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North–East England, 1569–1625 – Governance, Culture and Identity: 5 First Edition
Author(s): Diana Newton (Author)
- Publisher: Boydell Press
- Publication Date: 17 Aug. 2006
- Edition: First Edition
- Language: English
- Print length: 224 pages
- ISBN-10: 1843832542
- ISBN-13: 9781843832546
Book Description
This study of England’s north-eastern parts examines counties Durham and Northumberland as well as Newcastle-upon-Tyne, with its central theme the extent to which the county gentry and urban elites possessed a sense of regional identity. It concentrates on these elites’ social, political, religious and cultural connections which extended beyond the purely administrative jurisdictions of the county or town. By concentrating on a series of seismic changes inthe area – the demise of its great regional magnates, the rapid upsurge of the coal industry and the union of the crowns – it offers a distinctive chronological coverage, from the latter half of the sixteenth century through to the early seventeenth century. Old stereotypes of the north-eastern landed elites as isolated and backward are overturned while their response to state formation reveals their political sophistication. Traditional views of the religious conservatism of the north-eastern parts are reassessed to demonstrate its multi-faceted complexion. And contrasting cultural patterns are analysed, through ballad literature, the cult of St Cuthbert and increasing exposure to metropolitan “civility”, to reveal a series of sub-regions within the north-eastern reaches of the kingdom. Dr DIANA NEWTON is Lecturer in History at the University of Teesside.
