Plan analysis of the medieval boroughs of Northumberland

Abstract

In the first part of the first section, earlier work on boroughs is considered, highlighting the failure to study morphology. The changing emphasis after 1955 is identified, stressing the continued focus on individual towns. It is the failure to consider the basic elements which this research project is trying to overcome.

The second part of the first section discusses the reasons why boroughs rather than towns were chosen as the subject of the study. The common and peculiar features of boroughs are outlined, indicating the comparative ease with which Medieval boroughs can be identified in the surviving documents. Section one concludes with an explanation of why Northumberland was chosen as the area of study.

Section two involves a discussion of the sources used to identify the boroughs, including the problem of survival and the effects of desertion, replanning and industrialisation. The plans of three boroughs are traced back to 1500 and the evidence concerning change before then is analysed. A discussion of the comparability between Medieval and modern measurements is followed by an explanation of how to achieve the most accurate measurement of the plots. Finally, each of the reconstructed boroughs is analysed in detail and conclusions drawn with regard to the nature and survival of evidence of planning in Northumberland;s Medieval boroughs.