Barnard Castle
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Barnard Castle | |
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| Population | 5,326 (2001) [1] |
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| OS grid reference | |
| District | Teesdale |
| Shire county | County Durham |
| Region | North East |
| Constituent country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BARNARD CASTLE |
| Postcode district | DL12 |
| Dial code | 01833 |
| Police | Durham |
| Fire | County Durham and Darlington |
| Ambulance | North East |
| UK Parliament | Bishop Auckland |
| European Parliament | North East England |
| List of places: UK • England • County Durham | |
Barnard Castle is a castle and also the name of its surrounding town in Teesdale, County Durham, England. It sits on the north side of the River Tees, opposite Startforth. Other than the castle, Bowes Museum is among the town's attractions.
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[edit] Administration
Barnard Castle is for all purposes (historic, ceremonial and administrative) located in County Durham.
Barnard Castle is the administrative centre of the Teesdale district of County Durham. As of 2005, it is represented on the County Council by Richard Bell and Jo Fergus (both Conservative). It is part of the Bishop Auckland parliamentary constituency, which as of 2005 is represented in parliament by Helen Goodman (Labour). It is in the North East England region, which serves as a constituency for the European Parliament.
The local police force is Durham Constabulary. Barnard Castle is in the Wear and Tees division, and has its own police station.
[edit] History
The castle was founded by the Normans shortly after the conquest, but enjoyed its heyday under Bernard de Bailleul during the latter half of the 12th century. The castle passed into the hands of the Balliol family (of which the Scottish king, John Balliol, was the most important member), and then into the possession of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick. King Richard III inherited it through his wife, Anne Neville, but it fell into ruins in the century after his death. The remains are now in the care of English Heritage.
Walter Scott frequently visited his friend John Sawrey Morritt at Rokeby Hall and was fond of exploring Teesdale. He begins his epic poem Rokeby (1813) with a man standing on guard on the round tower of the Barnard Castle fortress.
Charles Dickens and his illustrator Hablot Browne (Phiz) stayed at the King's Head in Barnard Castle while researching his novel Nicholas Nickleby in the winter of 1837-38. He is said to have entered William Humphrey's clock-maker's shop, then opposite the hotel, and enquired who had made a certain remarkable clock. William replied that his boy Humphrey had done it. This seems to have prompted Dickens to choose the title "Master Humphrey's Clock" for his new weekly, in whichThe Old Curiosity Shop and Barnaby Rudge appeared.
The Bowes Museum housed in a chateau-like building, was founded by John Bowes and his wife and is of national status. It contains an El Greco, paintings by Goya, Canaletto, Boucher, Fragonard and a collection of decorative art. A great attraction is the 18th century silver swan automation, which periodically preens itself, looks round and appears to catch and swallow a fish.
John Bowes lived at nearby Streatlam Castle (now demolished). His Streatlam stud never had more than ten breeding mares at one time, but produced no fewer than four Derby winners in twenty years. The last of these, "West Australian", was the first racehorse to win the Triple Crown (1853).
[edit] Transport
Barnard Castle has road connections to Bishop Auckland, Spennymoor and central County Durham via the A688 and Darlington and Teesside by the A67. Barnard Castle is also located 4 miles from the A66 with access to both the M6 to the west and the A1(M) to the east. The B6278 also connects Barnard Castle with Middleton-in-Teesdale.
[edit] The Town Mayor of Barnard Castle
The current Town Mayor of Barnard Castle is Cllr Mrs Margaret W L Hamilton, for the year 2006/2007
[edit] Notable residents
- Cyril Northcote Parkinson - writer and inventor of Parkinson's Law
- Anne Fine - children's writer. Twice Whitbread Prize winner.
[edit] Barnard Castle School
This independent co-educational school is located on the edge of the town. Several notable "Old Barnardians" come from the school; Rob Andrew, the ex-England Rugby player and now Director of Elite Rugby for the Rugby Football Union (RFU), and the Underwood brothers, Tony and Rory, who are also ex-England rugby players. Present England player, Matthew Tait, also attended the school. A current player present at the school is Alex "Shaggy" Gray, currently in year 11 studying for his GCSE qualifications. Alex already plays for the Barnard Castle 1st team, and is involved with England at U16 level, where he currently captains[1] the side.
[edit] Location
- Elevation: 180 m (600 feet)
- Road access: A67 from Darlington; roads off A66 from Scotch Corner and Brough; A688 from Bishop Auckland; B6277 and B6278 from Teesdale.
- Rail access: Bishop Auckland, 25 km (15 miles); Darlington, 30 km (20 miles)
- Nearest large town: Darlington, 30 km (20 miles)
[edit] References
- ^ "Falcons Youngsters Impress For England", Newcastle Falcons
