The Wear is a coastal river which runs in the area of the England of the North-East. It takes its source with Wearhead in the Comté of Durham, curves in the valley of Weardale, crosses the borough of Stanhope - known for its ford - and passes to Washington, before being thrown in the the North Sea with Sunderland.

To Bishop Auckland, Wear passes to the foot Château of Auckland, official residence of the bishop of Durham, and its park of stags. The strong Roman of Binchester dominates to him also the river at this place.

Wear continues its race in a north-eastern primarily centered way, until it reaches the university town of Durham. There, the river forms a peninsula, called Durham peninsula , at the top of which the cathedral of Durham and the castle of the city are drawn up. The cathedral, which shelter the relics of St Cuthbert, and the town of Durham itself from now on are registered with the World heritage of Humanity of UNESCO.

The road of Wear passes then by the ruins of the priory of Finchale, Chester-le-Street and Washington, which belongs now to the urban community of Sunderland, before reaching the downtown area. Sunderland was enorgueillissait formerly of its famous shipyards - today for the majority abandoned - which had contributed to do of it one of the most active towns of naval construction of the world. Wear is thrown in the North Sea between Roker Pier and South Pier .

Before the last glacial period, the river ran since Chester-le-Street in direction of north, according to the course of the current TEAM river, and joining the Tyne with Dunston. The ice diverted Wear towards Sunderland, and the the Tyne occupies from now on the old course of the two rivers since Newcastle upon the Tyne to its mouth between the towns of Tynemouth and South Shields.

Wear with Durham was presented in the television program Seven Natural Wonders like one of the wonders of the North of England.

Reference

• This article is a translation of the article in: “ ”.

External bonds

• the site of the county of Durham