Alnwick is the county town of Northumberland in the North East of England. Although eclipsed in size by larger towns to the south, such as Blyth, Morpeth and Hexham, the town retains its prominence due to being the location of Alnwick Castle, the home of the Dukes of Northumberland and historically serving as an important staging post on the road from Newcastle to Edinburgh. This history of the town was published in 1813 during a period where provincial publishers were keen to advertise the history and antiquities of their local area to amateur historians, naturalists and travellers.