William of Normandy conquers English at Hastings
Yves de Vescy becomes baron of Alnwick and erects the earliest parts of the Castle
		Jerusalem falls to Crusaders
Castle described as 'very strongly fortified'
		University founded at Oxford
Besieged by William the Lion, King of Scotland [ more info ]
		Tartars crushed by Genghis Khan in Central Asia
King John makes his first visit to Alnwick Castle
		Signing of Magna Carta by King John
		Westminster Abbey, rebuilt by Henry III, is consecrated
Henry First Lord Percy takes possession of Alnwick Castle [ more info ]
		Edward II defeated by Robert the Bruce at Battle of Bannockburn
		Black Death plague claims third of European population
Building of Castle's octagonal towers
Birth of Harry 'Hotspur' [ more info ]
Henry Percy becomes first 'Earl' of Northumberland
Siege of Berwick Castle [ more info ]
		English Peasants' Revolt crushed - Wat Tyler executed
Battle of Otterburn
		Death of first Emperor of Ming Dynasty in China
		Death of Geoffrey Chaucer, author of The Canterbury Tales
Death of Hotspur at Battle of Shrewsbury
		English under Henry V defeat French at Battle of Agincourt
Town of Alnwick burnt by the Scots
		Joan of Arc burnt at the stake
		Wars of the Roses
The Great Battle of Towton [ more info ]
		Christopher Columbus lands in America
		English defeat the Scots at the Battle of Flodden
		Leonardo da Vinci dies
		Act of Supremacy separates the Church of England from Rome
		Anne Boleyn is executed [ more info ]
7th Earl beheaded for Roman Catholic beliefs and role in the Rising of the North
		Francis Drake becomes first captain to sail round the globe
8th Earl dies in Tower of London
Wizard Earl [ more info ]
		Mary Queen of Scots is beheaded
		Spanish Armada
Shakespeare completes Henry IV (part one)
		English and Scottish thrones unite under James I and VI
The Gunpowder Plot [ more info ]
Expedition to New England and founding of Jamestown [ more info ]
		English Civil War begins
		King Charles I is beheaded
		The Taj Mahal is completed in Agra, India
		Fire devastates London
Death of the Eleventh Earl [ more info ]
Alnwick Castle in decay - "some part of it in repair"
		Isaac Newton publishes a law of gravitation
		Dom Perignon develops a fizzy Champagne wine
		Union of English and Scottish Parliaments
Family return to Castle after 100-year gap
		Bonnie Prince Charlie defeated at Culloden
Hugh and Elizabeth, First Duke and Duchess [ more info ]
Restoration of Castle completed
		Hargreaves introduces “Spinning Jenny” for the textile industry
		American Independence is declared
Hugh, Second Duke [ more info ]
		Parisian mob storms the Bastille
		French King Louis XVI goes to the guillotine
Percy Tenantry Volunteers [ more info ]
		Napoleon crowns himself Emperor of France
		Pride and Prejudice is published
		British victory at Waterloo
Hugh, Third Duke [ more info ]
		George Stephenson’s Stockton to Darlington steam railway opens
		The first wagon trains arrive in California
		Belgium wins independence from the Dutch
		Slavery abolished in British colonies
Victoria becomes Queen [ more info ]
		The age of photography begins through work of Fox Talbot and Daguerre
Algernon, 4th Duke [ more info ]
		The Year of Revolutions across Europe
		Bavarian tailor, Levi Strauss, creates ‘jeans’
Victoria Cross won at Battle of Inkerman [ more info ]
		Darwin’s The Origin of the Species is published
		Lincoln gives Gettysburg Address
Lewis Carroll publishes "Alice's Adventures In Wonderland" [ more info ]
George Fifth Duke
Algernon Sixth Duke
		Karl Benz introduces first petrol-driven ‘horseless carriage’
		First ‘moving picture shows’ open
Henry Seventh Duke [ more info ]
		The Wright brothers make history with the first successful flight
		Trans-Siberian railway opens
		Titanic sinks
		The Great War
		Armistice
Alan Ian Eighth Duke [ more info ]
		Rutherford splits the atom
		The BBC broadcasts for the first time
		The General Strike
		Fleming discovers penicillin
George 9th Duke
		Worst year of The Depression
		Mao's troops end Long March into history in China
Outbreak of Second World War [ more info ]
Hugh Tenth Duke [ more info ]
		War in Europe is over
		Hiroshima
Teacher Training in the Castle [ more info ]
		NHS comes into being
		India becomes a republic
Castle Opened to the General Public [ more info ]
		Elizabeth II becomes Queen
		Treaty of Rome creates EEC
		Yuri Gagarin becomes first man in space
		President J F Kennedy assassinated
		First man on the moon
		Apple computer is launched
Home to St Cloud University [ more info ]
		Live Aid
Henry Eleventh Duke [ more info ]
		Fall of the Berlin Wall
		Nelson Mandela is freed
Ralph Twelfth Duke
The Alnwick Garden opens
Knights School opens