1503.-Margaret, eldest daughter of king Henry VII., then affianced to James IV., king of Scotland, was conveyed in great splendour through the counties of Durham and Northumberland. During her stay at Durham, she was entertained by bishop Fox, in the great hall of his palace, July 23, being the anniversary of his installation.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

A charitable guild, initially known as the "Guild of the Blessed Trinity of Newcastle upon Tyne" was founded on the 4th January 1505. It was formed by a group of mariners to support Newcastle's growing maritime community and their dependents. The guild (later commonly known as 'the Corporation') secured land, at Dalton’s Place, on Broad Chare on the Quayside; paying Ralph Hebborn a (token) "peppercorn rent". On formation the guild ordered building of a hall, chapel and lodging rooms on the site - which became known as Trinity House.

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A fortified stone tower on Tower Hill in Wooler was first documented in 1509, built as part of a chain of defences to defend against frequent Scottish raids in the area. The site was the location of an earlier wooden fort from the 12th century. Today, the remaining ruins of the stone tower are a Scheduled Monument.

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1510. A great number of the people of Newcastle, headed by some of the aldermen and principal men of that town, assembled at Jesmond, with intent to kill the prior of Tynemouth.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

Twizel Bridge, over the River Till, was built in 1511. At that time it provided the only dry crossing of the River Till between the Tweed and Etal.

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1513. The earl of Surry, in the absence of Henry VIII., ordered a rendezvous of military forces at Newcastle. He arrived at that town on the 30th August, (having procured, to ensure his success, the banner of St. Cuthbert from the church at Durham ) on an expedition against Scotland. He was joined at Alnwick, on the 4th September, by his son Thomas, lord admiral, accompanied with a great number of forces, which he had brought by sea to Newcastle.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

The Battle of Flodden (or Flodden Field) near Branxton in Northumberland was fought between the English and the invading Scottish army on the 9th of September 1513. The Scottish army was led by King James IV, whilst the slightly smaller English army was commanded by the Earl of Surrey. Estimates vary, but between 60,000 and 100,000 men were involved in the battle. It was the largest battle fought between England and Scotland. Many thousands died in the battle, some buried at St Paul's Church in nearby Branxton. King James was killed in the battle and it was a decisive victory for the English.

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The royal body was not discovered till the next day, when, in a circle of his slain nobility, he was found by lord Dacres, who was well acquainted with his person. He was wounded in many parts, pierced also by several arrows; his left hand was almost severed from the arm by two several wounds, and his neck was laid open to the middle. His body was embalmed at Berwick, was afterwards sent to Newcastle, and from thence to Richmond, in Surry. The loss of the English was computed at 1,500 men, in which number scarce a man of considerable note was included. The disproportion of the slain was attributed to the English artillery and archers. The victorious earl of Surry, deposited the standards taken in the field in the cathedral of Durham, and presented to the herald's office the sword and dagger of the vanquished monarch.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

1541. While king Henry VIII. was at York, expecting an interview with the king of Scotland, which had been agreed upon, and which would have taken place if James had not broken the appointment, the mayor of Newcastle waited upon him with a present of £100. The year following hostilities recommenced between the two kingdoms.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

1543. On the death of James V. of Scotland, king Henry projected a marriage between his son Edward, then only five years old, and Mary, the infant queen of that kingdom  certain Scottish nobles, who had been made prisoners at a late defeat near Solway, were deputed into Scotland for this purpose, where they arrived about the middle of January, having first delivered hostages to the duke of Suffolk, lieutenant of the north, at Newcastle, for their return. Faction, however, prevented also this laudable intention of extinguishing the inveterate animosity of the two nations.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

Berwick, after undergoing various sieges by both nations, was, in the reigns of king Edward VI. and queen Mary of Scotland, made a county town, and as Rymer notes it, "a free town, independent of both states."

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

1544. - A rendezvous of military forces was ordered at Newcastle; a fleet, with 200 ships and 5000 soldiers and mariners arrived at Tynemouth haven, March 21st, and sailed with an army of 10,000 men for Scotland, about the end of April following.

The Spanish Battery is the promontory (headland) and site of a 16th century fort at Tynemouth, which overlooks the mouth of the River Tyne; it is also sometimes known as Freestone Point. Henry VIII had a fort built here in 1545 to defend his fleet as it assembled in the Tyne before invading Scotland, because of its commanding position over the mouth of the river. Cannons in the fort were manned by Spanish mercenaries, which is how it is thought to have become known as the Spanish Battery.

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Thomas Horsley, who was mayor of Newcastle in the years 1514, 1519, 1524-5, and 1533, devised all his lands in that place, after his death and that of his wife, for the endowment of a grammar school, which was to be free for any within or without that town. This school was at first situated on the north east side of St. Nicholas church, in the large area called the churchyard, and before the burial place was railed in. In 1599, 42d year of queen Elizabeth's reign, it, by charter from that princess, became a royal foundation, and was removed to the hospital of St. Mary, its present situation.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

1549. - The Scotch, under the command of D'Esse, a French general of great military skill, made an attack upon the castle of Ford, and laid the greatest part of it in ashes.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

The Scots Dyke was constructed in 1552 to mark out the border between England in Scotland. It is a shallow ditch with the earth thrown up on each side forming two parallel banks, stretching about 3½ miles running west from the River Esk. It was dug following an agreement in 1551 over disputed territory, known as 'the Debateable Land'.

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1553. - An act was passed for uniting and annexing Gateshead to the town of Newcastle. The next year it was taken back from Newcastle and restored to the county of Durham.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

1555, (October 16) - Nicholas Ridley, the venerable bishop of London, suffered martyrdom, along with his friend Latimer, being burnt at a stake, before Baliol college, Oxford. He was born ar Willimoteswick, in Northumberland, and educated at the grammar school in Newcastle, from whence he removed to Pembroke hall, Cambridge, where he obtained a fellowship in 1524.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

1557. - Bishop Tunstal granted a charter to the company of glovers within the borough of Gateshead.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

Grindon, situated on the border of Scotland; and in the year 1558 a party of about 1,000 Scots, together with some French officers or servants, entered England and began to plunder and burn the country, when they were opposed at Grindon by a strong body of English horse under the Earl of Northumberland and his brother Sir Henry Percy, who obliged them to retire with loss: the Scots, however, afterwards recovered their ground.

Extract from: A Topographical Dictionary of England comprising the several counties, cities, boroughs, corporate and market towns, parishes, and townships..... 7th Edition, by Samuel Lewis, London, 1848.

1558. - Sir Henry Percy was defeated by the Scots, under the command of the earl of Bothwell, at a place called Haitwellsweire in the parish of Ford. Percy made a gallant attack at the head of 1,000 horse; but his cavalry being thrown into disorder by a sudden discharge of fire arms from a party of the Scots, fled in disorder and were pursued over the Till. Bothwell took above a hundred and twenty prisoners, among whom were Errington and Ker, captains of light horse. 

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

1560.-James Pilkington was elected to the See of Durham. He was the first protestant bishop of that diocese. This bishop visited his cathedral in 1561 and 1567, and probably, in the latter year removed the superstitious books and ornaments, and caused to be defaced the idolatrous figures from the church plate. This, together with the interest inspired by the misfortunes of Mary queen of Scots, and by the fears entertained for the safety of the duke of Norfolk, who had been sent to the Tower for aspiring to a marriage with the queen of Scots, roused the earls of Westmorland and Northumberland, with a tumultuary force of 1500 men, which in their progress swelled to double that number....

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

1560. The present fortifications of Berwick were begun, by which the ancient fortification was greatly reduced.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

Jesus Church in Troutbeck, near Windermere is said to have been consecrated in 1562 (the church tower was added in the 18th Century).

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1565. After the murder of Rizzio, the favourite of Mary queen of Scots, the earl of Morton, with the lords Ruthven, Lindesay, and Lethington, fled to Newcastle, where lord Ruthven falling ill of a fever, departed this life.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

"Bishop Pilkington granted a charter of incorporation to the inhabitants of Durham and Framwellgate, appointing Christopher Sewarties, the first alderman, and William Walton, William Wright, Robert Anderson, Christopher Mayor, Thomas Knighton, Hugh Whitfield, Edward Hudspeth, Peter Pattenson, William Harper, Gilbert Nixon, Edward Renelly, and John Anderson, the first assistant burgesses. Previous to this, the chief officer in the city was styled bailiff." 1565 Jan 30.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

The society of cordwainers of Newcastle upon Tyne: "Their ordinary an agreement signed by thirty one brethren dated December 17th 1566 mentions their meeting house in the lately dissolved monastery of the Black Friars and enjoins that every apprentice should serve ten years and that foreigners might be admitted into the company on payment of 5 one half to go to the fellowship and the other to the reparation of Tyne bridge."

The Revolt of the Northern Earls of 1569 (often called The Rising of the North) was led by Charles Neville, 6th Earl of Westmorland, and Thomas Percy, 7th Earl of Northumberland. The revolt was an attempt to depose the Protestant Queen Elizabeth I of England and replace her with the Catholic Mary Queen of Scots. On the 14th of November, 1569, the two Earls occupied the city of Durham and called on all Catholics to take up arms in defence of their true faith. They held Catholic mass in Durham Cathedral and destroyed Protestant prayers books.

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The farmhouse at Brimmer Head Farm, located by Eskdale Beck, about 1 mile north-west of Grasmere, was built in 1574. Reputedly, it is the oldest house in Grasmere.

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The Bell Tower in Berwick was built in 1577. The four storey stone octagonal tower was built as a lookout, flanking the line of the medieval town wall.

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Walworth Castle is a 16th century mansion house built in the style of a medieval castle, located in Walworth, near Darlington. It stands on the site of a former castle built in the 12th century by the Hansard family.

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Exact year of construction unknown.

"The ancient house now called Anderson Place, in Pilgrim Street, Newcastle, was built by Robert Anderson, merchant, out of the offices, and nearly upon the site of the Franciscan Priory. King Charles I, when a prisoner at Newcastle, was confined in this house."

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

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Hewthwaite Hall (farmhouse), located about 2½ miles north west of Cockermouth, was built in 1581.

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1583, (March 4.) - Died, in the 66th year of his age, Bernard Gilpin, called the Apostle of the north. He was rector of Houghton-le-Spring, in the county of Durham, and the founder of the free grammar school in that place.

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From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

A “most fierce and terrible fire” broke out in Darlington on the 7th of May, 1585. Within two hours, 273 timber houses in the High Row and Skinnergate areas of the town had burned down. An estimated 800 people, (two thirds of Darlington’s population at that time) were made homeless and had to seek refuge in the barns of outlying villages.

< A fragment of Tudor wall behind the Nag's Head on Church Lane is the sole survivor of the Great Fire of Darlington. 

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1587. - The plague raged with great violence in the neighbourhood of Hartlepool ; it is not mentioned in the Register of that place, though the deaths amounted to 26, nearly double the usual number. In the Stranton Register it is stated, May 21, "heere began the sicknes;" and at Hart, "89 corpses" were buried, one of which was "a young woman unknown, who dyed in the street." 

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

1588 and 1589. - A grievous plague raged at Newcastle, of which there died in all 1,727 persons. This latter year the plague broke out and raged in Durham for a considerable time  after abating for some months, which gave hopes that the tremendous visitation was about to cease, it appeared again with redoubled violence, so as to oblige the poorer people to be removed into huts and sheds on the adjacent commons, particularly Elvet moor, where the marks of arrangement of melancholy cells were distinctly to be observed before the enclosures, on the south side of the hill, below the wood.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

A tower house in Causey Park, Northumberland, was built in 1589 for James Ogle. This was extended later to become Causey Park House, which incorporates the old tower house.

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In 1598, during an outbreak of the Plague in Penrith, an old cross base was placed by Eamont Bridge, near the entry to the town, used for transfer of coin between town and country people.

In 1597 - 1598 there was a epidemic in Penrith - it spread rapidly and 606 people died of the plague, around 40% of the population of Penrith at that time.

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1599, ( March 22. ) - Queen Elizabeth granted a charter to the mayor and burgesses of Newcastle; this, which is called the GREAT CHARTER, constitutes the basis of their constitution, and cost them £634. 10s.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

This school was at first situated on the north east side of St. Nicholas church, in the large area called the churchyard, and before the burial place was railed in. In 1599, 42d year of queen Elizabeth's reign, it, by charter from that princess, became a royal foundation, and was removed to the hospital of St. Mary, its present situation.

From: T Fordyce, J. Sykes. Local records; or, Historical register of remarkable events which have occurred in Northumberland and Durham, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Berwick-upon-Tweed..., published 1867

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