About Alnwick, Northumberland
After being held by the family of De Vesci (a family still present in Northumberland) for over 200 years in 1309 Alnwick passed into the
hands of the house of Percy, a family who are to this day remain residents of Alnwick Castle.
According to Country Life in 2002, the picturesque market town of Alnwick in Northumberland is "the best place to live in Great Britain".
With a population of around 7,000 it is located 32 miles south of the Scottish border & 5 miles inland from the North Sea at Alnmouth. It
lies at 55°25 00 N, 01°42 00 W upon the river Aln & dates back to approximately 600AD and despite much of the town being razed to
the ground in 1424 by Scottish invaders, over the centuries it has thrived as an agricultural town, the location of Alnwick Castle and
home of the Earls of Northumberland, as a stopping place on the Great North Road between Edinburgh & London.
Despite it's recent
growth it still has much of its original character. Most recently it has become a modern rural communter town. It is twinned with Bryne in
Norway, Lagny-sur-Marne in France and the German town Voerde.
With Newcastle upon Tyne being an hour's drive away, many of the predominantly rural population of Alnwick work in the city,
however there are several noteable employers including Sanofi Synthelabo - a pharmeceuticals company, Hardy's of Alnwick who make
high calibre fishing rods, and Northumberland Estates which is an agicultural operation run by the Duke. The old railway station now
houses Barter Books, which is now one of the biggest used books shop in Europe. The rather grand railway station was in use until the
late sixties when the line closed. This grandeur owes to the Royal family having regularly used the station when visiting the Duke of
Northumberland at the castle. The rail network can now be accessed via the Alnmouth railway station which lies around five miles west
of the town towards the coast.
At the very core of the town centre is a once thriving cobbled Marketplace which acted as a venue for the cattle market which was the
main industry of the town. Beautiful little picture postcard streets such as Fenkle Street, Pottergate and Narrowgate surround the
marketplace, many of which are cobbled, and all of which are lined by charismatic period buildings. Historically, Alnwick was surrounded
by a defensive wall to stave off attacks from invaders, but this wall has since been almost completely demolished, and only one of the
majestic gatehouses survice. Hotspur tower as it is known was built at the turn of the second millenium and derives its name from the
2nd earl of Northumberland, known as Harry Hotspur, who gained notoriety as a key combattant in William Shakespeare's Henry the 4th
Part 1
To the north of the town sits Alnwick Castle, which protected the town from invaders from the North across hundreds of years. To this
day the castle is inhabited by the Percys. The Duke and Duchess of Northumberland currently sit in residence at the castle making it the
second largest inhabited castle in the country after Windsor Castle. The Alnwick Garden project sits within the grounds of the castle, and
is a visitor attraction in its own right. Open all year its majesty has received worldwide acclaim. the castle also acts as a headquarters
for the Duke of Northumberland's business operation Northumberland Estates, as a university campus for students from St. Cloud
university in Minnesota, USA, and attracts thousands of tourists each year from across the globe. the castle and its grounds have also
received worldwide attention on the silver screen. It has featured in dozens of movies and television programmes. These include Harry
Potter and the Chamber of secrets, Blackadder, Robin Hood prince of thieves, The fast show, & Elizabeth.
Other landmarks in Alnwick include the gothic styled Pottergate tower which stands on the site of an ancient gate, & was rebuilt in the
18th century. It once boasted an ornate spire but this was destroyed in a storm in the early 1800s. Just outside the old walls there is a
multi-purpose arts centre, The Playhouse, which stages theatre productions, music, dance and visual arts as well as featuring a cinema.
The Northumberland Gazette is a weekly newspaper which covers the Alnwick district and who has its main office in the town centre. The town also has countless leisure and sports facilities which include a brand new leisure centre, football rugby and cricket clubs and pitches. There is also the opportunity for rock climbing, walking, water sports, cycling and equestrianism. There are also upwards of fifteen golf courses within a short distance of the town.
There are numerous memorials around Alnwick dedicated to the countless wars between the Percy family and the Scots. On a hill facing the castle on the north bank sits a large stone cross which commemorates the killing of King Malcolm III of Scotland whilst invading on the outskirts of the town. Near the entrance to Hulne Park an engraved memorial records the place where William of Scotland was siezed by Odinel de Umfraville in the 1100s. Others exist.
Other places of interest in Alnwick include Brizlee Tower - a Grade 1 listed folly overlooking Hulne Park, the Duke's walled estate,
designed by Robert Adam & erected in 1781 for the 1st Duke of Northumberland, The White Swan Hotel, a Coaching Inn from the 18th
century which now houses the First Class Lounge and other items from the RMS Olympic - sister ship to the Titanic, the Northumberland
Fusiliers Museum, the 83 feet tall Tenantry Column, topped by the Percy Lion (the symbol of the Percy family) which was designed by
Charles Harper and built in 1816 to honour the 2nd Duke of Northumberland.
Each year, a football match is contested between the parishes of st. Paul and st. Michael on the pastured land below Alnwick Castle. It
takes place on Shrove Tuesday and kicks off with the Duke of Northumberland pitching the ball down from the battlements of the castle.
Once a team scores 3 goals, or hales, then the match is won. Other yearly events include the Alnwick Castle tournament which is a
mediaeval spectacular involving jousting, fire eating and juggling, held below the castle, Alnwick Fair, which takes place each summer
and is a costumed fair which hopes to replicate an authentic mediaeval event, and an International Music festival which attracts acts
festival which attracts acts
from all over the world.
Amongst the famous people born in Alnwick are George Biddell Airy who was the Astronomer Royal from 1835 to 1881, The philosopher
Bernard Bosanquet, and the geologist Ralph Tate. |
