The River Browney is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

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 ...

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 ...

, and the largest

tributary A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainage ...

of the

River Wear The River Wear (, ) in North East England rises in the Pennines and flows eastwards, mostly through County Durham to the North Sea in the City of Sunderland. At long, it is one of the region's longest rivers, wends in a steep valley through th ...

. The River Browney rises from a spring in Head Plantation, on the eastern slope of Skaylock Hill, about a mile south east of

Waskerley Waskerley is a village in County Durham, England. It is situated six miles to the southwest of Consett and three miles southwest of Castleside and the A68 road (Great Britain), A68. Stanhope, County Durham, Stanhope in the Durham Dales is a furt ...

. The spring rises approximately from a tributary stream to the

, in an area of moorland, forestry and springs, and of disused coal mines, quarries and mineral railway lines, remnants of an industrial past. Running eastwards towards Lanchester, the river skirts to the south of the village. Continuing eastwards past Langley Park and

Witton Gilbert Witton Gilbert is a village and civil parish in County Durham, England. Geography Witton Gilbert is situated about to the north-west of Durham. River Browney passes to the south of the village, while Dene Burn, one of its tributaries, runs thr ...

, the river then turns south and skirts the western edge of Durham. The Browney is joined by the

River Deerness The River Deerness in County Durham, England is a tributary to the River Browney, which is itself a tributary the River Wear. It rises near Tow Law and descends through the Deerness Valley for a distance of , passing the villages of Waterhous ...

north of

Langley Moor Langley Moor is an old pit village in County Durham, England. It is located approximately 2 miles south-west of Durham, England, Durham City. Langley Moor is within the civil parish of Brandon and Byshottles which is itself within the City of Du ...

and finally joins the Wear to the south of Durham, close to Sunderland Bridge. Until the last ice age, the Browney entered the

just north of

Durham Durham most commonly refers to: *Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham *County Durham, an English county *Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States *Durham, North Carolina, a city in No ...

City, in Pelaw Woods. The Browney was contaminated by local industry, particularly lead and coal mining, but has recovered in recent years. The river was stocked with around 3,000 grayling in September 2006. Legend has it that following his defeat at

Neville's Cross Neville's Cross is a place in County Durham, in England. It is also a ward of Durham with a population taken at the 2011 census of 9,940. It is situated on the A167 trunk road to the west of the centre of Durham. The area is primarily residenti ...

in 1346, King

David II of Scotland David II (5 March 1324 – 22 February 1371) was King of Scots from 1329 until his death in 1371. Upon the death of his father, Robert the Bruce, David succeeded to the throne at the age of five, and was crowned at Scone in November 1331, becom ...

was captured having sought shelter under a bridge over the Browney at

Bearpark Bearpark is a village and civil parish in County Durham in England. It is situated two and a half miles west of Durham, and a short distance to the north of Ushaw Moor. The name may be a corruption of the French term ''Beau Repaire'' – m ...

, close by where his Scottish soldiers had camped overnight beneath Beaurepaire Priory.

Andrew Breeze Andrew Breeze FRHistS FSA (born 1954), has been professor of philology at the University of Navarra since 1987. Early life Breeze was born in 1954 and educated at Sir Roger Manwood's School, the University of Oxford and the University of C ...

has argued that the river name forms the first element of 'Brunanburh', in the

Battle of Brunanburh The Battle of Brunanburh was fought in 937 between Æthelstan, King of England, and an alliance of Olaf Guthfrithson, King of Dublin, Constantine II, King of Scotland, and Owain, King of Strathclyde. The battle is often cited as the point ...

. He interprets 'Brunanburh' as 'stronghold of the Browney', referring to the Roman fort of

Longovicium Longovicium (or Lanchester Roman Fort) was an auxiliary fort located on Roman Dere Street, in the Roman province of Britannia Inferior. It is located just southwest of Lanchester () in the English county of Durham, roughly to the west of the ...

References

Browney Browney is a village in County Durham, England. It is situated to the south-west of Durham and adjoins Meadowfield. It is part of the parish of Brandon and Byshottles Brandon and Byshottles is a civil parish and electoral ward in County Durha ...

{{England-river-stub

See also

References