Cumberland

In the Early Middle Ages, Cumbria was part of the Kingdom of Strathclyde in the Hen Ogledd, or "Old North", and its people spoke a Brittonic language now called Cumbric. The first record of the term 'Cumberland' appears in AD 945, when the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle recorded that the area was ceded to Malcolm I, king of Alba (Scotland), by King Edmund I of England. As with 'Cymru', the native Welsh name for Wales, the names 'Cumberland' and 'Cumbria' are derived from kombroges in Common Brittonic, which originally meant "compatriots".[2][3]

At the time of the Domesday Book (AD 1086) most of the future county was part of Scotland, although some villages around Millom, which were the possessions of the Earl of Northumbria, had been incorporated into Yorkshire.[4]

In AD 1092, King William Rufus of England invaded the Carlisle district, settling it with colonists. He created an Earldom of Carlisle, and granted the territory to Ranulf le Meschin. In 1133, Carlisle was made the see of a new diocese, largely identical with the area of the earldom. However, on the death of King Henry I of England in 1135, the area was regained by King David I of Scotland. He was able to consolidate his power and made Carlisle one of his chief seats of government, while England descended into a lengthy civil war. The Cumbric language is believed to have become extinct in the 12th century.[5]

Hand-drawn map of Westmoreland and Cumberland by Christopher Saxton from 1576

The area returned to the English crown in 1157, when Henry II of England took possession of the area (from Malcolm IV of Scotland). Henry II formed two new counties from the former earldom: Westmorland and Carliol – originally an abbreviation of the Latin Carlioliensis '[bishop] of Carlisle'. Westmorland also included areas formerly part of the Earldom of Lancaster. The lead- and silver-mining area of Alston, previously associated with the Liberty of Tynedale was later also added to the new county of Carliol for financial reasons.[6] By 1177, Carliol had become known as Cumberland.[7] The border between England and Scotland was made permanent by the Treaty of York in 1237.

The boundaries formed in the 12th century were not changed substantially over the county's existence. There are four English historic counties and two Scottish counties that it borders: Northumberland and County Durham to the east; Westmorland to the south, the Furness part of Lancashire to the southwest; Dumfriesshire to the north and Roxburghshire to the northeast.

To the west the county is bounded by the Solway Firth and the Irish Sea. The northern boundary was formed by the Solway Estuary and the border with Scotland running east to Scotch Knowe at Kershope Burn. The boundary runs south from Scotch Knowe along the Cheviot Hills, then followed a tributary of the River Irthing and crossed Denton Fell to the River Tees. From Tees Head the boundary crosses the Pennines to descend Crowdundale Beck, from where it followed the rivers Eden and Eamont to the centre of Ullswater. The line follows Glencoin Beck to the top of Helvellyn ridge at Wrynose Pass and along the River Duddon (near Millom) to the sea .

The highest point of the county is Scafell Pike, at 3,208 feet (978 m), the highest mountain in England. Carlisle is the county town.

Sub-divisions

Map of Cumberland showing wards, 1824

The Earldom of Carlisle was partitioned into baronies. When the County of Cumberland was created, the baronies were subdivided as wards, a county sub-division also used in Durham, Northumberland and Westmorland. These originated as military subdivisions used to organise the male inhabitants for the county's defence from Scottish troop incursions.[8]

Each ward was composed of a number of parishes, areas originally formed for ecclesiastical administration. In common with other northern England counties, many ancient parishes in Cumberland were very large, often consisting of a number of distinct townships and hamlets. Many of these ancient parishes eventually became civil parishes and form the lowest level of local government.

During the 19th century a series of reforms reshaped the local government of the county, creating a system of districts with directly elected councils.

Poor law and municipal reform

Map of Cumberland in 1845 showing poor law unions and parliamentary divisions

The first changes concerned the administration of the poor law, which was carried at parish level. The Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 provided for the grouping of parishes into poor law unions, each with a central workhouse and an elected board of guardians. Cumberland was divided into nine unions: Alston with Garrigill, Bootle, Brampton, Carlisle, Cockermouth, Longtown, Penrith, Whitehaven and Wigton.

In the following year the Municipal Corporations Act 1835 was passed, reforming boroughs and cities in England and Wales as municipal boroughs with a uniform constitution. The corporation of the City of Carlisle was accordingly remodelled with a popularly elected council consisting of a mayor, aldermen and councillors.

Reform in 1934

The Local Government Act 1929 imposed the duty on county councils of reviewing the districts within their administrative county so as to form more efficient units of local government. In general, this meant the merging of small or lightly populated areas into larger units. A review was carried in Cumberland in 1934. The following table lists the urban and rural districts before and after the changes.

District 1894–1934	District 1934–1974
Alston with Garrigill RD
Arlecdon & Frizington UD	Part of Ennerdale RD
Aspatria UD	Absorbed by Wigton RD
Bootle RD	Part of Millom RD
Brampton RD	Part of Border RD
Carlisle RD	Part of Border RD
Cleator Moor UD	Part of Ennerdale RD
Cockermouth RD
Cockermouth UD
Egremont UD	Part of Ennerdale RD
Harrington UD	Absorbed by Workington MB
Holme Cultram UD	Absorbed by Wigton RD
Keswick UD
Longtown RD	Part of Border RD
Maryport UD
Penrith RD
Penrith UD
Whitehaven RD	Part of Ennerdale RD

Carlisle

Penrith

Workington

Whitehaven

Maryport

Cockermouth

Millom

Egremont

Cleator Moor

Brampton

Longtown

Wigton

Keswick

Seaton

Alston

Aspatria

Boot

Bootle

Broughton

Burgh by Sands

Buttermere

Dalston

Dearham

Eskdale Green

Gilsland

Gosforth

Haverigg

Langwathby

Lazonby

Melmerby

Ravenglass

Rosthwaite

St Bees

Scotby

Seascale

Sellafield

Silecroft

Silloth

Thursby

Ulpha

Wetheral

Cumberland in 1960

The distribution of population in 1971 was as follows:1971 Census; Small Area Statistics

District	Population
County Borough of Carlisle	71,580
Cockermouth Urban District	6,366
Keswick Urban District	5,184
Maryport Urban District	11,612
Penrith Urban District	11,308
Municipal Borough of Whitehaven	26,721
Municipal Borough of Workington	28,431
Alston with Garrigill Rural District	1,917
Border Rural District	29,267
Cockermouth Rural District	21,520
Ennerdale Rural District	30,983
Millom Rural District	14,088
Penrith Rural District	11,380
Wigton Rural District	21,830

In 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, the administrative county and county borough were abolished and their former area was combined with Westmorland and parts of Lancashire and the West Riding of Yorkshire to form the new county of Cumbria. The area from Cumberland went on to form the districts of Carlisle, Allerdale, Copeland and part of Eden.[10]

The name continues in use as a geographical and cultural term, and it survives in Cumberland sausages; HMS Cumberland; the Cumberland Fell Runners Club; the Cumberland Athletics Club; and various organisations and companies, such as the local newspapers The Cumberland News, and The West Cumberland Times and Star, and the Cumberland Building Society. It is also mentioned in Macbeth as the kingdom given to Prince Malcolm.

In June 1994, during the 1990s UK local government reform, the Local Government Commission published draft recommendations, suggesting as one option a North Cumbria unitary authority (also including Appleby, the historic county town of Westmorland). It also suggested that Cumberland could be reinstated as an independent ceremonial county. The final recommendations, published in October 1994, did not include such recommendations, apparently due to lack of expression of support for the proposal to the commission.

The Grass-of-Parnassus was the county flower. It had been associated with the county since 1951, when it was included in the coat of arms granted to the Cumberland County Council. It subsequently featured in the arms granted to Cumbria County Council and Copeland Borough Council, in both cases to represent Cumberland. The flower was also attributed to Cumbria in 2002 as part of a national County flowers of the United Kingdom campaign by the charity Plantlife. In 2012, a flag based on the arms of the former Cumberland County Council was registered as the flag of Cumberland with the Flag Institute.

In 2013, the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Eric Pickles, formally recognised and acknowledged the continued existence of England's 39 historic counties, including Cumberland.[11][12][13]

In 2021, it was announced that on 1 April 2023 local government in Cumbria would be reorganised into two unitary authorities, one of which is Cumberland and includes most of the historic county, with the exception of Penrith and the surrounding area.[14] The new authority covers 77% of the area and 90% of the population of the historic county.

Wikisource has the text of a 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article about Cumberland.

• List of Lord Lieutenants for Cumberland
• List of High Sheriffs for Cumberland
• Custos Rotulorum of Cumberland - Keepers of the Rolls
• List of MPs for Cumberland constituency
• Broughan (Cumberland surname)

• Cumberland Heritage by Molly Lefebure (Chapters include Camden, Briathwaite, Millbeck, Fellwalkers, Carlisle Canal, Armboth, John Peel (farmer) and the Blencathra), with endpaper maps of old Cumberland.Detail taken from a copy of Cumberland Heritage published by Victor Gollancz, London in 1970, ISBN 0575003766

• Cumberland, England – History and Description, 1868
• Map of Cumberland on Wikishire

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