Sunderland Wall

Sunderland is a city at the centre of the City of Sunderland metropolitan borough, in Tyne and Wear, England, 10 miles southeast of Newcastle upon Tyne and 12 miles northeast of Durham at the mouth of the River Wear.Historically in County Durham, there were three original settlements by the mouth of the River Wear on the site of modern-day Sunderland. On the north side of the river, Monkwearmouth was settled in 674 when King Ecgfrith of Northumbria granted land to Benedict Biscop to found Monkwearmouth Monastery. In 685, Ecgfrith further granted Biscop the land adjacent to the monastery on the south side of the river. As the river separated this land from the monastic community, it was henceforth referred to as the sunder-land; and would grow as a fishing settlement before being granted a charter in 1179. West of the medieval village of Sunderland on the south bank, Bishopwearmouth was founded in 930. Sunderland grew as a port, trading coal and salt. Ships began to be built on the river in the 14th century. By the 19th century, the port of Sunderland had absorbed Bishopwearmouth and Monkwearmouth, owing to the growing economic importance of the shipbuilding docks. Following the decline of the city's traditional industries in the late 20th century, the area grew into a commercial centre for the automotive industry, science and technology and the service sector. A person from Sunderland is known as a Mackem.
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