At the bottom, Newcastle clawed their way to safety courtesy of a 2-0 win over West Ham – a result that put the final nail in Hull City's coffin.
At the opposite end of the table, Chelsea lifted the trophy after victory over Sunderland, while Arsenal and Manchester City both signed off with wins.
There was no such joy for Liverpool, however: the Reds were hit for six by rampant Stoke.
Newcastle survive
There were 53 minutes of nervy, tense action at St James' Park. Newcastle knew a win would be enough to secure their top-flight status, but for all their efforts looked to be lacking some cutting edge in attack.
Emmanuel Riviere – surprisingly preferred to Ayoze Perez in attack – was the main culprit, firing wide early on before missing a golden chance at the start of the second half as Newcastle finally built up a head of steam.
Relief eventually arrived, however: Jonas Gutierrez swung a cross over from the left and Moussa Sissoko climbed highest to power a header past Adrian.
Vurnon Anita did his best to add to the nerves with a horrific squandered breakaway but Gutierrez put the result beyond doubt, hitting a deflected second late on. His celebrations were as memorable as they were well deserved.
This has been a season to forget for the Magpies, but what a way to finish it.
...but Mike Ashley says he's staying put
Mike Ashley made a rare media appearance before Newcastle's game, to insist that he will not sell the club until they qualify for the Champions League or win a major trophy.
Asked about his ambitions, Ashley said: "To definitely win something and, by the way, I won't be selling (the club) until I do."
"(The club is not for sale) at any price. And when I say 'win something', if we ever get into a position of being in a Champions League place, that also counts as winning something.
"From this day forward we will be making our own luck."
Hull head for the Championship
Steve Bruce's side turned in a display of great desire at the KC Stadium but were ultimately to be disappointed as news filtered through from Tyneside.
As it happened, the Tigers could not even keep up their side of the bargain: for all their efforts, they only had two or three clear-cut chances and were unable to beat Victor Valdes.
There were tears at the final whistle and understandably so; this is hardly a star-studded side but there will be a sense of regret about their relegation.
When the dust settles, Bruce will think back to the 1-0 home defeat to Burnley. A win in that one would have kept them up. By such fine margins are these things decided.
West Ham pull the trigger on Sam Allardyce
The Irons' defeat to Newcastle was fairly inconsequential as far as their season goes, but there was more important news after the final whistle.
Barely five minutes had passed after the game when West Ham released a statement saying they had parted company with manager Sam Allardyce, saying that they had decided not to renew his contract.
At least Allardyce will be able to enjoy his summer holidays now...
Raheem Sterling dropped
Under-fire Liverpool star Raheem Sterling was left out of the starting line-up for the Reds' final day trip to Stoke and remained an unused sub throughout.
Brendan Rodgers intimated that he left the winger out for his own benefit, saying: “A lot been made of the last couple of weeks. We've got other young players very focused on the game."
...and Liverpool get annihilated
Liverpool were utterly shellacked by Stoke City, conceding FIVE goals in a first half that must go down as one of the more one-sided of the whole season.
But don't take it from me. Here's the view of our Merseyside correspondent, David Maddock:
"I've been covering Liverpool for more than 25 years and I can not remember a worse performance than the first half here.
"It was disgusting, there is no other word for it.
"It wasn't just a shambles, it was an abject surrender. The way they collapsed physically was embarrassing."
The Liverpool boss was apologetic after that game, describing his side's display as awful.
"The supporters deserve an apology for that. We were too easily beaten," said Rodgers.
"The supporters have every right to be angry. We can have no complaints all of us. That was awful first half.
"If the owners want me to go, I go. it is as simple as that. But i still feel I have a lot to offer here. Performances like today don't help you."
Didier Drogba bows out for Chelsea
Another Premier League goodbye: Didier Drogba played his final game Chelsea shirt.
The Blues legend announced in an interview with the official Chelsea website that he wants to play one more season of professional football, but that it won't be at Stamford Bridge.
"I want to play for at least one more season and in order to play more football I feel I need to go to another club," said Drogba. "All the fans know my love for Chelsea and I hope to be back here in the future in another role."
He started against West Brom but came off after 28 minutes... in bizarre fashion.
Drogba was lifted aloft by his team-mates – with Chelsea losing – and marched over to the touchline, to a standing ovation.
They won the title a fortnight ago, but there was no sign that the novelty had worn off as Chelsea lifted the Premier League trophy.
Drogba led the celebrations as the fans enjoyed their moment in west London.
Theo Walcott reminds us of his abilities
After a frustrating period warming the bench at Arsenal, Walcott ran through his repertoire in sensational style against West Brom.
The 26-year-old started in place of the out-of-sorts Olivier Giroud at the Emirates and wasted no time in making his presence felt, netting a first-half hat-trick.
It was a performance of real skill and quality – and one that comes just at the right time as far as he is concerned.
Walcott is due to have talks over a new contract in the coming weeks, with speculation mounting that he may be on the way out of the club.
If he needed some evidence that he can fit into this new-look Gunners side, Sunday's display was surely it.
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