Corbridge
Easting: 564280 Northing: 398960 Latitude:N54:58:23 Longitude: W2:01:04 Show Location MapPopulation: 3,500
Corbridge, is a town in the county of Northumberland, England, 16 miles west of Newcastle and 3ÃÂý miles east of Hexham, within a parish and deanery of the same name.
Known to the Romans as Corstopitum, this was the most northerly town in the Roman Empire, lying at the junction of Stanegate and Dere Street.
The town lies above the River Tyne, and beyond the extensive Roman remains, boasts the VicarÃÂÃÂs Pele, a fourteenth century pele tower.
The Anglican church of St. Andrews is in the parish church of Corbridge, and is thought to have been consecrated in 676AD. Saint Wilfrid is supposed to have built the church at the same time that Hexham Abbey was constructed. It has changed several times throughout the centuries, with a Norman doorway still in evidence, as well as a lych gate constructed in memory of the soldiers killed in the First World War. There are only three fortified vicarages in the county, and one of these is at Corbridge. Built during the reign of Edward II in the thirteenth century, the vicar's pele is to be found in the southeast corner of the churchyard, said to have walls 4 feet in thickness and built mainly from stones taken from Corstopitum. The register for St. Andrews dates from 1657. Later on in the town's ecclesiastical history, Wesleyan, Primitive and Free Methodist chapels were all built too.
Corbridge suffered, as did many other settlements in the county, from the border warfare which was particularly prevalent between 1300 and 1700. Raids were commonplace, and it was not unusual for the livestock to be brought into the town at night and a watch placed to guard either end of the street for marauders. The bridge over the River Tyne at Corbridge dates from the thirteenth century, but has not survived. The present bridge, an impressive stone structure with 7 arches, was erected in 1674.
Stagshaw Bank Fair, held traditionally on July 4th, was one of the most famous of the country fairs. It included a huge sale of stock, and was proclaimed each year by the bailiff to the Duke of Northumberland. Today the County Agricultural Show is held in the fields outside Corbridge each year, a very popular rural event, drawing people from all over Northumberland as well as further afield.