A timeline

995

Community of St Cuthbert arrive on Durham Peninusula

1069

English attack the Normans in Durham. William the Conquerer responds with the ‘harrying of the North’.

1072

Work begun on the building of Durham Castle

1099-1128

Ranulf Flambard is Bishop of Durham. He carries out major building work on the Cathedral, Castle and in the town, including moving the Market Place to its present location and building Framwellgate Bridge.

1311-1315

Durham suffers when it is repeatedly attacked by the Scots

1315

Townspeople of Durham petition the King for permission to build defensive walls around the Market Place.

1349-1350

Black Death comes to Durham. Many residents die. The plague returns in 1416 and 1438.

1450

Permission to pump water from Fram Well to the Market Place is given by Thomas Billingham. A pant is built to provide access to the water.

1538

Commissioners of Henry VIII enter the Cathedral and deface the shrine of St Cuthbert

1539

The monastery at Durham surrenders – many of the monks become part of the new Dean and Chapter

1565

Corporation of Durham founded

1569

The Rising of the North. The Earls of Northumberland and Cumberland lead a force from Raby Castle to Durham to restore the old Catholic Mass. The rising is put down and 500 people are executed. The Earl of Westmorland’s house in the Market Place is seized and given to the Corporation of Durham. The building is eventually knocked down and the site used to build the Town Hall and indoor market.

1617

The old Market Cross in the Market Place is replaced by a new structure. This lasts until 1780 when it was knocked down and replaced by a piazza. Both buildings provided shelter for traders and their goods. The latter building survived until 1852 when the new indoor market was opened.

mid-1600s

Durham does well in the period of the Commonwealth as the bishopric is abolished and the powers of the Church suppressed.

1660

At the Restoration, John Cosin is made Bishop of Durham. Both he and his successor, Bishop Crewe, carry out a lot of building work in Durham.

1729

Statue of Neptune erected in the Market Place to commemorate a plan to make Durham a port by enlarging the River Wear. The plan never took off.

Late 1700s

Many improvements made to Durham – including the building of Prebends Bridge and the demolition of Clayport.

1841

Part of St Nicholas’s Church is taken down to improve access to the Market Place.

1848-1852

New Town Hall and indoor market built

1857-1858

St Nicholas’s church taken down and rebuilt. The old building dated back to the 12th century but by the mid-19th century was in a very poor state of repair.

1861

Statue of Marquess of Londonderry erected in the Market Place.

1863

A new pant was built.

1902

Another pant replaced the one erected in 1863.

1923

The pant in the Market Place is demolised. The statue of Neptune is moved to Wharton Park.

1950s
The statue of the Marquess of Londonderry is taken away for repairs but is replaced in its original position.

1991

The statue of Neptune is returned to the Market Place.