is at Blyth.

Education

Northumberland has a completely comprehensive education system, with 15

state schools State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary educational institution, schools that educate all students without charge. They are ...

, two academies and one independent school. Like

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...

, it embraced the comprehensive ideal with the

three-tier In software engineering, multitier architecture (often referred to as ''n''-tier architecture) is a client–server architecture in which presentation, application processing and data management functions are physically separated. The most wides ...

system of lower/middle/upper schools with large school year sizes (often around 300). This eliminated choice of school in most areas: instead of having two secondary schools in one town, one school became a middle school and another became an upper school. A programme introduced in 2006 known as Putting the Learner First has eliminated this structure in the former areas of Blyth Valley and Wansbeck, where two-tier education has been introduced. Although the two processes are not officially connected, the introduction of two tiers has coincided with the move to build academy schools in Blyth, with

Bede Academy Bede Academy is a 3–18 academy in Blyth, Northumberland, England. Opened in September 2009, it is run by the Emmanuel Schools Foundation. It was one of the first all-through academies to be set up in the United Kingdom, and the first ...

and in Ashington at Hirst. One response to these changes has been the decision of

Ponteland High School Ponteland High School is a co-educational secondary school and sixth form located in Ponteland, Northumberland, England. It has been had academy status since 2019. History The school opened in purpose-built accommodation in September 1972. It ...

to apply for Trust status.

Cramlington Learning Village Cramlington Learning Village, formerly Cramlington Community High School, is a large high school with academy status in Cramlington, Northumberland, England; it is a comprehensive school of around 2100 students. The school became an 11–18 s ...

has almost 400 pupils in each school year, making it one of the largest schools in England.

The Blyth Academy The Blyth Academy is a mixed secondary school and sixth form located in Blyth, Northumberland Blyth () is a town and civil parish in southeast Northumberland, England. It lies on the coast, to the south of the River Blyth and is approxim ...

in southeast Northumberland can hold 1,500 students throughout the building.

Astley Community High School Astley Community High School is a Mixed-sex education, coeducational upper school (styled ''high school'') and sixth form located in Seaton Delaval in the English county of Northumberland. It is a Community school (England and Wales), community ...

, which accepts students from Seaton Delaval,

Seaton Sluice Seaton Sluice is a village in Northumberland. It lies on the coast at the mouth of the Seaton Burn (a small river), midway between Whitley Bay and Blyth. It has a population of about 3,000 people. Early history Seaton Sluice lies north o ...

and Blyth, has been the subject of controversial remarks from politicians claiming it would no longer be viable once Bede Academy opened in Blyth, a claim strongly disputed by the headteacher.

Haydon Bridge High School Haydon Bridge High School is a mixed secondary day school located in Haydon Bridge in the English county of Northumberland. The current headteacher is Michael Smith, who took over in January 2021. It is a foundation school administered by North ...

, in rural Northumberland, is claimed to have the largest catchment area of any school in England, reputedly covering an area larger than that encompassed by the M25 motorway around London. The county of Northumberland is served by one Catholic high school,

St Benet Biscop Catholic Academy St. Benet Biscop Catholic Academy (formerly S. Benet Biscop Catholic High School) is a Roman Catholic high school in Bedlington, Northumberland, England. It is the only Catholic high school in the county. Patron Biscop Baducing was born around ...

Bedlington Bedlington is a town and former civil parish in Northumberland, England, with a population of 18,470 measured at the 2011 Census. Bedlington is an ancient market town, with a rich history of industry and innovative residents. Located roughly 1 ...

, which is attended by students from all over the area. Students from Northumberland also attend independent schools such as the Royal Grammar School in Newcastle.

Demographics

At the

2001 UK Census A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194. The 2001 UK census was organised by the Office for National ...

Northumberland registered a population of 307,190,

Office for National Statistics The Office for National Statistics (ONS; cy, Swyddfa Ystadegau Gwladol) is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the UK Parliament. Overview The ONS is responsible for th ...

, 2003.
Update on 2001 Census figures
." estimated to be 309,237 in 2003,

Office of the Deputy Prime Minister An office is a space where an organization's employees perform administrative work in order to support and realize objects and goals of the organization. The word "office" may also denote a position within an organization with specific duti ...

, 2003.
Local Government Finance Settlement 2005/06
" (PDF) The 2011 UK Census gave a population of 316,028. In 2001, there were 130,780 households, 10% of the population were retired, and one-third rented their homes. Northumberland has an ethnic minority population at 0.985% of the population, far lower compared to the average of 9.1% for England as a whole. In the

, 81% of the population reported their religion as Christianity, 0.8% as "other religion", and 12% as having no religion.Office for National Statistics, 2001.
KS07 Religion: Census 2001, Key Statistics for local Authorities
." Being primarily rural with significant areas of upland, the population density of Northumberland is only 62 persons per square kilometre, giving it the lowest population density in England.

Politics

County town

The historic

county town In the United Kingdom and Ireland, a county town is the most important town or city in a county. It is usually the location of administrative or judicial functions within a county and the place where the county's members of Parliament are elect ...

was

assizes The courts of assize, or assizes (), were periodic courts held around England and Wales until 1972, when together with the quarter sessions they were abolished by the Courts Act 1971 and replaced by a single permanent Crown Court. The assizes e ...

were mainly held in

with the

county gaol A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, correcti ...

. Newcastle became a city in 1400, with

county corporate A county corporate or corporate county was a type of subnational division used for local government in England, Wales, and Ireland. Counties corporate were created during the Middle Ages, and were effectively small self-governing county, county-e ...

status, with both areas having joint assizes. From the

county council A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. Ireland The county councils created under British rule in 1899 continue to exist in Irela ...

's forming in 1889 until 1981, Newcastle was the

, being the temporary county town of two counties when the city became a part of the

metropolitan county The metropolitan counties are a type of county-level administrative division of England. There are six metropolitan counties, which each cover large urban areas, with populations between 1 and 3 million. They were created in 1974 and are each di ...

in 1974. The

has been governed from

since 1981. in 2009 the administration restructured into a

unitary authority A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...

called Northumberland Council. Since 2019,

North of Tyne Combined Authority The North of Tyne Combined Authority is a mayoral combined authority which consists the local authorities of Newcastle upon Tyne, North Tyneside, and Northumberland, all in North East England. The authority came into being on 2 November 2018 u ...

and its elected mayor recreated Newcastle's overall governance of the historic county area;

North Tyneside North Tyneside is a metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of Tyne and Wear, England. It forms part of the greater Tyneside conurbation. North Tyneside Council is headquartered at Cobalt Park, Wallsend. North Tyneside is bordered b ...

, Newcastle and the Northumberland district.

Council

Unitary authority A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...

of Northumberland Council, reformed in April 2009, had a two-tier council system for the

and its six

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

, both responsible for different aspects of

local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...

. These districts were

Blyth Valley Blyth Valley was a local government district and borough in south-east Northumberland, England, bordering the North Sea and Tyne and Wear. The two principal towns were Blyth and Cramlington. Other population centres include Seaton Delaval, and ...

, Wansbeck,

Castle Morpeth Castle Morpeth was a Non-metropolitan district, local government district and borough in Northumberland, England. Its administrative centre was the town of Morpeth, Northumberland, Morpeth. The district was formed on 1 April 1974 by the merger ...

Tynedale __NOTOC__ Tynedale is an area and former local government district in south-west Northumberland, England. The district had a resident population of 58,808 according to the 2001 Census. Its main towns were Hexham, Haltwhistle and Prudhoe. The ...

and

Berwick-upon-Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census recor ...

. Elections for the, then to be reformed, unitary authority council first took place on 1 May 2008. The latest elections in 2021 returned the following results:

Constituencies

Northumberland is represented by four UK Parliamentary constituencies: Berwick-upon-Tweed, Blyth Valley, Wansbeck and Hexham. The 2019 General Election produced the following results: File:Official portrait of Ian Lavery MP crop 2.jpg,

Ian Lavery Ian Lavery (born 6 January 1963) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Wansbeck since 2010. He served as the Chair of the Labour Party under Jeremy Corbyn from 2017 to 2020 and was President ...

Labour MP (Wansbeck) File:Official portrait of Mrs Anne-Marie Trevelyan crop 2.jpg, alt=alt language,

Anne-Marie Trevelyan Anne-Marie Belinda Trevelyan (née Beaton; born 6 April 1969) is a British politician, a member of the Conservative Party, she has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Berwick-upon-Tweed since 2015. Trevelyan is a junior minister, and has served ...

Conservative MP This is a list of Conservative Party MPs. It includes all Members of Parliament elected to the British House of Commons representing the Conservative Party from 1834 onwards. Members of the Scottish Parliament, the Welsh Assembly or the Europea ...

(Berwick upon Tweed) File:Official portrait of Guy Opperman crop 3.jpg,

Guy Opperman Guy Thomas Opperman (born 18 May 1965) is a British politician serving as Minister of State for Employment since October 2022. He served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions and Financial Inclusion at the Department for Work ...

(Hexham) File:Official portrait of Ian Levy MP crop 2.jpg, alt=alt language,

Ian Levy Ian Levy (born 14 February 1966) is a British Conservative Party politician who was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for Blyth Valley at the 2019 general election. He is the first Conservative to represent Blyth Valley since the constitu ...

(Blyth Valley)

2016 European Union Referendum

On 23 June 2016, Northumberland took part in the UK-wide referendum on the UK's membership of the EU. In Northumberland a majority voted to leave the European Union. At Westminster constituency level the only area in Northumberland to vote Remain was

Culture

Northumberland has traditions not found elsewhere in England. These include the

rapper sword Rapper sword (also known as short sword dance) is a variation of sword dance unique to Northumberland and County Durham. It emerged from the pit villages of Tyneside and Wearside, where miners first performed the tradition. The dance requires ...

dance, the

clog dance Clog dancing is dancing whilst wearing clogs. The rigid nature of the clogs and their percussive sound when dancing on a hard surface has given rise to a number of distinct styles, including the following: Dance * Clog dancing, a Welsh and Northern ...

and the

Northumbrian smallpipe The Northumbrian smallpipes (also known as the Northumbrian pipes) are bellows-blown bagpipes from North East England, where they have been an important factor in the local musical culture for more than 250 years. The family of the Duke of Nor ...

, a sweet chamber instrument, quite unlike the Scottish bagpipe. Northumberland also has its own tartan or check, sometimes referred to in

as the Shepherd's Tartan. Traditional

Northumbrian music Here Northumbria is defined as Northumberland, the northernmost county of England, and County Durham. According to 'World Music: The Rough Guide', "nowhere is the English living tradition more in evidence than the border lands of Northumbria, the ...

has more similarity to

Lowland Scottish Lowland Scottish Omnibuses Ltd was a bus operator in south eastern Scotland and parts of Northern England. The company was formed in 1985 and operated under the identities Lowland Scottish, Lowland and First Lowland / First SMT, until 1999 when ...

and Irish music than it does to that of other parts of England, reflecting the strong historical links between Northumbria and the

Lowlands Upland and lowland are conditional descriptions of a plain based on elevation above sea level. In studies of the ecology of freshwater rivers, habitats are classified as upland or lowland. Definitions Upland and lowland are portions of p ...

, and the large Irish population on Tyneside. The

border ballads Border ballads are a group of songs in the long tradition of balladry collected from the Anglo-Scottish border. Like all traditional ballads, they were traditionally sung unaccompanied. There may be a repeating motif, but there is no "chorus" as ...

of the region have been famous since late mediaeval times. Thomas Percy, whose celebrated ''Reliques of Ancient English Poetry'' appeared in 1765, states that most of the minstrels who sang the border ballads in London and elsewhere in the 15th and 16th centuries belonged to the North. The activities of

Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy' ...

and others in the 19th century gave the ballads an even wider popularity.

William Morris William Morris (24 March 1834 – 3 October 1896) was a British textile designer, poet, artist, novelist, architectural conservationist, printer, translator and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts Movement. He ...

considered them to be the greatest poems in the language, while

Algernon Charles Swinburne Algernon Charles Swinburne (5 April 1837 – 10 April 1909) was an English poet, playwright, novelist, and critic. He wrote several novels and collections of poetry such as ''Poems and Ballads'', and contributed to the famous Eleventh Edition ...

knew virtually all of them by heart. One of the best-known is the stirring "Chevy Chase", which tells of the Earl of Northumberland's vow to hunt for three days across the Border "maugre the doughty Douglas". Of it, the Elizabethan courtier, soldier and poet

Sir Philip Sidney ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as p ...

famously said, "I never heard the old song of Percy and Douglas that I found not my heart moved more than with a trumpet".

Ben Jonson Benjamin "Ben" Jonson (c. 11 June 1572 – c. 16 August 1637) was an English playwright and poet. Jonson's artistry exerted a lasting influence upon English poetry and stage comedy. He popularised the comedy of humours; he is best known for t ...

said that he would give all his works to have written "Chevy Chase". Overall the culture of Northumberland, as with the North East of England in general, has much more in common with Scottish Lowland culture than with that of Southern England. One reason is that both regions have their cultural origins in the old Anglian

Kingdom of Northumbria la, Regnum Northanhymbrorum , conventional_long_name = Kingdom of Northumbria , common_name = Northumbria , status = State , status_text = Unified Anglian kingdom (before 876)North: Anglian kingdom (af ...

, a fact borne out by the linguistic links between the two regions. These include many

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

words not found in other forms of Modern English, such as ''bairn'' for child (see

Scots language Scots ( endonym: ''Scots''; gd, Albais, ) is an Anglic language variety in the West Germanic language family, spoken in Scotland and parts of Ulster in the north of Ireland (where the local dialect is known as Ulster Scots). Most commonly ...

and

Northumbrian dialect The Northumbrian dialect refers to any of several English language varieties spoken in the traditional English region of Northumbria, which includes most of the North East England government region. The traditional Northumbrian dialect is a m ...

). Whatever the case, the lands just north or south of the border have long shared certain aspects of history and heritage; it is thus thought by some that the

Anglo-Scottish border The Anglo-Scottish border () is a border separating Scotland and England which runs for 96 miles (154 km) between Marshall Meadows Bay on the east coast and the Solway Firth in the west. The surrounding area is sometimes referred to ...

is largely political rather than cultural. Attempts to raise the level of awareness of Northumberland culture have also started, with the formation of a Northumbrian Language Society to preserve the unique dialects (

Pitmatic __NOTOC__ Pitmatic (originally: "Pitmatical", colloquially known as "Yakka") is a group of traditional Northern English dialects spoken in rural areas of the Northumberland and Durham Coalfield in England. The separating dialectal development ...

and other

n dialects) of this region, as well as to promote home-grown talent. Northumberland's

county flower In a number of countries, plants have been chosen as symbols to represent specific geographic areas. Some countries have a country-wide floral emblem; others in addition have symbols representing subdivisions. Different processes have been used to ...

is the bloody cranesbill (''

Geranium sanguineum ''Geranium sanguineum'', common names bloody crane's-bill or bloody geranium, is a species of hardy flowering herbaceous perennial plant in the cranesbill family Geraniaceae. It is also the county flower of Northumberland. Geranium sanguineum ...

'') and its affiliated Royal Navy ship is its namesake, .

Flag

Northumberland has its own flag, which is a banner of the arms of Northumberland County Council. The shield of arms is in turn based on the arms medieval heralds had attributed to the

Kingdom of Bernicia Bernicia ( ang, Bernice, Bryneich, Beornice; la, Bernicia) was an Anglo-Saxon kingdom established by Anglian settlers of the 6th century in what is now southeastern Scotland and North East England. The Anglian territory of Bernicia was appr ...

(which the first County Council used until it was granted its own arms). The Bernician arms were fictional but inspired by

Bede Bede ( ; ang, Bǣda , ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, The Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable ( la, Beda Venerabilis), was an English monk at the monastery of St Peter and its companion monastery of St Paul in the Kingdom o ...

's brief description of a flag used on the tomb of St Oswald in the 7th century. The current arms were granted to the county council in 1951, and adopted as the flag of Northumberland in 1995.

Sport

Football

A precursor of modern football is still seen in the region at some annual

Shrove Tuesday Shrove Tuesday is the day before Ash Wednesday (the first day of Lent), observed in many Christian countries through participating in confession and absolution, the ritual burning of the previous year's Holy Week palms, finalizing one's Lenten s ...

games at

. In 1280 at

Ulgham Ulgham ( ) is a small village in Northumberland, England. It is known as the 'village of the owls'. History The name, first mentioned in 1139 as ''Wlacam'', is from the Old English ''ūle'' "owl" and ''hwamm'' "nook (of land)", and so means ...

near

Northumberland, records show that Henry of Ellington was killed playing football when David Le Keu's knife went into Henry's belly and killed him.Francis Peabody Magoun, 1929, "Football in Medieval England and Middle-English literature" (''The American Historical Review'', v. 35, No. 1). Organised football teams as we know today did not appear until the 1870s.

Newcastle United Football Club Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...

was formed in 1892 by uniting Newcastle West End FC with Newcastle East End. Newcastle United were first division champions three times in the early 20th century, reaching the FA Cup Final three times before winning it at the fourth attempt in 1910. Today top quality professional football remains in Northumberland. In 2017 - 18 season Newcastle United is a

Premier League The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...

team.

St James' Park St James' Park is a football stadium in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is the home of Premier League club Newcastle United F.C. With a seating capacity of 52,305 seats, it is the eighth largest football stadium in England. St James' Park ...

in Newcastle is a first class football venue, often used for international games at all levels.

Blyth Spartans A.F.C. Blyth Spartans Association Football Club is a football club based in Blyth, Northumberland. They are currently members of and play at Croft Park. They were founded in September 1899 by Fred Stoker, who was the club's first secretary before f ...

have had success and public attention through Football Association Cup runs.

Notable associated footballers

There are many notable footballers from the county, pre Second World War and immediate post war greats were

George Camsell George Henry Camsell (27 November 1902 – 7 March 1966) was an English footballer who scored a club record 325 league goals in 419 games for Middlesbrough, and 18 goals in nine appearances for England. His 59 goals in one season (1926–27) fo ...

and

Hughie Gallacher Hugh Kilpatrick Gallacher (2 February 1903 – 11 June 1957) was a Scottish football player in the 1920s and 1930s. In 624 senior games, Gallacher scored 463 goals, playing senior league football for Airdrieonians, Newcastle United, Chelsea, ...

, these were described in the "Clown Prince of Football" by

Len Shackleton Leonard Francis Shackleton (3 May 1922 – 28 November 2000) was an English footballer. Known as the "Clown Prince of Football", he is generally regarded as one of English football's finest ever entertainers. He also played cricket in the Minor ...

. The author played for Newcastle United and

Northumberland County Cricket Club Northumberland County Cricket Club is one of twenty minor county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Northumberland. The team is currently a member of the Minor Counties Cha ...

. Shackleton’s book was controversial when it was first published because chapter 9, named "The Average Director's Knowledge of Football", was produced as a blank page. Notable players after the Second World War included

Joe Harvey Joseph Harvey (11 June 1918 – 24 February 1989) was an English football player and later manager. He spent much of his career at Newcastle United; he was the club's longest serving captain, manager, and, as of 2022, the last to win a major ...

Jackie Milburn John Edward Thompson "Jackie" Milburn (11 May 1924 – 9 October 1988) was a football player principally associated with Newcastle United and England, though he also spent four seasons at Linfield. He was also known as Wor Jackie (particularly ...

Brian Clough Brian Howard Clough ( ; 21 March 1935 – 20 September 2004) was an English football player and manager, primarily known for his successes as a manager with Derby County and Nottingham Forest. He is one of four managers to have won the Englis ...

and Newcastle's

Bobby Moncur Robert Moncur (born 19 January 1945) is a Scottish former professional footballer. Moncur is most famous for his role as captain of Newcastle United in the late 1960s and of the Scottish national side in the early 1970s. Moncur was part of the ...

who led his team to win the Inter City Fairs Cup in 1969. Two of Jackie Milburn’s nephews from

Bobby Charlton Sir Robert Charlton (born 11 October 1937) is an English former footballer who played either as a midfielder or a forward. Considered one of the greatest players of all time, he was a member of the England team that won the 1966 FIFA World Cu ...

and

Jackie Charlton John Charlton (8 May 193510 July 2020) was an English footballer and manager who played as a defender. He was part of the England national team that won the 1966 World Cup and managed the Republic of Ireland national team from 1986 to 19 ...

are perhaps the two most significant players for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Bobby joined

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

and Jackie

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road S ...

both contributing much to the success and history of their respective clubs. They both became permanent fixtures in Alf Ramsey's 1966 England World Cup winning team.

Malcolm Macdonald Malcolm Ian Macdonald (born 7 January 1950) is an English former professional footballer, manager and media figure. Nicknamed 'Supermac', Macdonald was a quick, powerfully built prolific goalscorer. He played for Fulham, Luton Town, Newcastle U ...

was a successful Newcastle player of the 1970s. Great national players who played at Northumberland clubs in the 1980s and 1990s include

Peter Beardsley Peter Andrew Beardsley MBE (born 18 January 1961) is an English football coach and former footballer who played as a forward or midfielder between 1979 and 1999. In 1987, he set a record transfer fee in the English game and represented his coun ...

Paul Gascoigne Paul John Gascoigne (, born 27 May 1967), nicknamed Gazza, is an English former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He is described by the National Football Museum as "widely recognised as the most naturally talente ...

Chris Waddle Christopher Roland Waddle (born 14 December 1960) is an English former professional football player and manager. He currently works as a commentator. Nicknamed "Magic Chris", football journalist Luke Ginnell wrote that Waddle was "widely ackn ...

and

Alan Shearer Alan Shearer CBE DL (born 13 August 1970) is an English football pundit and retired football player and manager who played as a striker. Widely regarded as one of the best strikers of his generation and one of the greatest players in Premie ...

. Shearer remains the highest scoring player in Premier League history with 260 goals in 441 appearances.

Horse racing

Early races were held at Newcastle's Killingworth Moor from 1632 before moving to the Town Moor. The 'Pitmen's Derby' or

Northumberland Plate The Northumberland Plate is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged three years or older. It is run at Newcastle over a distance of 2 miles and 56 yards (3,270 metres), and i ...

was held from 1833 and moved to

Gosforth Gosforth is a suburb of the city and metropolitan borough of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It constituted a separate Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland), urban district from 1895 until 1974 before officially merging with the city of New ...

in 1882. Modern day horse racing still takes place at Newcastle Racecourse.

Golf

Golf is a Scottish import to many countries but it is said to have been played in this region by

on the dunes of the Northumberland coast. The oldest club in Northumberland was at

Alnmouth Alnmouth () is a coastal village in Northumberland, England, situated east-south-east of Alnwick. The population of the civil parish at the 2001 Census was 562, reducing to 445 at the 2011 Census. Located at the mouth of the River Aln, the vill ...

, founded in 1869, it is the fourth oldest in the country and is now Alnmouth Village Club and a 9 hole links course. There is one old links courses at

Goswick Goswick () is a hamlet in Northumberland, England, situated approximately south-east of Berwick-upon-Tweed, England, between the A1 and the North Sea coast. History Goswick station Goswick station was opened in November 1870 when it was known ...

. It is a James Braid design masterpiece which is widely acknowledged as a classic Northumberland links course so much so, that the Royal and Ancient Golf Club (R&A) chose Goswick as a regional qualifier for the

Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

for five years from 2008. During the

of 1642–1651, King Charles played 'Goff' in the Shield Fields suburb of Pandon during his imprisonment in the town. Today inland golf courses are abundant in the county, The county has a professional golfer who has played in many professional golf tour events: Kenny Ferrie from

who has won events on the prestigious

European Tour The European Tour (currently known as the DP World Tour for sponsorship reasons), legally the PGA European Tour is the leading men's professional golf tour in Europe. The organisation also operates the European Senior Tour (for players aged fift ...

Other

The annual

Great North Run The Great North Run (branded the Simplyhealth Great North Run for sponsorship purposes) is the largest half marathon in the world, taking place annually in North East England each September. Participants run between Newcastle upon Tyne and Sou ...

, one of the best known half marathons in which thousands of participants run from Newcastle to South Shields. In 2013 the 33rd

had 56,000 participants most of whom were raising money for charity.

Media

Having no large population centres, the county's mainstream media outlets are served from nearby

, including radio stations and

television channel A television channel is a terrestrial frequency or virtual number over which a television station or television network is distributed. For example, in North America, "channel 2" refers to the terrestrial or cable band of 54 to 60 MHz, with ...

s (such as

BBC Look North ''BBC Look North'' is a name used by the BBC for its regional news programmes in three regions in the North of England: *'' BBC Look North'' for the BBC North East and Cumbria region *'' BBC Look North'' for the BBC Yorkshire region *'' BBC Look ...

BBC Radio Newcastle BBC Radio Newcastle is the BBC's local radio station serving Newcastle upon Tyne, the neighbouring metropolitan boroughs, Northumberland and north east County Durham. It broadcasts on FM, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from BBC studio ...

Tyne Tees Television ITV Tyne Tees, previously known as Tyne Tees, Channel 3 North East and Tyne Tees Television, is the ITV (TV network), ITV television franchise for North East England and parts of North Yorkshire. Tyne Tees launched on 15 January 1959 from stud ...

and

Metro Radio Metro Radio is an Independent Local Radio station based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to County Durham, Northumberland and Tyne and Wear. As of September 2022, the ...

), along with the majority of daily newspapers covering the area ('' The Journal'', ''

Evening Chronicle The ''Evening Chronicle'', now referred to as ''The Comical'', is a daily newspaper produced in Newcastle upon Tyne covering North regional news, but primarily focused on Newcastle upon Tyne and surrounding area. The ''Comical'' is published by ...

''). It is worth remembering however that although Northumberland, like many administrative areas in England, has been shorn of its geographical regional centre, that centre—Newcastle upon Tyne—remains an essential element within the entity we know as Northumberland. Newcastle's newspapers are as widely read in its Northumbrian hinterland as any of those of the wider county: the ''

Northumberland Gazette The ''Northumberland Gazette'' is a weekly newspaper published in Alnwick, Northumberland, England. It serves Alnwick, Amble, Seahouses, Rothbury, Wooler and outlying districts. The ''Gazette'' typically covers local news, sport, leisure and fa ...

'', ''

Morpeth Herald The ''Morpeth Herald'' is a weekly newspaper published in Morpeth, Northumberland, England. The newspaper serves Morpeth, Ponteland, Pegswood, Ellington, Lynemouth, Widdrington Station and the outlying districts. History A broadsheet, establ ...

'', ''

Berwick Advertiser Berwick may refer to: Places Antarctica *Berwick Glacier Australia *Berwick, Victoria *City of Berwick, Victoria (defunct) Canada *Berwick, New Brunswick *Berwick, Nova Scotia *Berwick, Ontario New Zealand *Berwick, New Zealand United Kingdom ...

'', ''

Hexham Courant The ''Hexham Courant'' is a weekly newspaper serving primarily the area known as Tynedale in Northumberland. First published in 1864, it now reaches around 45,000 people every week. The paper focuses on local issues and people and provides news f ...

'' and the ''

News Post Leader The News Post Leader is a British paid-for weekly that covers the north-east county of Northumberland, including the towns of Cramlington, Ashington, Bedlington and Blyth. History The paper was formed from the amalgamation of several south-eas ...

''.

Lionheart Radio Lionheart Radio is a community radio station in the north east of England which broadcasts to Northumberland from Fenkle Street in Alnwick. It conducted three and a half months of successful RSL (Restricted Service Licence) broadcasts and was awa ...

, a

community radio Community radio is a radio service offering a third model of radio broadcasting in addition to commercial and public broadcasting. Community stations serve geographic communities and communities of interest. They broadcast content that is popular ...

station based in

, has recently been awarded a five-year community broadcasting licence by

Ofcom The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom. Ofcom has wide-ranging powers acros ...

Radio Borders Greatest Hits Radio Scottish Borders and North Northumberland is an Independent Local Radio station based in Edinburgh, Scotland, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Greatest Hits Radio Network. It broadcasts to the Scottish Borders ...

covers Berwick and the rural north of the county.

Notable people

Born in Northumberland

was the birthplace of three famous footballers:

Bobby Bobby or Bobbie may refer to: People * Bobby (given name), a list of names * Bobby (actress), from Bangladesh * Bobby (rapper) (born 1995), from South Korea * Bobby (screenwriter) (born 1983), Indian screenwriter * Bobby, old slang for a constabl ...

and

Jack Charlton John Charlton (8 May 193510 July 2020) was an English footballer and manager who played as a defender. He was part of the England national team that won the 1966 World Cup and managed the Republic of Ireland national team from 1986 to 199 ...

, born in 1937 and 1935 respectively, and

, born in 1924. In 1978 the international

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

Steve Harmison Stephen James Harmison, (born 23 October 1978) is an English former first-class cricketer, who played all formats of the game. Primarily a fast bowler, he represented England in 63 Tests, 58 ODIs, and 2 T20s. He also played county cricket fo ...

was born in the same town. Mickley was the birthplace of

Thomas Bewick Thomas Bewick (c. 11 August 17538 November 1828) was an English wood-engraver and natural history author. Early in his career he took on all kinds of work such as engraving cutlery, making the wood blocks for advertisements, and illustrating ch ...

, an artist, wood engraver and naturalist born in 1753, and

Bob Stokoe Robert Stokoe (21 September 1930 – 1 February 2004) was an English footballer and manager who was able, almost uniquely, to transcend the traditional north-east animosity between the region's footballing rivals, Newcastle United and Sunderlan ...

, a footballer and F.A. Cup-winning manager (with

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

in 1973) born in 1930. Other notable births include: *

Thomas Addison Thomas J Addison (April 179329 June 1860) was an English physician, chef, and scientist. He is traditionally regarded as one of the "great men" of Guy's Hospital in London. Among other pathologies, he discovered Addison's disease (a degenerati ...

, the physician who first described

Addison's Disease Addison's disease, also known as primary adrenal insufficiency, is a rare long-term endocrine disorder characterized by inadequate production of the steroid hormones cortisol and aldosterone by the two outer layers of the cells of the adrenal ...

, born at

Longbenton Longbenton is a district of North Tyneside, England. It is largely occupied by an extensive estate originally built as municipal housing by Newcastle City Council in the 1930s and extended in the 1950s. It is served by the Tyne and Wear Metro st ...

in 1793 *

George Airy Sir George Biddell Airy (; 27 July 18012 January 1892) was an English mathematician and astronomer, and the seventh Astronomer Royal from 1835 to 1881. His many achievements include work on planetary orbits, measuring the mean density of the E ...

Astronomer Royal Astronomer Royal is a senior post in the Royal Households of the United Kingdom. There are two officers, the senior being the Astronomer Royal dating from 22 June 1675; the junior is the Astronomer Royal for Scotland dating from 1834. The post ...

and geophysicist, born at

in 1802 *

Alexander Armstrong Alexander Henry Fenwick Armstrong (born 2 March 1970) is an English actor, comedian, radio personality, television presenter and singer. He is the host of the BBC One game show ''Pointless'', as well as the morning show on Classic FM. He is ...

, comedy actor and presenter, born at

Rothbury Rothbury is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Northumberland, England, on the River Coquet. It is northwest of Morpeth, Northumberland, Morpeth and of Newcastle upon Tyne. At the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2001 Ce ...

in 1970 *

Mary Bell Mary Flora Bell (born 26 May 1957) is an English woman who, as a juvenile, murdered two preschool-age boys in Benwell and Scotswood, Scotswood, an inner suburb of Newcastle upon Tyne in 1968. Bell committed her first murder when she was 10 yea ...

, murderer, born at

in 1957 *

Allan Boardman Allan Dawson Boardman was a British physicist, known for his work on surface plasmons and guided wave optics, especially nonlinear waves, solitons, magneto-optics and negative refracting metamaterials. He was a theorist and numerical analyst ...

(1937-2018), British physicist *

Lancelot 'Capability' Brown Lancelot Brown (born c. 1715–16, baptised 30 August 1716 – 6 February 1783), more commonly known as Capability Brown, was an English gardener and landscape architect, who remains the most famous figure in the history of the English lan ...

, landscape and garden designer, born at

Kirkharle Kirkharle (otherwise Kirk Harle) is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Kirkwhelpington, in the county of Northumberland in Northern England located about west of the town of Morpeth, just to the west of the crossroads of the ...

in 1715 *

Basil Bunting Basil Cheesman Bunting (1 March 1900 – 17 April 1985) was a British modernist poet whose reputation was established with the publication of '' Briggflatts'' in 1966, generally regarded as one of the major achievements of the modernist traditio ...

, poet, born at Scotswood-on-Tyne in 1900 *

Eric Burdon Eric Victor Burdon (born 11 May 1941) is an English singer. He was previously the lead vocalist of R&B and rock band the Animals and funk band War. He is regarded as one of the British Invasion's most distinctive singers with his deep, powe ...

, singer and leader of

The Animals The Animals (also billed as Eric Burdon and the Animals) are an English rock band, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in the early 1960s. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and ...

and

War War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such as mercenaries, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violence, destruction, and mortality, using regular o ...

, born at

Walker-on-Tyne Walker is a residential suburb and electoral ward in the south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne, England. History The place-name 'Walker' is first attested in 1242, where it appears as ''Waucre''. This means 'wall-carr', that is to say, 'the marsh ...

in 1941 *

Josephine Butler Josephine Elizabeth Butler (' Grey; 13 April 1828 – 30 December 1906) was an English feminist and social reformer in the Victorian era. She campaigned for women's suffrage, the right of women to better education, the end of coverture ...

, social reformer, born at

Milfield Milfield is a village in Northumberland, England about northwest of Wooler. The A697 road passes through the village. History Milfield is the likely location of the Northumbrian royal settlement of Maelmin, given "mael" is a Brythonic word ...

in 1828 *

Cuthbert Collingwood Vice Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood, 1st Baron Collingwood (26 September 1748 – 7 March 1810) was an admiral of the Royal Navy, notable as a partner with Lord Nelson in several of the British victories of the Napoleonic Wars, and frequently as ...

, 1st Baron Collingwood, naval commander at the

Battle of Trafalgar The Battle of Trafalgar (21 October 1805) was a naval engagement between the British Royal Navy and the combined fleets of the French and Spanish Navies during the War of the Third Coalition (August–December 1805) of the Napoleonic Wars (180 ...

, born at Newcastle upon Tyne in 1748 *

Grace Darling Grace Horsley Darling (24 November 1815 – 20 October 1842) was an English lighthouse keeper's daughter. Her participation in the rescue of survivors from the shipwrecked ''Forfarshire'' in 1838 brought her national fame. The paddlesteamer ...

, sea-rescue heroine, born at

in 1815 *

Pete Doherty Peter Doherty (born 12 March 1979) is an English musician, songwriter, actor, poet, writer, and artist. He is best known for being co-frontman of The Libertines, which he formed with Carl Barât in 1997. His other musical projects are indie b ...

, musician, born at

in 1979 *

Bryan Donkin Bryan Donkin FRS FRAS (22 March 1768 – 27 February 1855) developed the first paper making machine and created the world's first commercial canning factory. These were the basis for large industries that continue to flourish today. Bryan Do ...

, engineer and industrialist, born at

Sandhoe Sandhoe is a hamlet and civil parish in Northumberland, England. It lies about 3 kilometres (2 mi) northwest of Corbridge and 3 kilometres south of Hadrian's Wall. The parish touches Acomb, Corbridge, Hexham and Wall. History The name "S ...

in 1768 *

Wilfrid Wilson Gibson Wilfrid Wilson Gibson (2 October 1878 – 26 May 1962) was a British Georgian poet, associated with World War I but also the author of much later work. Early work Gibson was born in Hexham, Northumberland, and left the north for London in 1914 ...

, poet, born at

in 1878 *

Daniel Gooch Sir Daniel Gooch, 1st Baronet (24 August 1816 – 15 October 1889) was an English railway locomotive and transatlantic cable engineer. He was the first Superintendent of Locomotive Engines on the Great Western Railway from 1837 to 1864 and ...

, engineer and politician, born at

in 1816 *Sir

Alistair Graham Sir John Alistair Graham (born 6 August 1942) is a British trade unionist who was Chairman of the Committee on Standards in Public Life from 2003 until April 2007. He was born in Northumberland, and was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Ne ...

(1942–), trade unionist and civil servant *

Tom Graveney Thomas William Graveney (16 June 1927 – 3 November 2015) was an English first-class cricketer, representing his country in 79 Test matches and scoring over 4,800 runs. In a career lasting from 1948 to 1972, he became the 15th player to score ...

, former England cricketer and President of the Marylebone Cricket Club 2004/5, born in

Riding Mill Riding Mill is a village near Hexham in Northumberland, England. It is part of the civil parish of Broomhaugh and Riding. It is served by Riding Mill railway station and by a frequent bus service on the route from Hexham to Newcastle. Riding Mi ...

in 1927. *

Robson Green Robson Golightly Green (born 18 December 1964) is an English actor, angler, singer-songwriter and presenter. His first major TV role was as hospital porter Jimmy Powell in BBC drama series ''Casualty'' in 1989. He then went on to portray Fusili ...

, actor and singer, born at

in 1964 *

Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey (13 March 1764 – 17 July 1845), known as Viscount Howick between 1806 and 1807, was a British Whig politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1830 to 1834. He was a member of the nob ...

, British Prime Minister, born at the family seat of

Howick Hall Howick Hall, a Grade II* listed building in the village of Howick, Northumberland, England, is the ancestral seat of the Earls Grey. It was the home of the Prime Minister Charles, 2nd Earl Grey (1764–1845), after whom Earl Grey tea i ...

in 1764 * William Hewson, British physician, the "Father of

Haematology Hematology ( always spelled haematology in British English) is the branch of medicine concerned with the study of the cause, prognosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases related to blood. It involves treating diseases that affect the produc ...

", at Hexham, 14 November 1739 *

Jean Heywood Jean Heywood (born Jean Murray; 15 July 1921 – 14 September 2019) was a British actress. Born in Blyth, Northumberland, in July 1921, Heywood appeared in films such as ''Billy Elliot'' and ''Our Day Out''. Her TV work included roles in ''Whe ...

, actress, born at Blyth best known for ''Our Day Out'' and ''All Creatures Great and Small''. *

Ray Kennedy Raymond Kennedy (28 July 1951 – 30 November 2021) was an English footballer who won every domestic honour in the game with Arsenal and Liverpool in the 1970s and early 1980s. Kennedy played as a forward for Arsenal, and then played as a le ...

: Footballer,

Liverpool F.C. Liverpool Football Club is a professional football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Founded in 1892, the club joined the Football League the following year and has p ...

Marie Lebour Marie Victoire Lebour (20 August 1876 – 2 October 1971) was a British marine biologist known for her study of the life cycles of various marine animals. She published more than 175 works during her long career. Early life and education Mar ...

(1876–1971), British marine biologist * Robert Morrison (1782-1834), Protestant missionary and sinologist *

Ross Noble Ross Markham Noble (born 5 June 1976) is an English stand-up comedian and actor. Noble rose to mainstream popularity through making appearances on British television, particularly interviews and on panel shows such as '' Have I Got News for You' ...

, stand-up comedian, born and raised in

in the 1970s and 1980s *

Richard Pattison Richard Pattison (born in 1975) is a climber from Northumberland in Great Britain, who resides in Sydney, Australia. He became well known in Northumberland after summitting Everest in 2009, which created front page headlines in the local newsp ...

, climber, born in

in 1975 *

Matt Ridley, 5th Viscount Ridley Matthew White Ridley, 5th Viscount Ridley, (born 7 February 1958), is a British science writer, journalist and businessman. He is known for his writings on science, the environment, and economics and has been a regular contributor to ''Th ...

, peer, science writer, and businessman *

John Rushworth John Rushworth (c. 1612 – 12 May 1690) was an English lawyer, historian and politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1657 and 1685. He compiled a series of works covering the English Civil Wars throughout the 17th ce ...

(1793–1860), historian, born at

Acklington Park Acklington Park is a former civil parish, now in the parish of Acklington, Northumberland, England. It was the birthplace of John Rushworth (born c.1612) who achieved fame in both England and during the formation of the United States of America ...

, Warkworth *

George Stephenson George Stephenson (9 June 1781 – 12 August 1848) was a British civil engineer and mechanical engineer. Renowned as the "Father of Railways", Stephenson was considered by the Victorians a great example of diligent application and thirst for ...

, pioneering railway engineer, born at

Wylam Wylam is a village and civil parish in the county of Northumberland. It is located about west of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is famous for the being the birthplace of George Stephenson, one of the early railway pioneers. George Stephenson's Birth ...

in 1781 *

Trevor Steven Trevor McGregor Steven (born 21 September 1963) is an English former professional footballer who played as a right-sided midfielder. He progressed through the ranks at Burnley, making his debut in 1981 and becoming a regular supplier of goals o ...

, footballer born in

in 1963 *

Percival Stockdale Percival Stockdale (1736–1811) was an English poet, writer and reformer, active especially in opposing slavery. Biography Born 26 October 1736 (O. S.) at Branxton, Northumberland, he was the only child of Thomas Stockdale, vicar of the parish a ...

, poet and slave-trade abolitionist, born 1736 in

Branxton, Northumberland Branxton is a village and civil parish in northern Northumberland, England. It lies about from the England-Scotland border and about from the Scottish border town of Coldstream, just off the A697 road, A697 Newcastle-Edinburgh road. At the 201 ...

Hugh Trevor-Roper Hugh Redwald Trevor-Roper, Baron Dacre of Glanton (15 January 1914 – 26 January 2003) was an English historian. He was Regius Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford. Trevor-Roper was a polemicist and essayist on a range of ...

(1914–2003), Oxford historian, born at

Glanton Glanton is a small rural village, in the county of Northumberland, England. Agriculture dominates the surrounding area. Governance Glanton is in the parliamentary constituency of Berwick-upon-Tweed. As a district, it is a part of the unita ...

* William Turner, ornithologist and botanist born at

in 1508 *

Sid Waddell Sid Waddell (10 August 1940 – 11 August 2012) was an English sports commentator and television personality. He was nicknamed the 'Voice of Darts' due to his fame as a darts commentator, and worked for Granada, Yorkshire, BBC and Sky Sports. Du ...

, sports commentator and children's television screenwriter, born at

in 1940 *

Veronica Wedgwood Dame Cicely Veronica Wedgwood, (20 July 1910 – 9 March 1997) was an English historian who published under the name C. V. Wedgwood. Specializing in the history of 17th-century England and continental Europe, her biographies and narrative hist ...

(1910–1997), historian, usually published as C. V. Wedgwood *

Kevin Whately Kevin Whately (born 6 February 1951) is an English actor. He is best known for his roles as Neville "Nev" Hope in the British comedy drama ''Auf Wiedersehen, Pet'', Robert "Robbie" Lewis in the crime dramas ''Inspector Morse'' 1987–2000 and ...

, actor, born in

Humshaugh Humshaugh () is a parish near Hexham in Northumberland, England. The village had a population of 622 in the 2011 census, and is just north of Chollerford, which is located near Chesters Fort (Cilurnum) on Hadrian's Wall and is about 21 miles we ...

, near

in 1951 * N. T. Wright, Anglican theologian and author, former

Bishop of Durham The Bishop of Durham is the Anglican bishop responsible for the Diocese of Durham in the Province of York. The diocese is one of the oldest in England and its bishop is a member of the House of Lords. Paul Butler has been the Bishop of Durham ...

, born in

in 1948 * Billy Younger (1940–2007), footballer

Linked with Northumberland

* William Armstrong, engineer and inventor, born at Newcastle in 1810, built

Cragside Cragside is a Victorian country house near the town of Rothbury in Northumberland, England. It was the home of William Armstrong, 1st Baron Armstrong, founder of the Armstrong Whitworth armaments firm. An industrial magnate, scientist, philanth ...

, one of the first houses powered by

hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...

technology, near the town of

in Northumberland. *

Thomas Burt Thomas Burt PC (12 November 1837 – 12 April 1922) was a British trade unionist and one of the first working-class Members of Parliament. Career Burt became secretary of the Northumberland Miners' Association in 1863, then, in 1874, was retu ...

, one of the first working-class members of parliament and was secretary of the Northumberland Miners' Association in 1863 *

Matthew Festing Fra' Robert Matthew Festing GCStJ OBE TD DL (30 November 1949 – 12 November 2021) was an English Roman Catholic official who was the Prince and Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta from 2008 until his resignation on 28 J ...

, 79th Grand Master, the Order of Malta. *

Kitty Fitzgerald Kitty Fitzgerald (born 25 September 1946) is an Irish born writer. Kitty Fitzgerald was born in Ireland. She grew up in Yorkshire and lives in Northumberland. She gained a degree in English as a mature student and went on to become a full time w ...

(born 25 September 1946) is an Irish born writer living in Northumberland. *

Allan Holdsworth Allan Holdsworth (6 August 1946 – 15 April 2017) was a British jazz fusion and progressive rock guitarist and composer. Holdsworth was known for his esoteric and idiosyncratic usage of advanced music theory concepts, especially with respe ...

, guitarist, originated from Newcastle upon Tyne before moving to California. *

Mark Knopfler Mark Freuder Knopfler (born 12 August 1949) is a British singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. Born in Scotland and raised in England, he was the lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of the rock band Dire Straits. He pursued a s ...

, guitarist and frontman of

Dire Straits Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977 by Mark Knopfler (lead vocals and lead guitar), David Knopfler (rhythm guitar and backing vocals), John Illsley (bass guitar and backing vocals) and Pick Withers (drums and percuss ...

, was raised in his mother's hometown of

Blyth, Northumberland Blyth () is a town and civil parish in southeast Northumberland, England. It lies on the coast, to the south of the River Blyth and is approximately northeast of Newcastle upon Tyne. It has a population of about 37,000, as of 2011. The port o ...

. *

Charles Algernon Parsons Sir Charles Algernon Parsons, (13 June 1854 – 11 February 1931) was an Anglo-Irish engineer, best known for his invention of the compound steam turbine, and as the eponym of C. A. Parsons and Company. He worked as an engineer on dy ...

, inventor of the

steam turbine A steam turbine is a machine that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to do mechanical work on a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Charles Parsons in 1884. Fabrication of a modern steam turbin ...

while living in

, Northumberland *

Henry 'Hotspur' Percy Sir Henry Percy (20 May 1364 – 21 July 1403), nicknamed Hotspur, was an English knight who fought in several campaigns against the Scots in the northern border and against the French during the Hundred Years' War. The nickname "Hots ...

(1365–1403), borders warlord and rebel *

Billy Pigg Billy Pigg (1902 – 1968) was an English player of Northumbrian smallpipes. He was a vice-president and an influential member of the Northumbrian Pipers Society from 1930 until his death. Life and music He was born at Dilston Park, near Corbri ...

, a 20th-century musician who was vice-President of the Northumbrian Pipers Society *

footballer, lives in

Ponteland Ponteland ( ) is a large village and civil parish in Northumberland, England, north of Newcastle upon Tyne. The name means "island in the Pont", after the River Pont which flows from west to east and joins the River Blyth further downstream, be ...

. * Gordon Sumner, better known by his stage name of

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-eart ...

, a schoolteacher turned musician was born in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

in 1951 *

, a poet raised at

Capheaton Hall Capheaton Hall, near Wallington, Northumberland, is an English country house, the seat of the Swinburne Baronets and a childhood home of the poet Algernon Swinburne. It counts among the principal gentry seats of Northumberland. It is a Grade I ...

Kathryn Tickell Kathryn Tickell, OBE, DL (born 8 June 1967) is an English musician, noted for playing the Northumbrian smallpipes and fiddle. Music career Early life Kathryn Tickell was born in Walsall, then in Staffordshire, to parents who originated from N ...

, a modern-day player of the

Northumbrian smallpipes The Northumbrian smallpipes (also known as the Northumbrian pipes) are bellows-blown bagpipes from North East England, where they have been an important factor in the local musical culture for more than 250 years. The family of the Duke of N ...

J. M. W. Turner Joseph Mallord William Turner (23 April 177519 December 1851), known in his time as William Turner, was an English Romantic painter, printmaker and watercolourist. He is known for his expressive colouring, imaginative landscapes and turbulen ...

Thomas Girtin Thomas Girtin (18 February 17759 November 1802) was an English watercolourist and etcher. A friend and rival of J. M. W. Turner, Girtin played a key role in establishing watercolour as a reputable art form. Life Thomas Girtin was born in Sou ...

and John Cotman all painted memorable pictures of Northumberland. Turner always attributed Norham Castle as the foundation of his fame and fortune. *

Jonny Wilkinson Jonathan Peter Wilkinson, Commander of the Order of the British Empire, CBE (born 25 May 1979) is an English former rugby union player. A Fly-half (rugby union), fly-half, he played for Newcastle Falcons and RC Toulonnais, Toulon and represente ...

, English rugby player, currently lives in rural Northumberland. The sit

contains exhaustive detailed entries for notable deceased Northumbrians.

Settlements

Parishes

NOTE: New parishes have been added since 2001. These are missing from the list, see

List of civil parishes in Northumberland This is a list of the 166 civil parishes in the ceremonial county of Northumberland, England. The whole of the county is parished. List of parishes *Acklington * Acomb *Adderstone with Lucker *Akeld * Allendale *Alnham *Alnmouth *Alnwick (tow ...

. Although not on this list, the population of Cramlington is estimated at 39,000.

Historic areas

Some settlements that is part historic county of Northumberland now fall under the county of

References

Bibliography

* * *

External links

* *
Visit Northumberland – The Official Visitor Site

Enjoy Northumberland

Images of Northumberland
at the

English Heritage Archive The Historic England Archive is the public archive of Historic England, located in The Engine House on Fire Fly Avenue in Swindon, formerly part of the Swindon Works of the Great Western Railway. It is a public archive of architectural and arch ...

{{Authority control Unitary authority districts of England NUTS 2 statistical regions of the United Kingdom English unitary authorities created in 2009 Local government districts of Northumberland Counties of England established in antiquity

Name

History

Archaeology

Physical geography

Geology

Ecology and environment

Green belt

Economy and industry

Pharmaceuticals, healthcare and biotechnology

Businesses

Education

Demographics

Politics

County town

Council

Constituencies

2016 European Union Referendum

Culture

Flag

Sport

Football

Notable associated footballers

Horse racing

Golf

Other

Media

Notable people

Born in Northumberland

Linked with Northumberland

Settlements

Parishes

Historic areas

See also

References

Bibliography

External links