Barnard Castle

Coordinates: 54°33′N 1°55′W / 54.55°N 1.92°W / 54.55; -1.92

Barnard Castle is a market town in Teesdale, County Durham, England. It is named after the castle around which it grew up. It is the main settlement in the Teesdale area, and is a popular tourist destination. The Bowes Museum has the best collection of European fine and decorative arts in the North of England, housed in a "magnificent" 19th-century French-style chateau. Its most famous exhibit is the 18th-century Silver Swan automaton, though art includes work by Goya and El Greco.

Barnard Castle sits on the north bank of the River Tees, opposite Startforth and 21 miles (34 km) south-west of the county town of Durham. Nearby towns include Bishop Auckland to the north-east, Darlington to the east and Richmond in North Yorkshire to the south-east.

Barnard Castle's largest single employer is the pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline, which has a manufacturing facility on the outskirts of town.

History

Before the Norman conquest the upper half of Teesdale had been combined into an Anglo-Norse estate which was centred upon the ancient village of Gainford and mortgaged to the Earls of Northumberland. The first Norman Bishop of Durham, Bishop Walcher, was murdered in 1080. This led to the surrounding country being attacked and laid waste by the Norman overlords. Further rebellion in 1095 caused the king William II to break up the Earldom of Northumberland into smaller baronies. The Lordship of Gainford was given to Guy de Balliol. The earthwork fortifications of the castle were re-built in stone by his successor, Bernard de Balliol I during the latter half of the 12th century. The castle passed down through the Balliol family (of which the Scottish king, John Balliol, was the most important member) and then into the possession of Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick. King Richard III inherited it through his wife, Anne Neville, but it fell into ruins in the century after his death.

Barnard Castle (UK Parliament constituency)

Barnard Castle was a county constituency centred on the town of Barnard Castle in County Durham, which returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was created for the 1885 general election and abolished for the 1950 general election.

Boundaries

The constituency was located in the west of County Durham, in North East England.

1885-1918: To the north of the constituency (moving from west to east) were the Northumberland division of Hexham and then North West Durham. To the east (moving from north to south) were Mid Durham, Bishop Auckland and South East Durham. To the south was Richmond (Yorks). To the west of the constituency (moving from south to north) were the Westmorland divisions of Appleby and Kendal.

1918-1950: The constituency was expanded, absorbing the western part of the former North West Durham seat. The 1918 local government units in the constituency were the Barnard Castle Urban District, the Stanhope Urban District, the Barnard Castle Rural District, the Weardale Rural District and parts of Auckland Rural District and Lanchester Rural District.

Barnard Castle (castle)

Barnard Castle (grid reference NZ04911641) is a ruined medieval castle situated in the town of the same name in County Durham. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, and was designated as a Grade I listed building in 1950. The remains of the medieval chapel of St Margaret in the outer ward are listed as Grade II.

A stone castle was built on the site of an earlier defended position from around 1095 to 1125 by Guy de Balliol. Between 1125 and 1185 his nephew Bernard de Balliol and his son Bernard II extended the building.

In 1216 the castle was besieged by Alexander II, King of Scotland. It was still held by the Balliol family although its ownership was disputed by the Bishops of Durham. When John Balliol was deposed as King of Scotland in 1296 the castle was passed to the Bishop of Durham. Around 1300 Edward I granted it to the Earl of Warwick. In the 15th century the castle passed by marriage to the Neville family. In 1477 during the Wars of the Roses, Richard, Duke of Gloucester (later Richard III) took possession of the castle, which became one of his favourite residences.