Bothal

Bothal Castle is a castle and stately home in the village of the same name near the River Wansbeck, between Morpeth and Ashington in the English county of Northumberland. Botl is Old English for a dwelling. Bothal could refer to a particular dwelling or hall. It was fortified before the Norman conquest, and renovated and remodelled a number of times. It is a Scheduled Ancient Monument and a Grade I listed building. In 1095, Bothal was given by King William Rufus to Guy I de Balliol, whose daughter Alice married William Bertram, Baron of Mitford, who probably built a hall house. Several generations later, in 1343, Sir Robert Bertram was given permission to turn his manor house into a castle, including an impressive gatehouse. The gate tower and fragments of curtain wall are medieval, a good deal of which still survive to this day. Through the marriage of Bertram's daughter Hellen to Sir Robert Ogle (d. c.1363), the estate passed to the Ogle family in the 14th century. In August 1583 Cuthbert Ogle, 7th Baron Ogle, negotiated a marriage between his daughter Jane and Edward Talbot, a son of George Talbot, 6th Earl of Shrewsbury. Shrewsbury's agents visited Bothal, and described the house as 'a castle battled, and not unlike to Nether Haddon where Master John Manners doth dwell.'In 1591 the estate passed to the Cavendish-Bentinck family (Dukes of Portland), through the marriage of Catherine, Countess of Ogle to Sir Charles Cavendish of Welbeck. King James visited on 5 May 1617 on his way to Scotland and stayed for two nights.Restoration was carried out in the 19th century. The building is used as a private residence of the Cavendish-Bentinck family and also houses the Welbeck Estate Office. The castle is in an excellent state of repair and is not accessible for the public.

Ashington Colliery Junction railway station served the town of Ashington, Northumberland, England from 1871 to 1878 on the York, Newcastle and Berwick Railway.

Pegswood is a railway station on the East Coast Main Line, which runs between London King's Cross and Edinburgh Waverley. The station, situated 18 miles 44 chains (18.6 mi; 29.9 km) north of Newcastle, serves the villages of Longhirst and Pegswood in Northumberland, England. It is owned by Network Rail and managed by Northern Trains.

Pegswood is a historic mining village and civil parish in Northumberland, England, and the site of the former Pegswood Colliery. Pegswood is two miles (3 km) east of Morpeth and three miles (5 km) west of Ashington, with a population of around 3,280. Pegswood is on a small hill above the valley in which Morpeth is situated, close to the River Wansbeck and to the small stream Brocks Burn.

Guide Post is a village in South East Northumberland, England, about 17 miles (27 km) north of Newcastle upon Tyne. It lies south of the River Wansbeck along with Stakeford. About halfway between Ashington and Morpeth, it is part of the civil parish of Choppington, and has a population of 9,350.Guide Post is a mainly residential village. There are two pubs: the Anglers Arms and the Shakespeare Tavern, and a Social Club. It has several shops and three schools.

Sheepwash is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Ashington, in the county of Northumberland, England. It is adjacent to Stakeford and Guide Post and across the River Wansbeck from Ashington. In 1931 the parish had a population of 68.

The Northumberland Coalfield is a coalfield in north-east England. It is continuous with the Durham Coalfield to its south. It extends from Shilbottle in the north to the boundary with County Durham along the River Tyne in the south, beyond which is the Durham Coalfield.The two contiguous coalfield areas were often referred to as the Durham and Northumberland Coalfield(s) or as the Great Northern Coalfield.

Longhirst railway station served the village of Longhirst, Morpeth, England from 1847 to 1964 on the East Coast Main Line.

The A197 is a road in Northumberland, in the United Kingdom. It connects Morpeth, Pegswood, Ashington and Newbiggin by the Sea.

Hepscott is a small village in the county of Northumberland, England, about 2 miles (3 km) south east of Morpeth, the county town. The name is Anglo-Saxon in origin and a derivation of "Shepherd's Cote". This suggests that the village, which was a hamlet prior to expansion since the 1980s, originated as the homestead of a shepherd, possibly in the early medieval period.

Longhirst is a village and civil parish in Northumberland, England, located approximately 2.5 miles (4.0 km) northeast of the town of Morpeth. It originally developed as an estate village serving Longhirst Hall, a Grade II* listed building built in 1824 by architect John Dobson for landowner William Lawson. The Lawson family became rich after the discovery of coal on their land, leading to the opening of Longhirst Colliery, which operated from 1868 to 1896. After use as a school and conference centre, Longhirst Hall has now been converted to private apartments. The village was formerly served by Longhirst railway station, on the Newcastle to Berwick line, from 1847 to 1951. Formerly part of the parish of Bothal since Norman times, Longhirst became a separate parish in 1875. The name "Longhirst" means 'Long wooded hill'.

Hepscott railway station served the village of Hepscott, Northumberland, England, from 1858 to 1964 on the Blyth and Tyne Railway.