Northumberland's Military Heritage Book

The military heritage of Northumberland is without doubt one of the richest in all the British Isles. By the nature of it being England's most northern county its borders have seen many a bloody clash and battle since the earliest times. The Roman Hadrian's Wall stretches along the north of the county and is dotted with forts, garrisons and fortified settlements along its length. The first Viking raid was carried out upon Lindisfarne in 793. From the 13th century and for 400 years afterwards there were border raids by reivers and in terms of troop numbers alone the largest battle fought between the kingdoms of England and Scotland was fought in the county at Flodden in 1513. There have been uprisings and rebels, the Battle of Newburn was fought here during the English Civil War and many a noble Northumberland family was ruined in the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745. It is hardly surprising that within the boundaries of county can be found more castles than anywhere else in Britain and as a breed of fighting men the steel of the Northumbrians is like no other. The men of the North were the backbone of the British Army, a number of regiments have recruited here including the Coldstream Guards, King's Own Scottish Borderers and of course our very own Northumberland Fusiliers `The Fighting Fifth.' They all served with distinction wherever they fought from the Peninsular War to South Africa through two World Wars and beyond. Neil R. Storey is an award winning military historian who knows and loves Northumberland and his book will interest anyone keen to know more about Northumberland's remarkable military history.Read More