Mitford is a village in

Northumberland Northumberland ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North East England, on the Anglo-Scottish border, border with Scotland. It is bordered by the North Sea to the east, Tyne and Wear and County Durham to the south, Cumb ...

, England, located west of Morpeth.

History

Although the foundation of Mitford is unknown, it was a barony during the Anglo-Saxon era. At the time of the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

, the lord of the manor was John, labelled John de Mitford. He died in 1070 leaving a daughter, Sybilla, as his sole heir.

William the Conqueror William the Conqueror (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), sometimes called William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England (as William I), reigning from 1066 until his death. A descendant of Rollo, he was D ...

gave the heiress as bride to one of his knights, Sir Richard Bertram, who thus acquired the barony. At that time the territory stretched from

Chopwell Chopwell is a village in the Gateshead district, in the county of Tyne and Wear, England, west of Rowlands Gill and north of Hamsterley. At the 2011 Census, it had a population of 9,395. In 1150, Bishop Pudsey granted the Manor of Chopwe ...

south of the River Tyne to an area in the Coquet Valley west of

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

. Around 1110 Mitford was granted a Market Charter, one of the first granted north of the River Tyne. It was earlier a far greater market place for local people than the market at Morpeth to the east, which did not receive a charter until 1199. Morpeth's market soon grew in prominence and Mitford fell from grace. This historic status of the two market town led to a folk rhyme: :::''Mitforde was Mitforde when Morpeth was none,'' :::and Mitforde shall be Mitforde when Morpeth is gone.''

Governance

The village lies within the Longhorsley Division of Northumberland County Council, represented since May 2013 by Cllr Glen Sanderson (Conservative) (2008–13 by Cllr David Towns, also Conservative) and the Wansbeck parliamentary constituency (Ian Lavery MP, Labour). The Boundary Commission unveiled proposals to transfer the village into the Hexham parliamentary constituency but the plans were abandoned when the reorganisation of constituency boundaries was halted by the government.

Landmarks

Mitford Castle Mitford Castle is an English castle dating from the end of the 11th century and located in the village of Mitford, Northumberland, to the west of Morpeth. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a Grade I listed building, enlisted on 20 Octobe ...

was built in timber in the 11th century by William Bertram, and his son Roger was given permission to rebuild in stone in 1166. By 1323 it was “entirely destroyed and burnt”. Today it is in ruins, and has recently undergone a major programme of structural support works.

Religious sites

The ancient church of St Mary Magdalene was rebuilt in 1875, but has preserved its

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...

south

arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated video, pinball, electro-mechanical, redemption, etc., game ** Arcade video game, a coin-operated video game ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade video game's hardware ** Arcad ...

and 13th-century

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

. The church is believed to have the oldest bell in the

Diocese of Newcastle The Diocese of Newcastle is a Church of England diocese based in Newcastle upon Tyne, covering the historic county of Northumberland (and therefore including the part of Tyne and Wear north of the River Tyne), as well as the area of Alston Moo ...

, cast no later than about 1150.

Fiction

In ''Light from Heaven'', the last instalment of American author

Jan Karon Jan Karon (born March 14, 1937) is an American novelist who writes for both adults and young readers. She is the author of the ''New York Times''-bestselling Mitford novels, featuring Father Timothy Kavanagh, an Episcopal priest, and the fictiona ...

's contemporary Christian "Mitford Years" novel series (which is set in a fictional town in western

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

bearing the same name), the series' setting and the Mitford of this article become "sister Ovillages."

Notable people

The

Mitford family The Mitford family is an aristocratic British family who became particularly well known in the 1930s for the six Mitford sisters, the daughters of David Freeman-Mitford, 2nd Baron Redesdale, and his wife, Sydney Bowles. They were celebrated and ...

held the Manor from Norman times. The ruins of their

Manor House A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal mea ...

stand on the eastern side of the

River Wansbeck The River Wansbeck runs through the county of Northumberland, England. It rises above Sweethope Lough on the edge of Fourlaws Forest in the area known locally as The Wanneys (Great Wanney Crag, Little Wanney Crag; thus the "Wanneys Beck"); run ...

. In about 1823 they abandoned the old Manor House for a new mansion house,

Mitford Hall Mitford Hall is a Georgian mansion house and Grade II* listed building standing in its own park overlooking the River Wansbeck at Mitford, Northumberland. It was built in 1828 by the Mitford family to a design by architect John Dobson, to r ...

, which was designed by the famous Northern architect, John Dobson, and which was built on the opposite bank of the river and surrounded by woodland and a small deer park. The engraver James Thomson (1788–1850) was born in the village.'Obituary: Mr. James Thomson', ''

The Art Journal ''The Art Journal'' was the most important British 19th-century magazine on art. It was founded in 1839 by Hodgson & Graves, print publishers, 6 Pall Mall, with the title ''Art Union Monthly Journal'' (or ''The Art Union''), the first issue of 7 ...

'', January 1851, p. 30. Mitford Hall is now owned by the Shepherd family.

References

External links

GENUKI
(accessed: 21 November 2008) Villages in Northumberland {{Northumberland-geo-stub