About Alnwick, Northumberland

Once a held by the De Vesci family for several centuries at the dawn of the second millenium, Alnwick Northumberland was handed on to the house of Percy in 1309. The Percys are still seated in the castle at the centre of the town. 'The best place to live in Britain' was how Country Life magazine described this beautiful market town in October '02. With a population of just under 8,000 it lies a short distance from the border with Scotland in Berwick-upon-Tweed and a mere four or five miles along the river Aln from the coast with the North Sea at the mouth of the river in Alnmouth. Records of Alnwick date back to the sixth century AD, and despite scottish marauders almost entirely obliterating the town with fire in the 15th century, the town has gone from strength to strength in its development as a rural market town.

At the core of the town is the castle which once prompted the town to be described as 'The Windsor of the North', and is today the home of the Duke and Duchess of Northumberland. The town sits just off the A1 - the main road link between Edinburgh and London, and now exists as a commuter location being within travelling distance of both Morpeth and the nearest city, Newcastle upon Tyne in Tyne & Wear. Because Alnwick has held on to its "quintessential Englishness" it attracts thousands of tourists. It has sister towns in Bryne (Norway), Lagny (France) and Voerde (Germany).

Alnwick being inherantly rural by nature, the city of Newcastle is easily commuted to by both road and rail and so much of the town's number work elsewhere. There are a number of large acclaimed employers in the town, which include the fishing rod manufacturer House of Hardy & the research and testing facility Sanofi. Alnwick also boasts one of the biggest second hand book stores in Europe. The main east-coast railway line is situated around 4 miles along the river Aln and can be accessed via the Alnmouth for Alnwick railway station. The town once had its own rail link, but this ceased in '68 because of the terminal nature of the line and the lack of opportunity for it to be developed. The building itself is incredibly ornate, which is due to the station's frequent use by royals visiting the Percys at Alnwick Castle.

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.

Pottergate tower is a beautiful tower built in the eighteen hundreds where the original stone gate once stood. Atop Pottergate tower there was once an elaborate structure which was unfortunately destroyed in bad weather shortly after it was erected. Near to the other gatehouse, The Hotspur Tower, is situated The Playhouse, which is an arts venue which hosts music, dance & theatre productions as well as being a cinema and exhibition space. The town of Alnwick also supports a weekly newspaper- the Northumberland Gazette, and boasts a wealth of sporting and leisure facilities, including a new sports centre, football, cricket, rugby, rambling, rock climbing, water sports, cycling and horse riding facilities. Golfers can find over a dozen courses within half an hour of the town centre.

Across the town in various different locations are structures dedicated to the numerous wars between the Percys and the Scots. On the north side of the river Aln there is a memorial to where King Malcolm of Scotland was killed in the 11th century, and a little way along the river, a stone structure marks the spot where William the Lion was taken prisoner by Odinel De Umfraville in the 12th century.

Amongst the other attractions in the town are Brizlee Tower, which is an ornate folly which looks down on Hulne park, the private estate which was designed by Robert Adam and built in the 18th century, The White Swan, a hotel, the original of which was built in the 1700s, and which features the lounge taken out of the Olympic, the sister ship from the Titanic when it was broken up after its sinking for fears of a repeat, the Northumberland Fusiliers museum which is housed in Alnwick Castle and the Percy tenantry column which was built in the 19th century in thanks to the Duke of Northumberland of the time.

Every year on shrove Tuesday a football match is played between the two parishes of the town on the pastures below the foot of the castle. The ball is thrown by the Duke from the walls of the castle and the winning team is the first to score 3 goals (or hales as they are known). Also annually is Alnwick Fair, a recreation of a medieval fair where everyone dressed up in medieval dress. Alnwick can also boast an International music festival with participants from across the globe, and a medieval jousting tournament which is held in the shadow of Alnwick Castle.

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.