DESTINATION:
Northumbria
England’s most northerly county is an area of contrasting landscapes famed for its wild moors and rugged hills, peppered with areas of industrial development. The presence of Hadrian’s Wall, which ran from the River Tyne to Solway Firth, not only stands as testimony to Roman occupation but also to its status as a border crossing, which undoubtedly shaped its history and contributed to its continuous record of border warfare. Northumbria is also conveniently located close to County Durham, offering the possibility of including gems such as the city of Durham with its magnificent Cathedral, and the eclectic collection of the Bowes Museum at Barnard Castle.
Recommended duration – 4 nights/5 days
KEY VISITS (Recommended)
- DURHAM CATHEDRAL – the focal point of the city, the Cathedral owes its existence to St Cuthbert of Lindisfarne. He now lies in his final resting place under a plain marble slab behind the high altar.
- BOWES MUSEUM – a stunning French style château containing the largest collection of French paintings in the country, as well as textiles, ceramics and fine furniture.
- ALNWICK CASTLE – the main seat of the Duke of Northumberland whose family, the Percys, have lived here since 1309. Surrounded by ‘Capability’ Brown landscape, the medieval castle is furnished in Renaissance style with paintings by Titian, Van Dyck and Canaletto, fine furniture and a collection of china. Adjacent to the Castle is the renowned ALNWICK GARDEN. Transformed by the duchess of Northumberland, it is a contemporary garden designed to tempt all the senses.
- HOLY ISLAND OF LINDISFARNE – the Priory is the site of one of the most important early centres of Christianity in Anglo Saxon England. The castle was built in 1550 to protect Holy Island harbour from attack and was restored and converted into a private house by Sir Edwin Lutyens in 1903.
- CRAGSIDE HOUSE, GARDEN AND ESTATE – set in a 1,000 acre estate, the house was built for the 19th century innovator the first Lord Armstrong, and became one of the most modern houses of its time with hot and cold running water, central heating, telephones, a Turkish bath suite and a passenger lift. It was also the first house to be lit by hydroelectricity.
- BAMBURGH CASTLE – home of the Armstrong family. The Norman keep has been the stronghold for almost nine centuries, and the castle served as a royal castle for coronations between 1095 and 1464. It has been extensively restored twice and is today considered one of the most important British national heritage buildings boasting a good collection of armour to include the ‘loan collections’ of armour from HM Tower of London. Other exhibits include porcelain, china, furniture from various periods, oils and watercolours.
- NEWCASTLE – a walking tour of Newcastle reveals a city abounding with history. Its city centre has more listed classical buildings than any other city in the United Kingdom and a walking tour will include the elegant streets of Grainger Town, the stunning Grade I listed Theatre Royal and the contrasting contemporary architecture of the Gateshead Millennium Bridge.
- LAING ART GALLERY (Newcastle) – houses a fine collection of Pre-Raphaelite paintings and works by local 19th century artists.
ALTERNATIVE VISITS
- WALLINGTON (Morpeth) – a magnificent house dating from 1688 containing rococo plasterwork, fine ceramics and a collection of dolls houses. There is a beautiful walled garden and an Edwardian conservatory.
- WARKWORTH CASTLE (Morpeth) – once the home of the Percy family. Still roofed and almost complete, the uniquely planned keep dates mainly from the end of the 14th It presides over the extensive remains of a great hall, chapel, fine gatehouse and a virtually intact circuit of towered walls.
- RABY CASTLE (Barnard Castle) – home of Lord Barnard and his family, who is a direct descendant of the Nevill dynasty for whom the Castle was built in the 14th century. The exterior is dominated by its medieval towers and turrets but behind its powerful fortifications lies sumptuous interiors and an excellent collection of art with paintings by Hooch, Reynolds, Van Dyck, Batoni, Teniers Vernet and De Bos. It also boasts fine porcelain, textiles and period furniture.
- HADRIAN’S WALL – built as a defensive fortification on the orders of the Emperor Hadrian c. AD 122, Hadrian’s Wall is now a World Heritage Site. The ‘Roman Wall’ stretches 80 miles from the Solway Coast in Cumbria to Wallsend near Newcastle Upon Tyne.
- CHESTERS FORT (Hexham) – the best-preserved and most complete Roman Cavalry Fort in Britain, built just after Hadrian’s Wall was completed in AD 123.
- HEXHAM ABBEY – the current church was built in the 12th century and underwent extensive renovations in the late 1800s. Awarding the Abbey 4 stars in his book, England’s Thousand Best Churches, Simon Jenkins writes ‘Few churches in the North of England equal the spectacular interior and monastic relics of Hexham’.
- BOAT CRUISE around the Farne Islands – located two to three miles off of the Northumberland coast, midway between the fishing village of Seahouses and Bamburgh Castle, the islands are home to a large colony of Atlantic or Grey Seals and are also a designated Sea Bird Sanctuary with 23 species including approximately 43,000 pairs of puffins.
- THE NORTH OF ENGLAND OPEN AIR MUSEUM (Beamish) – the museum is set within over 300 acres of countryside and recreates life in the North of England in the early 1800s and 1900s. Exhibits include Pockerley Manor, the recreation of a town circa 1913, a replica 1825 railway, the Collier Village, Home Farm, and a tram and transport system.