Aboot the Blog then a bit aboot me!
Unveiling the Grisly and Occasionally, Humorous Tales of Northumbrian History and Folk-Lore.
Forst, a flavour of the folk!
Northumbria is a rich & detailed tapestry!
Northumbria in the sense of the web site, refers to a historic region in northern England that existed during the Anglo-Saxon period. It was one of the seven kingdoms known as the Heptarchy (see below), which emerged after the decline of Roman and Brittonic rule in Britain. Northumbria encompassed a large territory that included parts of modern-day northern England and southeastern Scotland.
Maps courtesy of MapPorn Reddit.
In the early 7th century, the kingdom of Northumbria emerged as a dominant force through the amalgamation of the kingdoms of Bernicia and Deira. Initially, Bamburgh, an ancient Brittonic capital with a rich history spanning millennia, served as Northumbria's capital. However, the capital was later relocated to York. It was during the 8th century that Northumbria reached the pinnacle of its power and influence, thanks to the reigns of influential monarchs such as Edwin, Oswiu, and the earlier Oswald, who played a significant role in the kingdom's expansion.
Northumbria played a significant role in the spread of Christianity in England. The famous monk and scholar, Bede, who wrote the "Ecclesiastical History of the English People," in approximately 731, was Northumbrian. The region was also known for its vibrant monastic centers, including Lindisfarne and Jarrow.
However, Northumbria faced internal conflicts and external invasions from Viking raiders in the 9th and 10th centuries, which eventually led to its decline. The kingdom was divided into two separate earldoms, Bernicia and Yorkshire, and subsequently absorbed into the Kingdom of England.
Today, the term "Northumbria" is often used to refer to the historical and cultural region of northern England, encompassing areas such as Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, County Durham, and parts of Cumbria and Yorkshire. It is renowned for its scenic landscapes, rich history, cultural heritage...smoked kippers & crab sandwiches...my personal input! x
"Northumbria, land of castles old,
Where history is stories untold,
Rugged landscapes, wild and grand,
A culture rich, it's destiny in hand,
People strong, with independent views,
A sense of community, nothing to lose,
The future's bright, for this land so fair,
A place to visit, a place to care...aboot!"
Aboot me.
Born and bred in County Durham but after a 15 year absence, I miss the old place, warts and all! x
I presently reside in Nova Scotia, Canada...which, I also love, for different reasons! Anyway, I'm not going to 'bang-on' about me too much as it's more about the stories!
OK, just a bit more banging-on!
More...this web site thingy serves a few functions. Firstly a home for my general (non-serious) historical research on Northumbria and it's rich cultural history...or otherwise sometimes! The history stuff however, will take us either side of the Golden Age of Northumbria period into 'strange realms' either side of that period.
It's also a place to mess around with new web technologies and do a bit o' graphic design & other 'dickings-on'! I purchased northumbrian.x when the .x domains landed a few years ago, so eventually it would be nice to host the whole site and content on the IPFS or the rather grand full title, The Inter Planetary File System! There is already some content on there relating to some NFT's I was messing around with a year or two ago. I just need to connect a few dots.
Many thanks for looking anyways, I appreciate it greatly. x
Aboot you too!
It's also a way for me to connect with kith and kin as well as fronds anew! Please feel free to subscribe and comment on the posts (pssst, bottom of each post/article). The I can bombard you with reams of nonsense! ;-)
Bills to pay!
Available for (remote) work. Here are some of my skills:
- 3D CAD and 3D Design.
- General Graphic Design.
- Coding for the Web inc...e-commerce, media/content management blogs etc.
- Web Technologies, servers and blockchain/crypto incorporation.
- *General Chainsaw/tree and cob work
- *Off-Grid Cabins and solar installations
* Not remote but 'remote' enough! Soon to be featured on Modern Peasant video blog. My full Curriculum Vitae can be found...
Feel free to drop me a line or two.
Aboot the site: F.O.S.S. Free and Open Source Software.
"Open source will drive the next era of tech innovation." - Brian Behlendorf
The following software was used to build the site and it's principle assets.
- Blender 3D : 3D Modelling
- VS Codium and Bluefin : Code/Text Editors
- Krita : Graphics Editor
- Brave and Firefox : Browser/Debugging
- Handbrake : Video Compression
- Linux Pop OS : Operating System
- Linux Virtual Private Server VPS: Server and IPFS (inter Planetary File System)
"Jumpin' in is the best way to learn to swim."