EP 13 Wark to Great Swinburne - The Grand Tour of Northumberland
5th May 2019 Join us on our walk of historic Northumberland as we continue our hike. Packed full of history and beautiful scenery. UK hiking at its best in England's least populated county.
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Section 13: Wark to Great Swinburne
In this section we begin with a brief history of Wark before heading up to Birtley where lies a hidden historic gem. Afterwards we drop down to Chipchase nursery and castle where we were kindly given permission to enter the castle grounds out of season (June). I only offer a brief overview of the castle history because the website contains a very good history of the castle that I would only be repeating (see: ).
After Chipchase we follow the river North Tyne passing Chipchase Mill and Reaverhill Farm where a bronze age dagger was found in 1964 and is now held by the Great North Museum: Hancock ( ).
After stopping off at the Barrasford Arms in Barrasford, we make our way to Edge House Tumulus, a bronze age grave site made up of large boulders that once contained the remains of a body in a cist and the ashes of two other bodies. Keeping with the pre-Roman theme, we head to the Swinburne Stone, Northumberland's tallest standing stone.
It is then just a short walk to Great Swinburne Castle, now a modern mansion house on the site of previous mansions, castle, and tower. The walk ends at the Catholic chapel nearby.
To be continued...
Catch up on previous episodes at:
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Battlesteads:
Wark Town Hall:
St Giles Church:
Chipchase Castle Nursery:
Chipchase Castle:
Barrasford Arms:
Great Swinburne Castle:
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Music
Title: The Idea of North Artist: Sightlines Source: License: Creative Commons BY 3.0