Northumberland Covering an area of some 1,942 square miles Northumberland has a population of 310,000. This is not to say that Northumberland is anything but a naturally lovely, if at times wild, county. Other main towns in the county are Berwick-upon-Tweed, which has changed hands between England and Scotland numerous times over the centuries and has it's local football team playing in the Scottish League, and Hexham. Among the physical feature Northumberland has to offer are the Cheviot Hills, the rivers Tweed and upper Tyne of Northumberland National Park, Holy Island and part of Hadrian's Wall. Northumberland, due to it's location, has the distinction of having the greatest number of castles of any of the British counties. The original kingdom of Northumbria was heavily influenced by the raiders from Scandinavia in the Dark Ages. Today's Northumberland lists Sheep farming as it's highest earning productive source. Once part of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria, Northumberland found itself torn into Northumberland and Tyne and Wear thanks to the government redrawing of county boundaries in 1974. The new county obviously deriving its name from the two major rivers of the region. Tyne and Wear is centred on the cities of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Sunderland with the town of Morpeth being awarded the honour of being the administration centre for the 'new' Northumberland. Hence the county now covers some 1943 square miles nestled quite comfortably south of the Anglo-Scottish border. Although nearly nine times larger than the newer county of Tyne and Wear it has a population of just under a quarter of that of the metropolitan cousin. Places to Visit Bamburgh Castle, Bamburgh, Northumberland Belsay Hall, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Northumberland Chillingham Castle, Alnwick, Northumberland Eshott Hall, Morpeth, Northumberland Chesters Roman Fort, NR Hexham, Northumberland Cragside, Morpeth, Northumberland Warkworth Castle Alnwick Castle Dunstanburgh Castle, Embleton Housesteads, Nr Bardon |