Northumbrian Sunrise

John Varley I, Bamborough Castle from the Northeast with Holy Island in the Distance, 1827.

1,704 words

I recently traveled to Northumberland to visit the Holy Island of Lindisfarne and Bamburgh Castle. Before visiting these sites, I woke up early each morning to take a walk along the beach at sunrise. During my walks, I thought about my life and all things I want out of life. As I look back on my time in Northumberland, I realize that we must always say what we want before we can achieve the things we want.

Northumberland has more castles than any other county in England. The Romans built forts there along Hadrian’s Wall, the Angles built castles there to fight the native Celtic tribes, and the Normans built fortresses there to suppress rebellions. While I have always been interested in the medieval history of the British Isles, I developed a special interest in Northumberland from the books and music I have enjoyed over the years.

As a teenager, one of my favorite Viking metal bands was Enslaved. Their third album Eld opens with a 16-minute song called “793: Slaget om Lindisfarne.” This epic song describes one of the first Viking raids to occur outside of Scandinavia and this event marked the beginning of the Viking Age. Ever since I heard this song as a teenager, I have always wanted to visit Lindisfarne and explore the area that the Vikings invaded over 1200 years ago.

Northumberland became more familiar to me after college when I started reading The Saxon Tales by Bernard Cornwell. This series follows the fictionalized account of Uhtred of Bebbanburg, a Saxon orphan who gets adopted by the Viking Danes and becomes a warrior. Through various interactions with historical characters, Uhtred’s adventures revolve around the fortress of Bebbanburg (Bamburgh Castle) in the kingdom of Northumbria. For over 10 years, I have been reading and looking forward to each book in the series. After finding some discounted flight and train tickets, I decided to travel to Northumberland where I would take a boat tour to Lindisfarne and drive to Bamburgh Castle.

Since the boat tour was going to be a few hours, I decided to wake up early and go for a walk to stretch my legs. Even before sunrise, people were already out walking their dogs along the beach. Almost every person had a dog and most of the dogs were running around playing fetch. Each person smiled and said hello. A few of the dogs wanted me to pet them or to throw their ball and play fetch with them. I had a short conversation with some locals who were walking their dogs. After telling them about my goals to visit Lindisfarne and Bamburgh Castle, they recommended a few sites on the island along with some local spirits sold at the gift shop. After a nice walk, I returned to my apartment and got ready for the boat ride.

The boat sailed from a popular harbor with tourist shops and bars. After a few short stops to see some seals and a lighthouse, the boat sailed north and finally reached Lindisfarne. The history of Lindisfarne goes back to the 6th century as it was an important site for Christianity in the British Isles. The monastery of Lindisfarne was established in 634 by the Irish monk Saint Aiden. Lindisfarne then became a base for Christian missionaries for the next 200 years. Saint Cuthbert and Saint Eadfrith were both bishops at Lindisfarne during their lifetimes and Eadfrith is also credited for illustrating the Lindisfarne Gospels there. The Benedictine monk Bede wrote extensively about these saints and the history of Lindisfarne in the Ecclesiastical History of the English People. Nevertheless, many tourists visit Lindisfarne for its history and association with the Vikings.

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The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle reports that heathen men invaded Lindisfarne in 793. The chronicle also claims that these men destroyed the church buildings, killed the priests, and took any valuables they could find. While this event is often associated with the beginning of the Viking Age (793-1066), the Vikings did not return very often to Lindisfarne. The monastery was rebuilt in 1093 and the Lindisfarne Castle was built in 1550. During the two hours I spent on the island, I was able to see the monastery ruins, walk around the castle, and browse the gift shop that sold beer, gin, and mead from Lindisfarne. I bought a sampler pack that had three different types of mead. As I drank the first sample bottle, I gave cheers and thanks to Bede, the Vikings, and the tour boat operator who sailed the boat back to the harbor.

I woke up early the next morning to take another walk along the beach. This time, I noticed all the nuances of the shore area. There were various types of rocks and seaweed. The sand was soft and muddy in some areas and compact and firm in other areas. As the wind blew towards me, the scent of salt in the air became stronger. Everything I experienced during this walk was exactly how the Kingdom of Northumbria was described in The Saxon Tales. Thus, I was ready for my tour of Bamburgh Castle.

Bamburgh Castle and its location have a long history. The site originally had a fort called Din Guarie and this location was also the capital of the Kingdom of Bernicia from 420 to 547. The fort was taken by the Anglo-Saxons in 590 and King Aethelfrith of Bernicia gave the fort to his wife Bebba in 600. This is when the name “Bebbanburg” started to appear. The Vikings destroyed the fort in 993 and the Normans eventually built a new castle over the ruins. Some parts of that structure are still standing today.

While I saw Bamburgh Castle from a distance when I sailed to Lindisfarne, the structure must be seen up close to appreciate it. As I took pictures around the castle, I took a sip from the second mead bottle and gave thanks to all the brave warriors that fought and died at this castle. Credit must also be given to philanthropist William Armstrong and his family for renovating the castle throughout the decades and keeping it open to the public.

The next morning was my last day in Northumberland. I made sure to wake up early to take one last walk along the beach. During this walk, I thought about all the events in my life that led me to visit a small coastal town in Northumberland. I listened to heavy metal songs about the Vikings as a teenager, so I sailed to Lindisfarne. I read books about Bamburgh Castle, so I hired a taxi to see the fortress up close. As amazing as those experiences were, I realized that the highlights of my trip were the beach walks I took at sunrise.

These walks allowed me to experience many of the things I want in life. I got to spend each morning in a high-trust homogeneous white community. Everyone looked like me, shared my morals, and appreciated nature and dogs. I did not have to worry about my safety. I did not have to worry about riots or looting. I did not have to worry about being called “racist” for taking pride in my heritage and ancestry. These morning walks also made me realize that before I could get what I want in life, I must be honest about the things I want and do not want in life.

I do not want to live amongst non-whites or self-hating white people. I do not want anti-white propaganda pushed by academia, the media, the corporations, or the government. I do not want white people to become minorities in the nations their ancestors created. I do not want our governments to replace us with third-world invaders for votes and cheap labor. I do not want to see white people being beaten, raped, and murdered on an hourly basis by non-whites.

I want to live in a homogenous, high-trust, white society. I want every institution to promote a positive image of European history, culture, and achievements. I want to see white couples getting married and having white children. I want politicians and political parties to represent white people and to stand up for the interests of white people. I want our governments to arrest and deport all non-white criminals and repatriate any non-whites that do not appreciate living in a white-majority country. Most of all, I want Northumberland to remain white so future generations can experience Lindisfarne, Bamburgh Castle, and the Northumbrian sunrise.

We may not get everything we want in life. But in order to achieve what we want, we must be brave enough to say what we want. And now is the perfect time to tell the world that we want to secure the existence of our people and a future for white children. Many people want what we want. But just like us, they are worried about being shamed, censored, or punished. Sometimes all it takes is someone brave like you to say first what everyone else is thinking.

The taxi driver who took me to the airport asked me why I came to visit Northumberland. I told him that I wanted to sail to Lindisfarne, walk around Bamburgh Castle, and take morning walks along the beach with other white people. The taxi driver smiled and laughed. He told me that he was from Newcastle but that he moved to the small coastal town for the same reason. As we drove towards the airport, I told the driver that I want to come back to visit more castles and take more boat tours in the future. Until then, the third bottle of mead will remind me of holy islands, medieval castles, and the Northumbrian sunrise.

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