North-East England in the Middle Ages was honeycombed with autonomous jurisdictions known as 'liberties', which reduced the Crown's direct authority in the region. The greatest of these were: Tynedale, Redesdale, Hexhamshire, Tynemouthshire, and the Palatinate of Durham.
They have never been the subject of comprehensive study - even the Palatinate of Durham has not received a book-length study since 1900 - and Tynedale has hardly been studied at all. Yet the liberties are crucial for understanding: (i) regional and national loyalty and identity; (ii) state formation in peripheral regions; and (iii) regional distinctiveness throughout Britain.