Bamburgh Books

All they could hear was the wind, and the waves crashing on to the rocks. All they could see was the night. They could not see the ship, broken in two or people holding on to the dark wet rock, slowly dying of cold. And they could not hear the cries for help - only the wind. How could they save the people on the rock? Was their wooden boat stronger than the iron ship? Were a man and his daughter stronger than the great waves that broke the ship in two? The Forfarshire was wrecked off the north-east coast of England in 1838. This is the true story of Grace Darling - a girl who became a famous heroine on that stormy night.

Early in the morning of 7 September 1838, Grace Darling, the daughter of the keeper of the Longstone Light on the Farne Isles, rowed with her father to rescue survivors from the wrecked steamer Forfarshire. Her heroism caused a sensation. She was asked to appear at a London theatre and an Edinburgh circus. Queen Victoria headed the subscription list for a fund to support her, and Wordsworth was one of many poets who sang her praises. Immediately a national heroine, Britain's Joan of Arc, her fame spread throughout the world. This book tells the extraordinary story of how Grace became a celebrity, her name and image used to sell books, soap and chocolates; and of how, since her tragic early death in 1842, her deed and her fame have been kept alive into the twenty-first century.

The Explorer Map covering the Bamburgh area.