Barnard Castle, Bowes Museum Gardens 1929 (ref. 82514) | The museum is set in a large park with impressive formal gardens. The gardens, the chateau-style building, and the
collection were all created from nothing over a period of fifteen years, always with the aim of public benefit.
|  Add your own Memory
 Add to your Album |
Barnard Castle, the Bowes Museum 1914 (ref. 67174) | The Bowes Museum was
designed and purpose-built as a
public art gallery by the French
architect Jules Pellechet on the
outskirts of the historic town
of Barnard Castle. The grand
French chateau-style museum
opened in 1892. It originated
in a private foundation created
between 1862 and 1875 by John
Bowes, illegitimate son of the
10th Earl of Strathmore, and his
Parisian actress wife, Josephine.
They wanted to house the vast
collection of works of art they
had amassed from all corners of
Europe so that people from all
walks of life could see and enjoy
them, but unfortunately they died
before their dream was realised.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Bishop Auckland, the Castle Chapel, the Reredos 1892 (ref. 30711) | Auckland Castle, also known
as Auckland Palace, began as
a manor house built in about
1183 by Bishop Pudsey, but
it was later converted into
a castle by Bishop Anthony
Bek in the 14th century. It has
been the home of the Bishops
of Durham for over 800 years,
who in the past were virtually
monarchs in their own
kingdom. Over hundreds of
years, the castle was expanded
until in 1832 it became the
official residence of the bishop
and administrative centre for
the diocese.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Bishop Auckland, Castle Gateway 1898 (ref. 41459) | The impressive Gothic gateway, crowned by
a turreted clock, was designed by Sir Thomas
Robinson around 1760 for Bishop Trevor.
The town of Bishop Auckland grew around the
castle and the extensive bishops' deer park with
its 18th-century deer house. It was in this park
that the English army was gathered together in
October 1346, before being marched to Durham to
do battle with the invading Scots at Nevilles Cross.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Bishop Auckland, the Castle 1892 (ref. 30706) | Auckland Castle, also known
as Auckland Palace, began as
a manor house built in about
1183 by Bishop Pudsey, but
it was later converted into
a castle by Bishop Anthony
Bek in the 14th century. It has
been the home of the Bishops
of Durham for over 800 years,
who in the past were virtually
monarchs in their own
kingdom. Over hundreds of
years, the castle was expanded
until in 1832 it became the
official residence of the bishop
and administrative centre for
the diocese.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Brancepeth, the Village 1914 (ref. 67121) | Of all the villages that
surround Durham City, old
Brancepeth is particularly
well steeped in legend and
history. The area caught the
attention of both William
Wordsworth, who visited
the village and featured it
in a poem, and Alfred Lord
Tennyson, who wrote Come
into the Garden, Maud at
Brancepeth. At the end of
the broad drive leading to
the castle grounds are the
fine entrance gates, beyond
which is the 12th-century
church of St Brandon.
Inside the church was the
17th-century woodwork
associated with Bishop
John Cosin (1660-1672)
and the effigy of Robert
Neville, who was known as
the 'Peacock of the North.'
Unfortunately the church
and its contents were badly
damaged by fire in 1998.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Brancepeth, the Castle 1914 (ref. 67122) | A lot of history revolves around Brancepeth Castle, which in spite of modern restorations
has a long story to tell. The castle was owned by the mighty Neville family until the 16th
century, when in 1569 it was confiscated by the Crown following their involvement in the
Rising of the North and a plot to overthrow Queen Elizabeth I. Brancepeth was later bought
in 1796 by William Russell, a Sunderland banker. The Russells of Brancepeth became one of
four great coal mining families in the north who were known as the `Grand Allies'; William's
son Matthew became the richest commoner in England. It was he who began the rebuilding
of Brancepeth in 1817.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Coxhoe, the Cross Roads 1951 (ref. C249001) | The main A177 road south
from Shincliffe leads to
Coxhoe; it may follow the
course of an old Roman
road. The villages in this
area are situated on the
Magnesian limestone hills,
which are typical of the
east Durham countryside
between Hartlepool and
South Shields. The local
limestone has been used
in the past as building
material, most notably to
cement together the bricks
of Durham Cathedral.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Cathedral, the Bishop's Throne 1925 (ref. 77669) | This impressive bishop's throne is said to be the highest in
Christendom. Below the throne is the tomb of Bishop Thomas
Hatfield, who is reputed to have decided that the bishops of
Durham deserved a throne equal in height to that of the Bishop of
Rome – the Pope!
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Cathedral Choir, East 1892 (ref. 30745) | The medieval stone screen dividing the nave from the choir was
demolished some time in the 16th century and replaced in about
1665 by one of richly carved wood. This new screen, together
with the choir stalls which also date from 1665, are said to have
been designed for Bishop Cosin by James Clement, who was also
responsible for the carved font canopy in the nave (see photograph
70716). The original choir stalls and font canopy had been burnt
by Scots prisoners imprisoned in the cathedral after the battle of
Dunbar in 1650. At the far end of the choir is the high altar. Above it
is the magnificent rose window, over 98ft (30m) in circumference.
It shows Christ, 'the Saviour of the World', as the inscription says,
surrounded by the twelve apostles and the twenty-four elders from
the Book of Revelation.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Castle, the Black Staircase 1892 (ref. 30763) | This is Bishop Cosin's impressive Black
Staircase; it stands in the angled tower
between the Great Hall and the 12th-
century building of Bishop Pudsey. Built
in the early 1660s, the Black Staircase is
one of the most impressive staircases of
its time in the country. It is 17m high, and
with the exception of the intricately carved
softwood side panels, is made from oak.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Cathedral c1955 (ref. D71036) | Palace Green is a large, well-tended area between the castle
and the cathedral, enclosed on both sides by a range of historic
buildings dating from the 18th century. Most of these belong
to the university, and include the former Grammar School,
located near the cathedral towers. This building is reputedly
haunted by a young pupil who was allegedly thrown from a
balcony by one of his masters in a fit of anger.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Cathedral Font and Nave 1921 (ref. 70716) | The magnificent font canopy was designed for Bishop
Cosin by James Clement, a Durham architect, and
installed in 1663. The octagonal canopy is over 12m
high, and its ornate decoration emphasises the
significance of baptism in the life of the church. The
huge marble font used today also dates from the time
of John Cosin, who was a canon at Durham during the
reign of Charles I, and later bishop under Charles II.
However, the font in the photograph is a mock Norman
font that was installed in 1846 to replace the original,
which was then deemed to be 'unsuitable' - it was 1935
before the Cosin font was returned to its rightful place.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Cathedral Nave and the Screen c1877 (ref. 9418) | The 900-year-old nave measures 61m long, 12m wide and
22m high. Its massive columns support the impressive
stone-ribbed vaulted roof, the earliest example of rib
vaulting in Europe. This structural innovation was of
enormous significance, as it became a widely used feature
in later Gothic cathedrals. The magnificent Neville screen
was a gift from the Neville family in celebration of the
victory against the Scots at the battle of Neville's Cross in
1346. In honour of his victory, Ralph Neville became the
first layman to be allowed burial in the cathedral. Behind
the screen is the tomb of St Cuthbert. A wooden plaque
bears the following inscription: 'Borne by his faithful
friends from his loved home of Lindisfarne, here, after
long wanderings, rests the body of St Cuthbert in whose
honour William of St Carileph built this cathedral church,
and at his side lies buried the head of St Oswald King of
Northumbria and martyr, slain in battle by the heathen
whom he so long defied'.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Cathedral through the trees 1892 (ref. 30732) | When William the Conqueror finally took control of Durham, he combined the powers of the bishop and the Earl of
Northumbria to create Durham's first prince bishop, a Norman called William Walcher. Walcher's leadership was weak,
which ultimately resulted in his being murdered at Gateshead in 1081. His replacement was William St Carileph, the man
responsible for building the present cathedral, which occupies the site of the old stone minster built by Uchted. Carileph
began its construction in 1093. He designed the greater part of the cathedral as it stands today; the new building was
completed to the bishop's designs in around forty years. Unfortunately, Carileph did not live to see the completion of his
cathedral in 1135.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Cathedral 1892 (ref. 30734) | The picturesque building below
the cathedral (see 30730, above)
is the old fulling mill, standing
beside its weir. Once the property
of the priors of Durham, the
fulling mill was once known as
the Jesus Mill; it now houses the
Durham University Museum of
Archaeology. The mill dates from
the start of the 15th century,
when it played its part in the
growing weaving trade at that
time. During the 1950s it was a
popular riverside café. Then it was
converted into the present-day
museum, where exhibits illustrate
the early history of Durham and
the surrounding area.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Cathedral 1892 (ref. 30742) | The work of building the
cathedral can be attributed
to several distinct periods.
The nave, transepts and the
four west choir bays were
built between 1093 and
1133; Bishop Hugh Pudsey
added the Galilee Chapel
at the western end in 1175;
the two west towers were
built between 1217 and
1226; then the east end of
the choir was altered and
the Chapel of the Nine
Altars erected between
1242 and 1280. The great
central tower was rebuilt
between 1465 and 1495
after lightning and fire had
destroyed its predecessor
some 60 years earlier.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Cathedral from Observatory Hill 1918 (ref. 68213) | The long, battlemented single-storey building immediately in front of the west towers is the Galilee Chapel, built by
Bishop Hugh Le Puiset, who was known more affectionately as Bishop Pudsey (1153-1195). The Galilee is also the
cathedral's Lady Chapel. These chapels are normally constructed at the eastern end of cathedrals, and not at the west.
Initially there had been an attempt to build the Lady Chapel at the eastern end, but the foundations were insecure and
the walls began to crack. This was taken as a sign that St Cuthbert disliked the idea of a Lady Chapel near to his tomb, so
the chapel was constructed at the west end. However, at a later stage another chapel, the Chapel of the Nine Altars, was
built at the cathedral's east end – mysteriously, this seems to have had no major structural problems.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Cathedral, north side c1883 (ref. 16143) | After climbing through the narrow streets of Durham, we
suddenly come upon a dramatic opening into the light and
space of Palace Green, dominated by the awesome cathedral.
This great space was created by Bishop Flambard at the
beginning of the 12th century: he decided to demolish the
clutter of wooden houses and the market place because of the
potential fire hazard to the castle and cathedral.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
Durham, the Cathedral from the River 1921 (ref. 70712) | Once a vital part of the city's defences, the river in recent times
has been used for more pleasurable purposes. Boating is a
popular pastime, and the river is used by a variety of pleasure and
competitive craft. In the foreground we see a couple of moored
rowing boats that would be used to take lady friends for a gentle
meander along the river on a fine, sunny afternoon, whereas
on the river are a couple of skiffs that would be used for more
competitive purposes.
| Add your own Memory
Add to your Album |
