Traveller's World - Amble, Northumberland

Amble, Northumberland

Map Reference: NU2604

Tourist Information: (01665) 712313

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Amble

Amble can trace its origins back to the Bronze Age, with evidence of a burial ground south of town. An agricultural hamlet in Norman times, Amble was part of the large estates of Robert de Mowbrey. In 1090, he bestowed the 'manor' upon the monks of Tynemouth Priory who retained it until the dissolution of the monasteries in 1538. As far back as 1239, the monks were granted a charter by Henry III to export coal from Amble. However, it was in the early nineteenth century when the great coalfield of Northumberland opened up, that the demand for a port with railway links thrust Amble into prosperity. Vast quantities of coal were shipped to southern England and the Continent, and boatbuilding and repair businesses flourished alongside.

Today the harbour is the home port of an offshore fishing fleet of seine netters, and cobles which fish inshore for salmon, and lay pots for lobsters and crabs. Dubbed the 'friendliest port', Amble now has a magnificent Marina with a safe berth for over 250 craft. As well as a yacht club and a boat club, there is also one of the few public slipways for launching boats between Newcastle and Berwick.

A mile offshore lies Coquet Island, and regular boat trips from Amble harbour take keen bird-watchers to marvel at the large numbers of puffins, eider duck and terns. Coquet Island is home to three quarters of the population of mainland Britain's roseate terns. It was on Coquet Island in 684AD that Elfreda, Abbess of Whitby persuaded St Cuthbert to accept the bishopric offered to him by her brother Ecfrith, King of Northumbria.

A mile upstream north of Amble in the loop of the River Coquet lies Warkworth, dominated by its magnificent castle which in the Spring is surrounded by hundreds of daffodils. Started in the twelfth century it became a stronghold of the great Percy Lords of Alnwick in 1332, and was their main residence until the sixteenth century - Alnwick Castle being used as a fortress.

Places to visit:

Alnwick, the county town of Northumberland

The fishing village of Craster