THE Percy family’s ownership of land in Northumberland began with the purchase, by Lord Henry Percy, of the Barony of Alnwick and Alnwick Castle from the Crown in November 1309. Other lands soon followed, including the Baronies of Warkworth and Rothbury and the manors of Newburn and Corbridge, which were granted to Henry Percy, second Lord of Alnwick, by Edward III, on the death without male issue of their previous owner, John Clavering, in 1332.
Even before the purchase of Alnwick Castle and Barony, the Percy family already owned substantial land interests and was listed in Domesday as owning 118 manors in Lincolnshire, Yorkshire, Essex and Hampshire. Today, the Percy family portfolio of some 100,000 acres of farming, forestry and tourism interests throughout Northumberland and the Scottish Borders is managed by Alnwick-based Northumberland Estates, a privately-owned, multi-faceted organisation that, in recent years, has diversified into the commercial sector, investing in office, retail and industrial property throughout the North-East.
Although buying, selling and developing land is nothing new for Northumberland Estates, the farms and estates sector will be transfixed by the launch onto the market through Knight Frank (020–7629 8171) of the historic, 9,486-acre Rothbury estate on behalf of Lord Max Percy, the Duke of Northumberland’s youngest son, who is now based full time in the South of England. Located near the market town of Rothbury, on the edge of the Northumberland National Park, 14 miles northwest of Morpeth and 26 miles from Newcastle upon Tyne, the gloriously scenic mixed farming and sporting estate, which forms part of the Ancient Forest of Rothbury, is for sale for the first time in more than 650 years, at a guide price of £35 million for the whole.
Denne historien er fra July 12, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra July 12, 2023-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Happiness in small things
Putting life into perspective and forces of nature in farming
Colour vision
In an eye-baffling arrangement of geometric shapes, a sinister-looking clown and a little girl, Test Card F is one of television’s most enduring images, says Rob Crossan
'Without fever there is no creation'
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The colour revolution
Toxic, dull or fast-fading pigments had long made it tricky for artists to paint verdant scenes, but the 19th century ushered in a viridescent explosion of waterlili
Bullace for you
The distinction between plums, damsons and bullaces is sweetly subtle, boiling down to flavour and aesthetics, but don’t eat the stones, warns John Wright
Lights, camera, action!
Three remarkable country houses, two of which have links to the film industry, the other the setting for a top-class croquet tournament, are anything but ordinary
I was on fire for you, where did you go?
In Iceland, a land with no monks or monkeys, our correspondent attempts to master the art of fishing light’ for Salmo salar, by stroking the creases and dimples of the Midfjardara river like the features of a loved one
Bravery bevond belief
A teenager on his gap year who saved a boy and his father from being savaged by a crocodile is one of a host of heroic acts celebrated in a book to mark the 250th anniversary of the Royal Humane Society, says its author Rupert Uloth
Let's get to the bottom of this
Discovering a well on your property can be viewed as a blessing or a curse, but all's well that ends well, says Deborah Nicholls-Lee, as she examines the benefits of a personal water supply
Sing on, sweet bird
An essential component of our emotional relationship with the landscape, the mellifluous song of a thrush shapes the very foundation of human happiness, notes Mark Cocker, as he takes a closer look at this diverse family of birds
