Durham City, UK

[Under development 10 September 2003]

The city in which I live is compact and considered highly attractive. A Norman cathedral of world renown sits astride a peninsula and across a lawn from a Norman castle looming over a tree-lined river which surrounds the city centre in a great loop. Whilst there are some tenuous Roman connections, including an old bath-house about a mile from the city centre, the city really stems from Saxon times. Surrounded by forest and moorland, it would have felt secluded and at times quite cut off from the rest of the world. Monks from Lindisfarne, driven inland and southwards by Viking raids, built a church on a promontory above the River Wear to house the bones of Cuthbert, the former Bishop of Lindisfarne, when Lindisfarne was the centre of Christianity in western Europe. When the Normans arrived, the church was expanded into a cathedral, and a fortified castle was built. Whilst the first castle was made of wood, it was later replaced with the existing stone castle. For several hundred years Durham increasingly became a centre of power. The bishops of the cathedral (who, in fact, lived at a palace in Bishop Auckland) were elevated to the status of Prince Bishops, with considerable power and autonomy including minting their own coinage (the former mint is now part of the university library). Medieval Durham was an important place.

Palace Green is a large green lawn, on which it was permitted to walk only once or twice a year when the students graduate, although all manner of events are now held on the formerly hallowed turf. The green is ringed by buildings stretching back through time. To the east of the green lies the Norman castle, with its motte and inner bailey wall. To this day, even the outer bailey remains preserved in the street names: North and South Bailey. To the west of the green is the Norman cathedral. Formerly an abbey, the cathedral accommodated a community of monks until the Dissolution. (It is especially interesting that two local historical sites, Finchale Priory and Beaurepaire Priory, now in ruins, served as holiday camps for the Durham monks.) Other buildings around Palace Green are less ancient, stretching from the 17th century through to the 19th century. The university's former main library, incorporating the library of the 17th century Bishop Cosin of Durham, lies on the north side. To the south, the Almshouses, built by a Quaker when Cosin was bishop of Durham and Quakers were being imprisoned for their beliefs, is where my wife and I (also Quakers) enjoyed our wedding reception. Palace Green is designated a World Heritage Site, along with the Taj Mahal and other important places around the world. If you live near a World Heritage Site, I should be enthusiastic to hear from you.

I have uploaded further photographs on the ePHOTOzine website. The University of Durham website has more photographs of Durham City.

The city, like York and Chester, is partly preserved in a manner in keeping with much of its history. Some of the main streets are pedestrianised and cobbled, and there is a largely-pedestrianised market place. However, Durham is much smaller York and Chester. The shops, some in a covered shopping mall, largely belong to the usual retail multiples that can be found throughout Britain and the rest of western Europe. Safeway is the only large city centre supermarket (there is also a small Iceland), although Marks and Spencer is well frequented. Tesco and Sainsburys have large out of town stores. For reasons about which I know nothing (and in which I take little interest, truth be known), Durham has a number of individual shops selling highly fashionable clothing. A covered market of small stalls is open daily, and there is an open air market in the Market Place on Saturdays. There are occasional farmers’ markets and gift/craft fairs. The city centre is awash with tea shops, coffee bars, cafes, pubs, fast-food outlets and restaurants. There is no vegetarian restaurant, although most of the restaurants appear to have a level of vegetarian awareness. A truly vegan meal is nearly impossible to obtain, and consequently I have not eaten in Durham City in years. The city is visited, especially in the summer, by many thousands of tourists, from elsewhere in Britain, elsewhere in Europe and from North America, Japan and Korea. A motorway (the main road from London to Edinburgh) runs close by, and Durham Railway Station is on the East Coast Main Line (from London to Edinburgh). The nearest international airports are Newcastle and Teesside, both about 35 minutes’ drive from Durham.

If you have visited Durham City, UK, I should be very happy to hear your experiences.

p.g.h@btinternet.com

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