Newcastle town wall
The Newcastle town wall is a defensive wall located in Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom. Constructed during the 13th century to repel Scottish invaders, the wall was approximately 3km/2 miles long, at least 2 metres/7 feet thick and up to 7.6 metres/25 feet high. It had 6 major gateways and 17 towers as well as several smaller turrets and postern gates. The walls protected the town for about 500 years, but by the mid-18th century they were no longer required and quickly fell into disrepair. Over the next 100 years or so, large portions of the wall were removed to make way for new developments and to create better access to the town centre.
Today, only a few sections of the wall remain. These can be found at:
- Hanover Gardens
- Orchard Street
- Bath Lane/West Walls
- Stowell Street (behind)
- Croft Street
- City Road (near the railway bridge)
- Tower Street
Gates
There were six main gateways through the wall, they were (clockwise from western end):
Close Gate
West Gate
New Gate - This gate, in later years, became the town gaol. Condemned prisoners would be taken from here along Gallowgate to the gallows on the Town Moor.
Pilgrim Gate
Pandon Gate
Sand Gate