Birtley is an area in the Metropolitan Borough of Gateshead, in Tyne and Wear, England. It is situated to the south of Gateshead town and is physically linked to Chester-le-Street across the County boundary in County Durham. Until 1974 Birtley and the adjoining areas of Barley Mow, Vigo and Portobello were part of the old Chester-le-Street Rural District. Since 1974 these neighbouring areas have been considered part of 'greater' Birtley. Birtley was a civil parish with a parish council (which also covered the adjoining neighbourhoods) until April 1, 2006 after a local referendum agreed to abolish it. ^[1] Gateshead is a metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, in north-east England. ... Tyne and Wear is a metropolitan county in the North East of England around the mouths of the Rivers Tyne and Wear. ... Motto (French) God and my right Anthem No official anthem - the United Kingdom anthem God Save the Queen is commonly used England() – on the European continent() – in the United Kingdom() Capital (and largest city) London (de facto) Official languages English (de facto) Unified  -  by Athelstan 927 AD  Area  -  Total 130... Gateshead is a town in North-East England on the southern bank of the River Tyne, opposite Newcastle upon Tyne, which covers the north bank. ... Chester-le-Street is a market town in County Durham, England with a history going back to Roman times. ... County Durham is a county in north-east England. ... A civil parish (usually just parish) in England is a subnational entity forming the lowest unit of local government, lower than districts or counties. ... is the 91st day of the year (92nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...

Birtley lies within the historic county boundaries of County Durham and uniquely among settlements in Gateshead, Birtley retains County Durham postcodes and its postal town remains Chester-le-Street. The historic counties of England are ancient subdivisions of England. ... County Durham is a county in north-east England. ... Chester-le-Street is a market town in County Durham, England with a history going back to Roman times. ...

Antony Gormley's famous Angel of the North is situated on high ground to the north of Birtley and overlooks the area. Angel of the North Angel of the North is a modern sculpture created by Antony Gormley, which stands just outside Gateshead, England. ...

The main road through Birtley is the non-primary A167 which runs from Topcliffe, North Yorkshire through to the north of Newcastle upon Tyne, and is the same road which runs across the Tyne Bridge. This was an original route for the Great North Road and the A1 until a bypass was built in the 1930s. The A167 is a road in North East England. ... Topcliffe is a village and civil parish in the Hambleton district of North Yorkshire, England. ... This article is about a city in the United Kingdom. ... Tyne Bridge looking east towards the modern The Sage Gateshead and the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, with the earlier Swing Bridge in the foreground The Tyne Bridge is a bridge over the River Tyne in North East England, linking Newcastle upon Tyne and Gateshead. ... There are several Great North Roads: Great North Road, Australia, a historical road leading from Sydney to the Hunter Valley Great North Road, New Zealand, a road leading from Auckland to Hamilton Great North Road, Zambia, a road running north from Lusaka Great North Road, an alternate name for the...

Birtley is the home of the Royal Ordnance factory and the Komatsu Heavy Engineering Company which operates from the previous premises Birtley Iron Works (1827-, which became premises of the Caterpillar Company in the mid 20th century).

Schools and Education

There are several primary schools in Birtley including Portobello Primary, Birtley East and Barley Mow. There is also one large Senior School, Lord Lawson of Beamish, which is situated on a hill overlooking Birtley. This school is currently being replaced with a new building on the same site and due to open in September 2007, although there is some speculation that the building and transfer of school supplies will not be completed at this time.^{[citation needed]}. There are several famous past students from Lord Lawson, including famous footballer Brian Robson and Amy Brown.

Religion and Churches

There are altogether three mainstream Churches in Birtley; these consist of: It has been suggested that Ecclesia (Church) be merged into this article or section. ...

1. St Joseph's (RC)^[2]
2. St John the Evangelist (CofE)^[3]
3. A Methodist Church (name unknown)^[4]

• Birtley also has a large Cemetery with a Chapel and Crematorium.

History

A unique piece of Birtley's history occurred during World War I. Roughly 5000 Belgian refugees. came to Birtley to work in the Ordnance factory and were housed in a settlement at the north end of the town, adjacent to the factory. This area was called 'Elisabethville' after the Belgian Queen at the time. This settlement was a self-contained Belgian community. It had its own Church and priest, its own section in the Cemetery, its own police force, jail, hospital, shops and school. After the war, most of the Belgians were repatriated. Elisabethville was firstly used to house ex-soldiers being retrained in local industry, and was later used as local authority housing. The area was cleared and redeveloped as a new council estate in the late 1930's. The school remained in use until it was closed in 1970. A small number of Belgian soldiers are buried in a small cemetery north of the town, they apparently died of wounds suffered during the Great War. “The Great War ” redirects here. ... It has been suggested that Ecclesia (Church) be merged into this article or section. ...

References