BAMBURGH

Identity: confirmed — The registry name, alternative spellings, Bamburgh location, TNA authority GB/NNAF/M305519 and the associated rental, survey, court and enfranchisement records consistently identify the historic Bamburgh manor administered from Bamburgh Castle. Historical evidence distinguishes this castle manor from the separate manor of the borough.
Representative point: 55.6093, -1.7108
Basis: documented_manor_site — Bamburgh Castle is the documented medieval castle and administrative centre of the Manor of the Castle of Bamburgh. Historic England gives the castle National Grid Reference NU 18319 35114, corresponding to approximately 55.6093, -1.7108 WGS84.
Point confidence: high
Boundary status: representative_point_only
Boundary period: Documented chiefly for the medieval and early modern manor; the clearest surviving territorial statement is the 1575 extent enquiry, with a 1197 reference to appurtenant members.
Boundary confidence: medium
Boundary basis: The 1575 enquiry states that the manor belonging to Bamburgh Castle comprised the demesne lands of Bamburgh, the demesne lands at Sunderland, and the towns or hamlets of Beadnell, Shoreston and Sunderland. A 1197 account likewise names Sunderland and Shoreston as appurtenances or members of Bamburgh. These sources establish a dispersed territorial extent, but no reliable digitised manor-wide plan or explicit perimeter has been located. The named settlements and lands therefore do not justify constructing a polygon from modern administrative boundaries.
Sources:
- The National Archives, Manorial Documents Register record F282252: Bamburgh: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/c/F282252 — Registry record for the exact manor, with authority/reference GB/NNAF/M305519.
- A History of Northumberland, Volume I, Bamburgh Parish: https://www.electricscotland.com/northumberland/historyofnorthum01nort.pdf — Reports the 1575 enquiry into the extent of the manor of the castle and identifies the demesne lands of Bamburgh and Sunderland plus Beadnell, Shoreston and Sunderland; also records the 1197 appurtenances of Sunderland and Shoreston.
- Historic England, Bamburgh Castle, NHLE 1280155: https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1280155?section=official-list-entry — Documents Bamburgh Castle in Bamburgh parish and provides National Grid Reference NU 18319 35114, supporting the representative location.
- Northumberland Archives, Manor History Files: https://northumberlandarchives.com/manorial-project/manor-history-files/ — Northumberland Archives identifies a dedicated history file for Bamburgh and distinguishes it from the Bamburgh Castle manorial material.
- The National Archives, survey with other manors, IDE/9/2: https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/N16803970 — Existing registry research lead for the 1569-1570 Bamburgh survey held by Northumberland Archives; the catalogue reference supports further archival boundary research, although a digitised plan was not available.
Warnings / uncertainty:
- The historical manor was territorially dispersed and should not be represented by the modern civil parish boundary.
- The evidence establishes the manor's principal lands and members but does not provide a sufficiently precise, digitised manor-wide perimeter for a defensible polygon.
- Bamburgh borough had a separate manor court; the extent stated here refers to the castle manor associated with the registry's Bamburgh manorial record and its later court, copyhold and enfranchisement records.