This has been our year for enjoying England, having earlier in the year been to North Yorkshire and Kent, in early September we spent a few days in Northumberland.
On our way up to England's border county we stopped off in Washington which is in the county of Tyne and Wear. Prior to 1974 it used to be in the county of Durham.
And why did we stop off in Washington? The clue lies in the name.
In the town of Washington is sited the ancestral home of the Washington family from which George Washington, the first president of the United states of America, was descended.
The name of the house is 'Washington Old Hall'. I was so impressed with the story of the Washington family that is told there that I am going to write a separate post about it.
As I said about North Yorkshire earlier in the year, Northumberland too is strewn with places, towns, villages, buildings as well as spectacular scenery. This is particularly the case if one is interested in history.
We left it with the clear intention of going back, probably next year that will be are third visit to the area in four years.
You may think it strange but the hotel we stayed in was the Hilton Doubletree at Newcastle International Airport. It is a great base from which to explore Northumberland. It is a very comfortable hotel with an excellent restaurant, Fratello's which attracts diners from far and wide not just visitors to the Airport. And of course you can top up your Hilton Honors points!
I hope that you enjoy the following photos but I can assure you that they cannot adequately convey the shear magic that all the places featured have about them.
Disney may have captured the name 'Magic Kingdom' for its resort in Florida but this former kingdom of the likes of Eanfrith, Osric, Oswald etc. still retains a magic which no amount of money can buy.
Berwick - upon - Tweed
The Old Bridge
The Town Hall
Royal Border Bridge - Railway Viaduct
Coronation Park
Berwick Castle (Ruins)
Berwick Parish Church
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| Malcolm Sim rehearsing for the evening concert |
The Barracks
Town Wall - Fortifications
St Andrews Church Hartburn
I have to confess that when I first saw directions to Hartburn when we were at Balsay House (see Part 2) I was convinced that it was the Hartburn (spelt Hertburn in the 12th Century) that was the original home of the Washington family. It wasn't until I got back to the hotel did some research that I learned that the Herturn/Hartburn mentioned as the manor that the then Bishop of Durham persuaded William de Hertburn to excahange for Wessyngton/Wessington/Washington manor, is now a district of Stockton on Tees. I must go there sometime.
There is more romance surrounding this village of Hartburn, with its 11th Century church of St. Andrews, once frequented by the Knights Templars on their way to or from the Crusades. Parts of this building would certainly been here when William de Hertburn was alive but apparantely he was in another Hertburn/Hartburn further South.
Despite this I am pleased that I made the discovery, it was wonderful and such a lovely day too!
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| Headstones with symbols of mortality. This tends to be a feature of Scottish and Northern English graveyards and was prevalent in the 17th and 18th Centuries |
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| Classic Norman doorway |
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| List of the names of Vicars dating back to the 12th Century |
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| Reputed to be a money box used by Cromwell's army |
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| Wooden wall plaques depicting stories from the Bible. This one looks to be 'The temptation of Adam'. |
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