Cumberland
| Cumberland | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Country | England |
| Borders | County Durham Dumfriesshire Lancashire Northumberland Roxburghshire Westmorland |
| Population | 306,241 |
| Area (sq mi) | 1,516 square miles |
Cumberland is a shire county of the Anglo-Scottish border region and is England's most northwesterly county. Most of the county is administered by Cumberland Council with south-east Cumberland being administered by Westmorland and Furness Council; both of which are constituent parts of the North West statistical region. The county includes the city of Carlisle and the towns of Cockermouth, Maryport, Penrith, Workington and Whitehaven, as well as much of the Lake District national park.
It borders the Solway Firth, plus the Scottish counties Dumfriesshire and Roxburghshire, to the north. It mainly borders Northumberland, the other English border county, to the east, with a shorter border with County Durham. To the south, Cumberland mainly borders Westmorland, bordering the Furness peninsular of Lancashire along the River Duddon to the south east.
Characteristics
Cumberland is a largely mountainous shire, containing a significant portion of the English Lake District. Within Cumberland and the Lake District is England's tallest mountain (or "fell"), Scafell Pike, standing 3,209 ft (978 m) above sea level. The northwesternmost part of the Pennines, England's largest range of hills, is also located within Cumberland. Cross Fell stands at 2,930 ft (893 m) and is the tallest mountain of the Pennines and in England outside the Lake District. Flatter lands are found in the far north west of the county, close to the Solway Firth.
Similar to neighbouring Northumberland, Cumberland formed part of a militarised frontier in Medieval times, and as such has many castles, with notable examples being at the county town of Carlisle, as well as at Bewcastle and Penrith.
Transport
The main road in Cumberland is the M6 motorway, which traverses the county from north to south, serving Carlisle and Penrith. It links the county with Kendal, Preston (where traffic leaves for Manchester) as well as, ultimately, the West Midlands and southern England. To the north, it continues as the A74(M) motorway to Glasgow, also serving traffic for Edinburgh. Another major route is A66, which links the county with Yorkshire, Teesside and, via the A1, to eastern England. The A69 broadly follows Hadrian's Wall and links Carlisle with Newcastle upon Tyne via Hexham.
The A7 road runs between Carlisle and Edinburgh, via the border towns of Hawick, Selkirk and Galashiels. In the 21st century, the road is rarely used by long-distance traffic to Edinburgh, and is now mainly a tourist route.
Administration
Most of Cumberland is served by the Cumberland Council, although the council area is not co-extensive with the county; a south eastern area of Cumberland around Penrith is served by Westmorland and Furness Council, which includes all of Westmorland, plus parts of Cumberland, Lancashire and Yorkshire.
See also
- Cumberland gap area in Kentucky-Tennessee region.
- Cumberland Redoubt - the American Redoubt of the East - A strategic relocation "vote with your feet". Free States Movement.
