Bamburgh, Northumberland Genealogy

England Northumberland  Northumberland Parishes



Parish History
BAMBURGH CASTLE, a township in Bambrough parish, Northumberland; on the coast, contiguous to Bambrough township, 5 miles E of Belford.

St Aidan's church Bamburgh is a large geographical parish which previously included chapelries including Beadnell, Northumberland.

St. Aidan's Church is one of the three finest parish churches in Northumberland (others being Alnwick, Northumberland and Norham, Northumberland). Origins date from 635 AD when St. Aidan came to Lindisfarne from Iona. The present building is 13thC, the chancel is said to be the second longest in the country (60ft), and contains magnificent reredos in Caen stone. There is an effigy of Grace Darling in the North Aisle. Her memorial is sited in the churchyard so that it can be seen by passing ships.

BAMBROUGH (St. Aidan), a parish, in the union of Belford, N. division of Bambrough ward and of Northumberland; comprising the chapelries of Beadnell, Lucker, and North Sunderland, and the townships of Adderstone, Bambrough, Bambrough-Castle, Bradford, Budle, Burton, Elford, Fleetham, Glororum, Hoppen, Mouson, Newham, Newstead, Outchester, Ratchwood, Shorestone, Spindlestone, Swinhoe, Tughall, Warenford, and Warenton; and containing 4231 inhabitants, of whom 375 are in the township of Bambrough, 4¾ miles (E. by N.) from Belford. Bambrough, originally called Bebbanburg, was prior to the Conquest a royal burgh, and the residence of several of the kings of Northumbria. It sent two members to parliament in the 23rd of Edward I., and in the reign of Edward III. furnished one ship for the expedition against Calais; it had also a market, which has long been discontinued. The surrounding district, formerly called Bambroughshire, was a separate franchise, in the possession of various privileges, now become obsolete. The village occupies an airy and pleasant situation near the sea and Budle bay. The living is a perpetual curacy; net income, £121; patron, the Trustees of Lord Crewe, who, with other proprietors, are the impropriators. The church, with another long since in ruins, was given by Henry I. to the priory of Nostel in Yorkshire, whereupon a small convent of Augustine canons was founded here, in 1137, as a cell to that priory, the revenue of which at the Dissolution was £124. 15. 7. There were also a college, an hospital dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene, and a house of Preaching Friars. At Beadnell, Lucker, and North Sunderland are separate incumbencies. The church estate, which is situated at Fowberry, in Bambrough township, consists of a farmhouse, outbuildings, and about 63 acres of land, let for £100 per annum.From: A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 132-136. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=50775 Date accessed: 05 March 2011.

BAMBROUGH-CASTLE, a township, in the parish, and N. division of the ward, of Bambrough, union of Belford, N. division of Northumberland, 5 miles (E. by N.) from Belford; containing 59 inhabitants. This township is principally distinguished for its castle, built about the middle of the sixth century, by Ida, the first Anglo-Saxon king of Northumbria. In 642 it was besieged by Penda, King of Mercia, who, after an unsuccessful attempt to set it on fire, was compelled to retreat. In the beginning of the eighth century, Berthfrid, guardian of Osred, the young Northumbrian king, defended it against the usurper Eadulph, who was taken prisoner and put to death. It was plundered and almost demolished by the Danes in 993, but was soon restored. After the Norman Conquest it was held by Robert de Mowbray, on whose insurrection against William Rufus it was besieged, and, after an obstinate defence, surrendered to that monarch, who threatened, unless it were given up, to put out the eyes of Mowbray, who had been taken prisoner. During the war between Stephen and the Empress Matilda, and the protracted struggle between the houses of York and Lancaster, the castle sustained repeated sieges: it was taken in 1463 by Margaret of Anjou, queen of Henry VI., on her route to Hexham, after landing at Berwick, on her return from France, and at length became dilapidated in the reign of Henry VII. The castle and manor were granted in the reign of James II. to John Forster, one of whose descendants having joined the Pretender, they were confiscated to the crown, and were purchased by Lord Crewe, Bishop of Durham, who, in 1720, devised to trustees his manors of Bambrough and Blanchland, then producing £1312 and now £8126 per annum, for charitable purposes. The income is appropriated to the erection and repair of churches, the support of exhibitions and fellowships, the relief of the poor, the foundation and endowment of schools, the maintenance of the establishment at Bambrough Castle, the improvement of Sunderland harbour (for which £5000 have been paid out of the funds), and various improvements along the coast. Under the direction of Dr. Sharp, Archdeacon of Durham, the castle was repaired in 1757, the keep being set apart for the occasional residence of the trustees; and the whole is maintained in repair, with its furniture, by an estate left by Dr. Sharp for the purpose. The castle is situated on the summit of a steep rock, which projects into the sea and rises perpendicularly to the height of 150 feet above low-water mark, being accessible only on the south-east side, where is the ancient gateway flanked with a circular tower on each side, and formerly defended by a trench cut through a narrow isthmus communicating with the main land. Within a short distance of this is a more modern gateway, with a portcullis; and a little further on is a round tower. The keep, which is of Norman architecture, and the most ancient part of the building, is a lofty square structure. In 1773, the ruins of a church or chapel, erected in the castle during the Norman period, were discovered; and the font, richly carved, is preserved, among other curiosities, in the keep. In the castle-yard are granaries, in which corn is stored to be sold to the poor at proper times; and a market is opened every Tuesday and Friday, when the industrious poor are supplied with meal and grocery at the cost price. In another part of the castle-yard is a dispensary, at which a surgeon attends twice every week; and from the surplus revenue the trustees have established two national schools, for which schoolrooms have been appropriated in the castle, and which are free to all poor children who may come. Thirty girls, between the ages of nine and sixteen, are admitted to board and lodge, and are likewise provided with clothes and washing. In 1778, the trustees founded a library, to which Dr. Sharp generously bequeathed the whole of his valuable books, including the greater part of the library of Dr. Sharp, Archbishop of York; and this collection, including nearly 6000 volumes, is open to persons residing in the neighbourhood, under certain regulations. A principal object of the establishment is also to afford assistance to shipwrecked mariners.From: A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 132-136. URL: http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=50775 Date accessed: 05 March 2011.

Broadcast in April 2011 the archaelogical television series "Time Team" discovered an ancient Anglo Saxon stone built hall at the invitation of the Bamburgh Research Project. The area around the church of St Aidan was also identified as the area of Anglo Saxon settlement for the village.

Civil Registration
Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

Parish Registers
Records of baptisms 1654-1902, marriages 1653-1960 and burials 1698-1902 are available at Northumberland Collections Service. Transcripts of baptisms 1654-1757, marriages 1653-1758 and burials 1652-1809 for Bamburgh are available at Newcastle Central Library, Local Studies Dept.

Durham University Library Archives and Special Collections DDR/EA/PBT/2/16 Parish Register transcripts 1762-1851 are available to search free online at Record Search. The transcripts include some transcripts for the years June 1790-March 1798 for the chapelry of Beadnell, Northumberland See also separate series of transcripts for Beadnell, Northumberland

The dates of the post-1760 transcripts have been noted in detail and sometimes only cover years. For most parishes in the collection there are gaps in the sequence of transcripts. It is advisable to consult the original parish registers for these years and events.

Other places within the parish include: Mousen,Mouson,Mowson,Newham, Newham near Belford, Newstead, Outchester, Ratchwood, Shoreston, Shorstone,Shoston,Spindleston.

Poor Law Unions
Belford Poor Law Union, Northumberland

Probate records
Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Northumberland Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Maps and Gazetteers
Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.


 * England Jurisdictions 1851
 * Vision of Britain