The following is sanctioned history of the Newcastle Upon Tyne area for the New World of Darkness Chronicle.
When Emperor Publius Aelius Tranianus Hadrianus founded Pons Aelius in 112 A.D. it was little more than a military emplacement with an extended baggage train. However, as the Roman Empire tightened it's grip on the Celtic nations of the west, the temporary watch point became a permanent town attracting tradesmen of all kind to a life on the coast. This was a golden age for the humanity of Northern England as the Roman civilisation had forced the wyrd wolves north to plague the Picts and with them had gone the pagan witches and sorcerers native to the isle. With the Vampires yet to turn there attention to such an out of the way place, the only supernatural influence was that of the Greco-Roman magicians and auguries. The echoes of this are still felt in the region today as the population continually investigates the Roman era; unconsciously trying to find a lost sense of freedom and a few are still secretly keeping the old magics alive.
This situation changes in the fifth century as the Roman Empire collapsed, and in the lawlessness that followed the natives warred with the Picts to the north and the Anglo-Saxons raiding from across the sea. Pons Aelius soon found itself as part of the occupied territories of Northumbria under the rule of the Anglian King Ęthelfrith. As well as new rulers the invaders brought with them those blessed by there pagan gods, shapeshifters held as sacred by the populace. These beasts terrorised the populace when not engaged in war and were only held in check by the rune casters who were favoured even more than the monsters by their gods. After Ęthelfrith's son, Oswald, became king and was converted to Christianity by the monks of Iona, the town was renamed Monkchester. Oswald saw to it that the old ways were stamped, out or at least sent back across the sea, although several simply went underground and carried on their ancient ways in secret. In this new age of political powerhouses in form of state and church th e Vampires finally turned their sight to the northern town. Soon most of the trade that passed through Monkchester was controlled by one kindred or another and the oppressive control of these individuals was felt by all within their domain. In part this ill feeling made it possible for the liberation of the town in the guise of the Norman invasion.
When William the Conqueror's armies seized control of everything as far north as Monkchester the kindred simply switched allegiances and carried on as if nothing had happened. The populace, who had thought themselves rid of their oppressors, could take no more and came out in open rebellion. Most of the Vampires died during the days of fighting that resulted and those that did not simply went into Torpor in hidden lairs within the town. The Norman response to this was to send an army lead by Odo to raise the town and Monkchester was all but destroyed. Soon after Robert Curthouse, the son of William the Conqueror, built a new wooden fort on the location and the town was renamed Novum Castellum. When the border wars against Scotland began some years later the defences were upgraded to stone and a twenty five foot wall was erected to contain the town. During this time the populace was one again free of supernatural influence but was constantly and oppressively watched for signs of further rebellion.
This changed again when King Charles bestowed mining rights upon Newcastle, increasing its prosperity greatly. Shortly after a new wave of kindred arrived to seize power, though this time they were some what less harsh in their approach. The rocketing prowess of Newcastle caused offence to the local towns of Gateshead and Sunderland, especially to their kindred masters. Whilst Gateshead grudgingly remained loyal to the Prince of Newcastle, Sunderland split away declaring independence. In the decades that followed a covert war developed between the two domains until both sides were distracted by the first English civil war. Whilst the war never restarted, the animosity remained between these two domains, and still continues today.
Throughout both civil wars Newcastle remained staunchly Royalist; of course Sunderland declared itself Parliamentarian in response. The town was kept safe behinds it's impenetrable walls until it was stormed by Cromwell's Scots allies based out of Sunderland. The Gangrel that lead the final attack was rumoured to have fought the Prince of Newcastle to a standstill allowing his army to sack the city without a united kindred defence.
Throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries Newcastle continued to rise in industrial power due to being a major exporter of coal and steel. It became one of the most prosperous cities in England and it's printing press was one of the largest in the world. Whilst some kindred were unable to keep up with the changes that led up to the Industrial Revolution, many embraced them and cemented their power in this new age. There remained a quiet hostility between Newcastle and Sunderland, put on hold only briefly to deal with a diabalist cult in Morpeth, but the northern city remained the industrial strong hold throughout.
During this time the Invictus rose to prominence due to their grip on the local industrial and political situation and a large number of them congregated in the North East. That is not to say they were unopposed as an almost equal number of Carthian migrated to the area simply to keep some kind of balance against their rival conviction. For the most part the quiet feud was civilised and clean, but two small factions on each side continued to provoke each other resulting over time in a considerable build up of tension. Things finally came to a head when an unaligned kindred was killed, seemingly without motive. Each side blamed the other and within a week the Carthians had whipped the populace up into open rebellion. The resulting uprising seemed to be going well as the mob forced the Invictus to retreat out of the city for safety but then turned sour as they turned on their creators and forced the Carthians from the city as well. The remaining kindred soon followed and did not return for the best part of a decade as ill will settled and the danger passed.
The engineering prowess of Newcastle continued to grow in the twentieth century as two world wars called upon both the ship building industries of the Tyne and the munitions of the Armstrong Company (later to become Vickers). Whilst conscription hit the city as hard as anywhere else, Newcastle was subject to considerably less bombing than many other locations in England. That being said the ship yards of the Tyne were bombed quite extensively allowing Sunderland the chance to become equals in the area of ship building by the end of the Second World War.
After the fighting ceased in 1945 the city went through a quiet period as it tended to its wounds both physical and social. Then on the 25th of December 1949 the kindred population of Newcastle was wiped out in a single night. Each one was ripped apart by some immense creature and the whole incident was swept under the carpet by gouls in the local police department. Other vampires rushed in to fill the vacuum, but each one was killed in a similar manor. After a while the city was deemed a dead spot for kindred activity and left to it's own devices. None were willing to risk final death in order to stake a claim in the industrial capital of the north. The loss of the cities masters was felt strongly by the population and Newcastle entered a period of depression that last almost twenty years. By the time it recovered it had already fallen behind the advancements of the rest of the country and has not yet been able to recover its prominent position. With the werewolves keeping at bay preferring the surrounding greenery to the cityscape it was again only the mages that remained active within the city limits.
As so the situation continued until the present day. The kindred of England had given up on Newcastle as a dead loss until a letter arrived at the havens of a few of the isles older kindred. Word soon filtered down of a change of circumstance and an offer of power for those willing to take the risk. The rumour goes that an old prince of the city has awakened from torpor and is determined to take back what was his. Prince Wodenson of Newcastle has sent out a call to all those who wish to come and join his court and has promised to protect all who call him liege from the monster that has stalked the city for so long.
