History
Main article: History of Newcastle upon Tyne
[edit]Roman
The first settlement in what is now Newcastle was Pons Aelius, a Roman fort and bridge across the River Tyne and given the family name of the Roman Emperor Hadrian who founded it in the 2nd century AD. The population of Pons Aelius at this period was estimated at 2,000.Hadrian's Wall is still visible in parts of Newcastle, particularly along the West Road. The course of the "Roman Wall" can also be traced eastwards to the Segedunum Roman fort in Wallsend—the wall's end and to the supply fort Arbeia in South Shields. The extent of Hadrian's Wall was 73 miles (117 km), spanning the width of Britain; the wall incorporated Agricola's Ditch[9] and was constructed primarily to prevent unwanted immigration and incursion of Pictish tribes from the north, not as a fighting line for a major invasion.[10]
[edit]Anglo-Saxon and Norman
After the Roman departure from Britain, completed in 410, Newcastle became part of the powerful Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria, and became known throughout this period as Monkchester.[11] After a series of conflicts with the Danes and the devastation north of the River Tyne inflicted by Odo of Bayeuxafter the 1080 rebellion against the Normans, Monkchester was all but destroyed. Because of its strategic position, Robert Curthose, son of William the Conqueror, erected a wooden castle there in the year 1080 and the town was henceforth known as Novum Castellum or New Castle.
[edit]Middle Ages
Throughout the Middle Ages, Newcastle was England's northern fortress. Incorporated first by Henry II, a new charter was granted by Elizabeth in 1589.[12] A 25-foot (7.6 m) high stone wall was built around the town in the 13th century, to defend it from invaders during the Border war against Scotland. The Scots king William the Lion was imprisoned in Newcastle in 1174, and Edward I brought the Stone of Scone andWilliam Wallace south through the town. Newcastle was successfully defended against the Scots three times during the 14th century, and was created a county corporate with its own sheriff by Henry IV in 1400.
[edit]16th to 19th century
From 1530 a royal act restricted all shipments of coal from Tyneside to Newcastle Quayside, giving a monopoly in the coal trade to a cartel of Newcastle burgesses known as the Hostmen. This monopoly, which lasted for a considerable time, helped Newcastle prosper, but it had its impact on the growth of near-neighbours Sunderland, causing a Tyneside and a Wearside rivalry that still exists. In the Sandgate area, to the east of the city and beside the river, resided the close-knit community of keelmen and their families. They were so called because they worked on the keels, boats that were used to transfer coal from the river banks to the waiting colliers, for export to London and elsewhere. In 1636 about 7,000 out of 20,000 inhabitants of Newcastle died of plague.[13]
During the English Civil War, Newcastle supported the king and in 1644 the city was besieged for many months, then stormed ('with roaring drummes') and sacked by Cromwell's Scots allies, based in pro-Parliament Sunderland. The grateful King bestowed themotto "Fortiter Defendit Triumphans" ("Triumphing by a brave defence") upon the town. Ironically, Charles was imprisoned in Newcastle by the Scots in 1646-7.
In the 18th century, Newcastle was the country's fourth largest print centre after London, Oxford andCambridge,[14] and the Literary and Philosophical Society of 1793,[14] with its erudite debates and large stock of books in several languages, predated the London Library by half a century.[14] Newcastle also became a glass producer with a reputation for brilliant flint glass.[15]
Newcastle's development as a major city, however, owed most to its central role in the export of coal. The phrase taking coals to Newcastlewas first recorded in 1538. In the 19th century, shipbuilding and heavy engineering were central to the city's prosperity; and the city was a powerhouse of the Industrial Revolution. Innovation in Newcastle and surrounding areas included the development of safety lamps,Stephenson's Rocket, Lord Armstrong's artillery, Be-Ro flour, Joseph Swan's electric light bulbs, and Charles Parsons' invention of the steam turbine, which led to the revolution of marine propulsion and the production of cheap electricity.
[edit]Since 1900
Newcastle's public transport system was revolutionised in 1901 when electric trams were introduced to the city's streets, though these had been replaced by buses within 40 years.
The city acquired its first art gallery, the Laing Art Gallery in 1901, so named after its founder Alexander Laing, a Scottish wine and spirit merchant who wanted to give something back to the city in which he had made his Fortune. Another art gallery, the Hatton Gallery (now part of Newcastle University), opened in 1925.
With the advent of the motor car, Newcastle's road network was improved in the early part of the 20th century, beginning with the opening of the Redheugh road bridge in 1900 and the Tyne Bridge (a suspension bridge) in 1928.
Efforts to preserve the city's historic past were evident as long ago as 1934, when the Museum of Science and Industry opened, as did the John G Joicey Museum in the same year.
Council housing began to replace inner city slums in the 1920s and the process continued into the 1970s, along with substantial private house building.
Unemployment hit record heights in Newcastle during the Great Depression of the 1930s and has constantly blighted the city ever since; particularly with the decline of the local coal industry which saw the city's last coalpit close in 1956, and then with the demise of the shipyards on the banks of the River Tyne in the 1970s and 1980s.
The public sector in Newcastle began to expand in the 1960s, as more people were employed in local government administration and Newcastle University was founded in 1963, followed by a Polytechnic in 1969; the latter received university status in 1992.
Further efforts to preserve the city's historic past continued as the 20th century wore on, with the opening of Newcastle Military Museum in 1983 and Stephenson Railway Museum in 1986. New developments at the turn of the 21st century included the Life Science Centre in 2000 and Millennium Bridge in 2001.[16]
The successes of Newcastle United F.C. ensured that Newcastle achieved recognition in the sporting world during the 20th century. Based atSt James' Park since 1886, they became Football League members in 1893 and have been a regular presence in the top flight of English football since.[17] They have won four top division titles (the first in 1905 and the most recent in 1927), six FA Cups (the first in 1910 and the most recent in 1955) and their most recent honour - the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup - in 1969.[18] They broke the world national transfer record in 1996 by paying £15million for Blackburn Rovers and England striker Alan Shearer, one of the most prolific goalscorers of that era.[19] A host of other high profile footballers have turned out for the club over the years, and a number of the most famous names in football have also managed the club, including Kevin Keegan (who had also served the club as a player)[20] and the late Sir Bobby Robson, who both also managed the England team.[21]
[edit]Geography
Newcastle is situated in the North East of England, in the ceremonial county of Tyne and Wear and the historical and traditional county ofNorthumberland. The city is located on the northern bank of the River Tyne at a latitude of 54.974° N and a longitude of 1.614° W.
The ground beneath the city is formed from Carboniferous strata of the Middle Pennine Coal Measures Group—a suite of sandstones,mudstones and coal seams which generally dip moderately eastwards. To the west of the city are the Upper Pennine Coal Measures and further west again the sandstones and mudstones of the Stainmore Formation, the local equivalent of the Millstone Grit.[22]
In large parts, Newcastle still retains a mediaeval street layout. Narrow alleys or 'chares', most of which can only be traversed by foot, still exist in abundance, particularly around the riverside. Stairs from the riverside to higher parts of the city centre and the extant Castle Keep, originally recorded in the 14th century, remain in places. Close, Sandhill and Quayside contain modern buildings as well as structures dating from the 15th–18th centuries, including Bessie Surtees House, the Cooperage and Lloyds Quayside Bars, Derwentwater House and the currently unused Grade I-listed 16th century merchant's house at 28–30 Close.
The city has an extensive neoclassical centre referred to as Tyneside Classical[23] largely developed in the 1830s by Richard Grainger and John Dobson, and recently extensively restored. Broadcaster and writer Stuart Maconie described Newcastle as England's best-looking city[24][25]and the late German-born British scholar of architecture, Sir Nikolaus Bernhard Leon Pevsner,[26]describes Grey Street as one of the finest streets in England, and Grey Street, which curves down from Grey's Monument towards the valley of the River Tyne, was voted as England's finest street in 2005 in a survey of BBC Radio 4 listeners.[27][28] In the Google Street View awards of 2010, Grey Street came 3rd in the British picturesque category.[29] Osborne Road came 4th in the foodie street category.[29] A portion of Grainger Townwas demolished in the 1960s to make way for the Eldon Square Shopping Centre, including all but one side of the original Eldon Squareitself.
Immediately to the northwest of the city centre is Leazes Park, established in 1873 after a petition by 3,000 working men of the city for "ready access to some open ground for the purpose of health and recreation". Just outside one corner of this is St James' Park, the stadium home ofNewcastle United F.C. which dominates the view of the city from all directions.
Another green space in Newcastle is the Town Moor, lying immediately north of the city centre. It is larger than Hyde Park and Hampstead Heath put together[30][31] and the freemen of the city have the right to graze cattle on it.[30][31] Unlike other cities where similar rights exist, they often take advantage of this. The right incidentally extends to the pitch of St. James' Park, Newcastle United Football Club's ground, though this is not exercised, although the Freemen do collect rent for the loss of privilege. Honorary freemen include Bob Geldof,[32] King Harald V of Norway,[33] Nelson Mandela,[34] Bobby Robson,[35] Alan Shearer[36] and the Royal Shakespeare Company.[37] The The Hoppingsfunfair, said to be the largest travelling fair in Europe, is held here annually in June.[38]
In the south eastern corner is Exhibition Park, which contains the only remaining pavilion from the North East Coast Exhibition of 1929. Since the 1970s this has housed the Newcastle Military Vehicle Museum; this is closed until further notice because of structural problems with the building—originally a temporary structure.
The wooded gorge of the Ouseburn in the east of the city is known as Jesmond Dene and forms another popular recreation area, linked by Armstrong Park and Heaton Park to the Ouseburn Valley, where the river finally reaches the River Tyne.
Notable Newcastle housing developments include Ralph Erskine's the Byker Wall designed in the 1960s and now Grade II* listed. It is onUNESCO's list of outstanding 20th century buildings.
Newcastle's thriving Chinatown lies in the north-west of Grainger Town, centred on Stowell Street. A new Chinese arch, or paifang, providing a landmark entrance, was handed over to the city with a ceremony in 2005.
The UK's first biotechnology village, the "Centre for Life" is located in the city centre close to the Central Station. The village is the first step in the City Council's plans to transform Newcastle into a science city.[39]
Newcastle was voted as the Best City in the North in April 2007 by The Daily Telegraph newspaper—beating Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffieldand Leeds in an online poll conducted of its readers.[40]
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