If you are planning a tour to Britian, and would like to take in some of the spectacle of our military heritage we can help you to take advantage of the dozens of re-enactment and other events staged around the country.
We will be adding an events calendar so you can see what is on and where!
The ruin of a castle which was the sight of several seiges in the long border strugles as well as being besiged by King John in 1217
1n 1464 a Lancastrian army ttemtped to ambush a Yorkist party escroting Scoittish emissaries. They were beated and the famous Percey's leap stone commerates the action on Hedgely Moor near Mortpeth
A Scots force
under James, Earl of Douglas, raided Northumberland in 1388.
Returning they were attacked at Otterburn by Henry Percy (Henry
Hotspur)'s English army. The Scots eventually prevailed and Hotspur
was captured but Douglas was killed. The character of the
battlefield is well preserved, and features a monument and
interpretive panels with a public right of way through the middle
of the site.
The battle of Hexham resultyed in deht defeat of the Lancastrians in the North in1464 in the wars of the Roses. The battlefield of Hexham is set in picturesque countryside
The most important Roman monument
in Britain, Hadrian’s Wall has a number of associated forts and
museums to visit. Housesteads, set on a dramatic stretch of the
wall, is Britain’s most complete Roman fort, with a museum and
exhibition plus special events in the summer. Other key sites along
the wall include Chesters cavalry fort and museum; Corbridge Roman
town; and Roman Vindolanda, a live archaeological site with a Roman
Army Museum.
Over 30 aircraft in various
phases of restoration are on display in the Aircraft Museum, along
with many aero engines and other material about aviation history in
the North East. The same site, the former RAF Usworth between
Washington and Sunderland, is now home to the military vehicle
collection previously held in Newcastle. Exhibits include
searchlights, Saracen and Ferret armoured cars and a replica First
World War trench donated by Channel 4 TV.
The official museum of the Durham
Light Infantry, housing a collection of uniforms, equipment,
weapons, silver, photographs and battlefield relics from 1758 to
1968. Its Medal Room holds over 3000 medals including seven
original Victoria Crosses. Other displays illustrate the regiment’s
role in the two World Wars. Located in Aykley Heads
House,Durham.
on a rocky headland
overlooking the North Sea and River Tyne, Tynemouth Castle and
Priory once formed one of the largest fortified areas in England.
The interactive ‘Life in the Stronghold’ exhibition traces its
history from Anglo-Saxon times to castle, artillery fort and
coastal defence installation. Also contains a restored gun battery
built to defend the Tyne in the two World Wars
Scene of a clash between the
English and Scots in 1513, after James IV of Scotland invaded in
support of his ally France, itself invaded by Henry VIII’s army.
The Scots having taken the high ground, the English then went round
them and attacked from the north. The English forces led by the
Earl of Surrey prevailed, killing King James and many of his
nobles. The present day battlefield has a monument with information
displays and the course of the battle can be easily traced. Nearby
Etal Castle has an exhibition about Flodden.
In 1402 a Scots army pushed as
far south as Newcastle but found its retreat blocked by an English
force under the Earl of Northumberland and his son Henry Percy (aka
Henry Hotspur). The English archers once more showed their
superiority and won the day. The site is now known as Humbleton
Hill but the landscape is not much changed, with access to the
English and the Scots’ positions.
Sparked by the Scots’ attempt in 1333 to
relieve Berwick, then besieged by an English force under Edward
III. Notable for the successful deployment of archers by the
English, a tactic later replicated in their battles with the
French. The English pushed the Scots back and went on to capture
Berwick. A circular walk around the hill gives access to the
English positions.
Once home to
the Kings of Northumbria, later an important Border garrison and
stronghold against the Scots. During the Wars of the Roses Henry VI
was besieged here by Lord Warwick’s forces; it became the first
English castle to be destroyed by artillery attack. While most of
the present structure dates from Victorian times the castle
commands a dramatic aspect overlooking the North Sea
shore.
Primarily a
science and local history museum, Discovery also contains the
regimental museum for the 15th/19th The King's Royal Hussars and
the Northumberland Hussars. A ‘hands on’ museum designed for both
children and adults, its exhibitions include A Soldier’s Life which
tells the story of 200 years of life in the army.
Of the castle that gave Newcastle
its name, the Castle Keep, its fortified stone tower, and the Black
Gate, a fortified gatehouse, are the only substantial remnants. The
Castle Keep dates from the 10th century and the Black Gate from the
11th century. During the Civil War the castle was the last
stronghold of the Royalists when in 1644 the Scots laid siege to
the town for three months until the garrison surrendered. The East
Coast main rail line now runs through the castle
grounds.
A re-creation of an 18th century seaport at the time of the Napoleonic wars. Its centrepiece is the Royal Navy frigate HMS Trincomalee, Britain’s oldest warship still afloat. The historic quayside features period shops and houses and the Hartlepool Museum includes a display about the Bombardment of 1914 and the fighting ships exibition which provides an insight into the experience of fightign at the time of Nelson;
One of three
gun batteries built in 1860 to guard the port. Its guns saw action
in the Bombardment of Hartlepool on 16 December 1914 when German
battle cruisers shelled the town. One shell landed close by the
battery and caused the war’s first death in action of a soldier on
British soil. There is a commemorative plaque just outside the gun
battery which now contains a museum and artillery collection. The
bombardment prompted outrage at the extent of civilian
casualties.
Inside one of the first purpose
built barracks in England, ‘By the Beat of Drum’ tells the story of
the British infantryman from the Civil War to the First World War.
Also within the barracks is The King's Own Scottish Borderers
Museum, which contains uniforms, badges, medals, weapons and relics
from various campaigns, and the Main Guard, an exhibition about
Berwick's social and military history. Nearby, Berwick’s still
intact Elizabethan town walls give fine views of the Tweed estuary
and the North Sea.
Known to many as Hogwarts in the
Harry Potter films, Alnwick Castle is the real life home of the
Percys, Dukes of Northumberland. Attractions include the Harry
Hotspur Exhibition about the life of Alnwick’s most famous son, the
Fusiliers Museum which tells the story of the Royal Northumberland
Fusiliers from 1674 to the present day, and the Castle Museum of
archaeology. Plus assorted Potter related events during the
summer.
Standing on a
remote headland on the North Sea coast are the ruins of the biggest
castle in Northumberland. Started by the Earl of Lancaster in 1313
the castle later passed into the hands of John of Gaunt.
Dunstanburgh played little part in the Anglo-Scottish wars but was
held by the Lancastrians in the Wars of the Roses and was twice
besieged, after which it fell into decay. Access is via a scenic
coastal walk from the fishing village of Craster.
The only battle of the Second
Bishops' War, in 1640, provoked by King Charles I’s imposition of a
new prayer book on Scotland. A Scots army crossed theTyneto attack
the King’s forces from the south and forced them to retreat,
thereby capturingNewcastle. The cost of raising the army and then
paying off the Scots caused King Charles to call the Long
Parliament. The site has been much industrialised
butNewburnBridgegives a good view of the battle
area.
The Scots
attacked England at the request of King Phillip of France,
following his defeat by the English at Crecy in 1346. Camped near
Durham, the Scots were attacked by Edward III’s army. Outnumbered
and outflanked the Scots army gave way and King David II of
Scotland was captured. The eastern part of the battlefield has been
built over but the western part remains undeveloped and
accessible.