Hexham, United Kingdom Hotels, Vacations, Tourism

In 671, on a bluff above the Tyne, four miles west of Corbridge, St Wilfrid founded a Benedictine monastery whose church was, according to contemporary accounts, the finest to be seen north of the Alps. Unfortunately, its gold and silver proved irresistible to the Vikings, who savaged the place in 876, but the church was rebuilt in the eleventh century as part of an Augustinian priory, and the town of HEXHAM , governed by the Archbishop of York, grew up in its shadow. The stately exterior of Hexham Abbey (daily: May–Sept 9am–7pm; Oct–April 9am–5pm; free) still dominates the west side of the … more »