Rock, Northumberland

Rock
Rock village
Rock Location within Northumberland
OS grid reference	NU205205
Civil parish	Rennington
Unitary authority	Northumberland
Ceremonial county	Northumberland
Region	North East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	ALNWICK
Postcode district	NE66
Dialling code	01665
Police	Northumbria
Fire	Northumberland
Ambulance	North East
UK Parliament	Berwick-upon-Tweed

Rock is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Rennington, in Northumberland, England about 5 miles (8 km) north of Alnwick. In 1951 the parish had a population of 162.^[1]

Buildings

The single street has on one side cottages and gardens; on the other, an ornamental lake. At the end is a little Norman church; and beyond that, the battlements and towers of Rock Hall. The sundial and the inscribed stone in the end wall of the schoolroom were originally part of a residence of the Salkelds which stood on the site. The Hall was then their seat – their coat of arms still remains above an old, blocked doorway to the right of the modern entrance. Later a branch of the Fenwicks lived here. It was a John Fenwick of Rock that was hanged for the murder of Mr. Ferdinando Forster at the White Cross, Newgate Street, Newcastle, in 1701.

Rock Hall

The Hall dates to the 12th or 13th century. The south wing was converted into a defensible tower house in the late 14th or early 15th century, the whole was remodelled in the 17th century, but the house was left ruinous by a fire in 1752, before being restored and extended by Charles Bosanquet in the 19th century.^[2]

The same Charles Bosanquet also restored the church. The west door of this splendid little edifice is a rich piece of original Norman work. The gargoyles are noteworthy. The memorial brass within to Colonel John Salkeld does not mention that the worthy colonel killed a Swinburne of Capheaton near the gates of Meldon and only just escaped hanging.^[3]

Governance

Rock is in the parliamentary constituency of Berwick-upon-Tweed. Rock was formerly a township and chapelry in Embleton parish,^[4] from 1866 Rock was a civil parish in its own right until it was abolished on 1 April 1955 and merged with Rennington.^[5]

Religious sites

The church is dedicated to St Philip and St James.^[6]

References

1. "Population statistics Rock Ch/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
2. Rock Hall at British Listed Buildings Online
3. Hugill, Robert (1931). Road Guide to Northumberland and The Border. Newcastle upon Tyne, England: Andrew Reid & Company, Limited.
4. "History of Rock, in Alnwick and Northumberland". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
5. "Relationships and changes Rock Ch/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 17 January 2022.
6. Purves, Geoffrey (2006). Churches of Newcastle and Northumberland. Stroud, Gloucestershire, England: Tempus Publishing Limited. p. 146. ISBN 0-7524-4071-3. Archived from the original on 13 January 2016.

External links

Media related to Rock, Northumberland at Wikimedia Commons

• GENUKI (Accessed: 27 November 2008)