< | List of Names as written on the Plan |
Various modes of Spelling the same Names |
Authority for those modes of Spelling |
Situation | Descriptive Remarks, or other General Observations which may be considered of Interest |
> |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
County of the Borough | } | equally so with the tradition of its | ||||
and Town of | } Continued | deriving its name from bears, | ||||
Berwick upon Tweed | } | founded on the idea that the | ||||
neighbourhood was formerly infested | ||||||
with those animals. The heralds | ||||||
have adopted this supposition, | ||||||
for to this day, the arms of the | ||||||
Corporation are a bear chained to a tree. | ||||||
When Aberwicke rose to any importance is not known; that it was a place | ||||||
of considerable strength during the wars of the Romans and their allies there | ||||||
is no sufficient evidence to prove. Antiquarians offer nothing definitive; all | ||||||
is conjectural. Some authors allege it was known to Ptolemy, the Geographer | ||||||
who wrote in the time of Antoninus, by the name of Tnesis; but the situation described | ||||||
by him does not correspond with that of the present town. Several Silver coins of | ||||||
Gratian, Nero, Antoninus Pius, Lucius Flaminius and others, have at different times | ||||||
been dug up, with their inscriptions defaced, but too distinct to admit a doubt | ||||||
of their being Roman mintage. According to Maitland, the great | ||||||
Roman road called Watling Street, or the Devils Causeway, crossed | ||||||
the Tweed at Berwick; and there pursued its way into East Lothian. | ||||||
Other annalists argue that it had a more westerly direction. But there are | ||||||
evident remains of Roman fortifications in the neighbourhood of | ||||||
Note: Unsigned
Abbreviations are underlined like this RE and the expansion may be seen by hovering the cursor over the abbreviation.
An entry outlined like this has a note which may be seen by hovering the cursor over it. |
Transcribed by PT and PF
Return to Berwick index