Historic%20Yorkshire

Historic Yorkshire.

Historic
HORKSHIRE
BY
jjlLLIAM HnDREWS,
F.R.H.S.
LONDON:
REEVES AND TURNER, 196, STRAND.
LEEDS:
FRED. R. SPARK, "EXPRESS" OFFICE, 18 & 19, SWINEGATE.

PRINTEDBY
TRED. R. SPARK, "EX,RF.SS" OFFICE, LEEDS.

$g>
PREFA CE.
HE following chapters recently appeared in the
columns of the Leeds Express, and, as newspaper
contributions, met with such favour as
to induce the Proprietor of that journal to
issue them in a volume. In collected form,I
trust that the sketches may not be deemed an
unwelcome addition to local literature. Ido not profess
this work to be a complete History of Yorkshire, but
a varied, and,Ihope,an entertaining, series of articles
from the highways and by-ways of the annals of the
county.
It affords me pleasure to express my deep obligations
to Mr. Edward Lamplough, Mr. J. W. Gould, Mr. F.
Ross, and Mr. T. Tindall Wildridge, for favouring me
with facts and suggestions, and to Mr. Page, of theHull
Subscription Library,for preparingmy index.Idesireto
also record my thanks for the uniform courtesyIhave
experienced from the Proprietor of the Express and
the editorial staff; and to the many kind correspondents
who have written to me letters of encouragementIam
also grateful.
Hull Literary Club,
January, 1883.
WILLIAM ANDREWS.

CONTENTS.
Chapter.
I. Alfred, King of Northumbria
Page.
- I
II. The Story of St. John of Beverley
8
III. Leeds Before the Conquest, and Notes on
-
Leeds Castle
IV. Leeds Under the Normans
17
-
The Jewish Massacre at York -
V.
23
30
VI. Mystery Plays in Yorkshire
36
VII. Bolton Abbey:its History and Traditions 45
VIII. Black-Faced Clifford 52
IX. The Shepherd Lord 58
X. HowKingHenry III.Kept Christmas at York 63
XI. The Tragic Story of the Ellands
6g
XII. The Fall and Death of Richard II.
76
XIII, The Story of York Castle
83
XIV. The Battle of the Standard, 1138
97
XV. The Battle of Wakefield, 1460
102
XVI The Battle of Towton, 1461
io8
XVII The Battle of Marston Moor, 1644 "3
XVIII The Story of a Tax; or, the Death of the
Fourth Earl of Northumberland n8
XIX.
XX.
XXI.
XXII.
XXIII.
XXIV.
XXV.
XXVI.
XXVII.
XXVIII.
Catholic Persecution - 124
The Story of Pontefract Castle 13°
Beverley Sanctuary 139
Death of the Duke of Buckingham at
Kirkby-Moorside 146
-
Eugene Aram, the Yorkshire Murderer
History of the Yorkshire Resurrection Men
J54
l62
The Luddite Riots i6g
Echoes of Old Leeds — Leeds in the Last
Century - i76
The Bishop Blaize Festival
184
The Press-Gang in Yorkshire
igi
Index ig7

HISTORIC YORKSHIRE.
CHAPTER I.
ALFRED, KING OF NORTHUMBRIA.
FTER the invasion of England by the Jutes,
Angles, and Saxons, in 450, and their subsequent
subjugation of it, occupyinga period
of about one hundred and fifty years, the
northern part of the country was as yet
maintaining a feeble independence. Effeminated
by a long period of protection by the
Romans, and constantly harassed by the Picts and Scots,
who, crossing the wallof defence, which(now the legions
of the Cæsars had gone) proved of little or no service,
the Britons of the north offered an easy prey to any
enterprisingwarriorwho should desireto make that part
of the country his own. Such a one was Ida, a Viking,
or sea warrior,of a bold, adventurous spirit. He was an
Angle, and claimed descent from the Scandinavian God
Woden himself. In the year 547, when the Heptarchy
was well advanced in formation, Ida left his possessions
on the shores of the Baltic, and sailed for England with
a fleet of forty war galleys. Landing at Flamborough,
he quickly had the satisfaction of seeing the whole

2
ALFRED, KING OF NORTHUMBRIA.
northern county subjected to his arms. The Picts were
driven back to their mountain fastnesses, and his success
was complete. A few years after, however, a kinsman of
the victorious Ida, seeing his goodfortune, sailed up the
Humber, and seized from him a portion of his territory
from the Tees to the Humber, called Deira. The
remainder of Ida's district was named Bernicia, and
the wholecountry, when united (for in the timeof their
descendants it was alternately governed as one kingdom
or two, accordingto the descent and power of the kings)
was known as Northumbria. It was extended from the
north side of the Mersey to the Eden on the west coast,
and from the Tweed to the Humber on the east coast;
though in the time of Eadwine (the son of Ella, the
kinsman of Ida) who became King of Northumbria, it
stretched as far north as the Forth, where a fort was
built, round which a town sprang up — Eadwinsburg —
now Edinburgh.
Such is the descriptionof the founding of the kingdom
of Northumbria. Ida died, and was succeeded by his
son Ethelfrith,who was killed inbattle. After an interval
of sovereignty by the Deiran kings, Oswy, of Bernicia,
a natural son of Ethelfrith, became the King of
Northumbria by the murder of Oswine. He reigned for
28 years, leaving by his queen one son, Ecgfrid, and
another, and elder, Elfrid, illegitimately born. This
latter is the subject of our present notes. Oswine was
the King of Deira,and on his murderby Oswy, the latter
elevated Alchfrid, Ealfride, Elfrid, or Alfred, as he is
variouslycalled,to the Deiran throne as his Viceroy. Alfred
was a young man of an ambitious, bold, and energetic
character, and by his importunity, mingled with threats
of revolt, etc., persuaded Oswy to this step. He even
aspired to be independent ofhis father's kingly authority,
and to be absolute Sovereign of Deira; but Oswy refused
this, probably by the advice or remonstrances of his
nobles, to whom the illegitimacy of Alfred was an
insurmountable obstacle. Accordingly, at the death of

ALFRED, KING OF NORTHUMBRIA.
Oswy,in 670, we findAlfred's claim to the Northumbrian
Crown disputed on account of the bar sinister, and his
younger brother, Ecgfrid, was elected. Alfred either
withdrewfrom his native country for prudential reasons,
or was compelled to abdicate. Whatever was the
immediatecause of his expatriationis of little moment.
He left Northumbria for Ireland, where he spent fifteen
years. While yet in power on the Deiran throne, his
occupations had been those usual to the Anglo-Saxon
youthof the time — athletic andmartialexercise,varied in
his case by considerable attention to politics. During
the periodofhis retirementinIreland,then the great seat
of learning in every branch, he devoted himself to the
study of theology, philosophy, science, and the general
literature of the age. By his assiduity and intellectual
endowments, combined with the great advantage of
havingthe best teachers, he eventually arose to be one of
the most learned and finished scholars of his day. It
must be recollected, however,that pre-eminence in this
respect was not excessively difficult of accomplishment,
as fewcould evenwritetheir own names, even among the
priests, whose class the professed teachers of the nation
were.
At the end of this period of almost compulsory
seclusion, in 686, the Northumbrian throne was again
rendered vacant by the death of Ecgfrid, and the nobles,
to whom the report ofAlfred's great and varied accomplishments
was familiar, offered the crown to him.
He returned, and during the nineteen years he reigned,
governed the people with great wisdom. He established
order in the affairs of both secular and ecclesiastical
government; he founded numerous churches and
monasteries,and was a zealouspromoter of the cause of
learning.
Though liberal of patronage to priests whose qualities
and erudition brought them under his notice, he was far
from beingentirelysubservient to ecclesiasticalauthority,
however highly placed. In his youth he had received
3

4
ALFRED, KING OF NORTHUMBRIA.
his education at Ripon,under Wilfrid (who afterwards
received canonisation as St. Wilfrid of Ripon). Alfred,
soon after his return to his nativeland, recommenced his
old friendship with Wilfrid, and bestowed upon him the
Archiepiscopal mitreof York; but Wilfrid (who hasbeen
termed by that eminentantiquary,Mr. Frederick Ross, a
seventh-century Beckett), encroaching on the favour
displayed to him, began a series of presumptive
aggressions on the prerogatives of the King. Alfred,
who was little of a disposition to brook such return for
his kindness,banished the haughtyWilfrid, who fled to
Rome, andlaid his grievancesat the feet of His Holiness
the Pope. The Holy Father, John VIL, listened with*
complacency, and ordered his immediate return, sending
at the same time, by the hands of the triumphant priest,
a lettercouched in the most peremptory terms, ordering
his reinstatement in all the dignities and emoluments
of his late office. Probablythe elatedecclesiastic, upon
speeding back to the Kingof Northumbria, was considerably
astonished at beingaddressed to the followingeffect
by thatindependentand liberal-mindedman:"Youbring
a writing from the apostolic seat, as you choose to term
it, couched in dictatorial terms to me, the King of
Northumbria ; butIwish you to understand thatIdo
not alter my course of conduct at the dictation of a
foreign priest; nor doIrender obedienceto any writing,
whether from the apostolic seat or elsewhere." From
the foregoing it is evident that the supremacy of the
papal decrees was a growth of mediæval times, rather
than a necessary, and always present, portion of their
history.
Alfred marriedKyneburga,the daughter of Penda, the
King of Mercia, who had been slain in battle with the
Northumbrians, under Oswy, at Winwinfield. By this
marriage,whichhas beenregarded as a politicalmeasure,
he had issue one son, Osred, who afterwards became
king on his death,and waskilled in a revoltofhis western
subjects at Winandermere in 716.

ALFRED, KING OF NORTHUMBRIA.
From a booklet publishedby Mr. Thomas Holderness,
and which is a curious speculative account, elaborate in
details which are plausible to perfection, of Alfred's
funeral, we gather much interestinginformation.
Those Northumbrian kings, who were lords both of
Bernicia and Deira, held their chief court and Witenagemot
(or Council of Wise Men) at York, and an inferior
residentialcourt in Deira, with a Witenagemot here also
for the transactionof the districtaffairs. The site of this
East Riding Court was calledDerrifield by the vulgar —
Deira-feld by the more cultivated; that is, the Field of
Deira, or the Field of the King of Deira — our present
Driffield. This castle or centre of Government was
situated not far from the old Roman road from York to
Filey,and had at some time (probablythe period of which
we deal) a large population,as the numerous tumuli or
burial mounds testify. In addition to the Royal Castle
or mansion, there were also the church and the Mot
House, where the local Parliament met to enact the laws
of Deira. The Castle and the Mot House were one at
each side of, though at some little distance from, ahill,
known as the MotHill, where upon occasions when the
people were to be addressed the Council walked in procession,
and from the summit harangued the populace.
The cottages which formed the village werebuilt of mud
and stones, and thatched. The doors were roughly
battened together, and secured by wooden pegs, as was
the case with all the woodwork for long ages subsequent
to this period. All were one storey high. The castle
itself was a large structure, consisting of many heterogeneous
buildings, erected upon a square mound,
surrounded by a walled fosse, while on the inner side
of the fosse rose a wallsome twelve feet high. In this
seemingly impregnable stronghold stood the Royal
Palace, approachable on the north side only by a
massive gateway, with a drawbridge. In the midst of
the group of buildings was the keep, a stupendous
structure of stone four storeys high. Outside of the
5

6
ALFRED,KING OF NORTHUMBRIA.
fosse were the domestic offices of the household, the
brewhouse, the maltkin, stables, and wolf-hound kennels.
The wholeof these buildings,with the castle,were in an
enclosure of about six acres in area, which was surrounded
with a wall and ditch, and with four towers
(after themanner ofBarbican towers) opposite to the four
sides of the castle. Here the King andhis nobles feasted,
and here he entertained the distinguished and learned
foreigners and others. Through the massive gateway he
rode forward with his retinue and attendants, to hunt,
hawk, or fish.
As we have said,for nineteen years Alfred reigned over
his dominions with vigour and wisdom; a friend to
learning,a goodhusband, a kind father, a Christian king.
But his reign was brought to an abrupt termination in
705. In the summer of 704 a maraudingfleet of Danish
and Norwegian vessels sailed down the north-eastern
coast, burning,after plundering, the towns and villages
on the path. At Filey they stopped and landed a
powerful army, whichmarched inward. Alfred, who was
then at his castle at Deirafeld, immediately despatched a
messenger to York for the portion of his army stationed
there to proceed to his assistance. With the force he
had with him in the castle, some two or three hundred
men,he marched towardsMalton, where he met the York
contingent. Alfred then at once pursued the invaders,
overtakingthem at Ebberston,where afierce engagement
took place,the Danes beingas littledisposed to turn their
back upon the fruitful land of the Northumbrians as the
Saxons were to welcomethem. During the wholeof the
afternoon both sides fought with the most determined
braveryuntil, darkness coming on, theconflict wasstayed
without victory being established for either side. The
King,who took commandin person of the Saxon host,
his general, Ethelweard, being in the north for the
repression of an expected invasion of the Picts, was
continuallyin front of the battle,and towards night he
fell, pierced by an arrow. Before his attendants could

ALFRED, KING OF NORTHUMBRIA. 7
prevent, a Danish warrior, fleeing as the ranks of the
invaders were broken, rushed up and inflicted a fearful
wound with a spear on the thigh of the prostrateKing.
He was conveyed in the darkness to a cave, and there
tended while the Danes should have left the neighbourhood,
which they didin a few days. Then the King was
conveyed to Deira-feld Castle, where in about a week's
time he died, in spite of all that could be done by his
physician,who came from York to attend him. On his
death, also from the same place was fetched a stone
coffin, in which he was buried in the church (of the
present Little Driffield), where there is now an inscription
as follows: —
Within this Chancel
Lies Interred the Body of
ALFRED,
King of Northumberland,
Who Departed this Life,
January igTH, a.d. 705,
Inthe 2oth Year of his Reign.
Statum Est Omnibus Semil Mori.
The character of Alfred of Northumbria bears a great
similarity to that of the great Alfred of English history,
with whom he has been frequently confounded. In his
patronageof the learned, his justice and moderation, he
will indeed bearcomparisonevenwith hismore illustrious
namesake.

CHAPTER II.
THE STORY OF ST. JOHN OF BEVERLEY.
IDWAY between the years 600 and 700, at
Harpham, a village about twelvemiles north
ofBeverley,was born the celebratedSt.John
of Beverley, whose name is so intimately
with the origin of that town, and
embalmed in its history. This illustrious personage,
familiar to every student of Yorkshire
history, was of noble family. He received his early
education in that home and nursery of Anglo-Saxon
culture, Whitby Abbey,under the tutelar guidanceof the
benign Abbess, afterwards canonised as Saint Hilda.
Afterreceivingthe groundwork usual for the Anglo-Saxon
youth of his time, and whichincluded many accomplishments
which would, even in these days, be considered of
high-class refinement, his training was continued under
Archbishop Theodore. Oxford was the scene where the
final finish was put to an educationso well begun. Here
he took the degrees of Master of Arts and Doctor of
Divinity, and is generallyconsidered the first who ever
received the diploma of M.A. Consequent on the
death of Eata, Bishop of Hagulstadt(Hexham), he was
appointed to the vacant see,and continued to fulfil the
duties of the diocese for some little time. For his
disciples while here, he had many whose names afterwards
appearedin the history of their country; of whom
the Venerable Bede is the most notable.

ST. JOHN OF BEVERLEY.
Bosa, fourth Archbishop of York, dyingin705, John of
Harpham was elected to succeed him, and for twelve
years held the archiepiscopal crosier, at the end of which
time, being far advanced in years, he resigned his see.
Some years before, it is said in 700, while perambulating
his diocese, he had come across a cleared space in the
forest of Deira, where stood a little wooden church.
Charmed with the retirementand beauty of the situation,
so well fitted in every way for a life of devotion, he had
formed then a planof rebuilding the church, and erecting
in conjunction with it a double cloistered establishment.
In 704, in accordance with this design, he erected a
college for secular canons, an oratorycalled the Oratory
of Saint Martin, and dedicated the church, which he
rebuilt, to St. John
the Baptist. The locality was then
known as Inderawood, from its situation in the Silva
Deirorum, or Wood of the Deirans. The monastery he
endowedwith estates at Middleton,Welwick, Bilton, and
Patrington. The ancient church which we have mentioned
had been destroyed byHengist and Horsa,in their
incursions during the year 450.
As the first prior of his monastery,John
installed his
pupil Brithune,or Berthun,who afterwards wrote a life of
his master. On his retirement from the high and onerous
positionof ArchbishopofYorkhe retired to the monastery
he had erected. Here he died, in 721. Many remarkable
deeds are put to the credit of St. John of Beverley,' and
many strange miraclesare recordedof him. He restored
to life,it is said, the wife of Earl Puch,of South Burton,
and also a person in the employof Earl Addie,of North
Burton, both in the neighbourhood of Beverley; whilst
such was the powerexercised by his shrine, such was the
number of wonders worked there for the benefit of
supplicants, and his claim to canonisation became so
pronounced thathe was enrolled among the Saints of the
Church by the Pope (Benedict IX.) under the title of
Saint John ofBeverley. Numerous interestingparticulars
are on record of his manners and character. Following
9

10
ST. JOHN OF BEVERLEY.
up the excellent education he had received, he was
universallyadmitted to be one of the first, if not the first,
of the scholars of his day. Devoidof the slightest trace
of arrogance or pride, amiable and pious, he was as
revered for his humanity and gentleness as he was
respected for his eminence inlearning. A rigid Churchman,
he adhered strictly to all the rules of his order; he
set apart many hours each day for solitary devotion, and
fastednot seldom. It is said ofhim that he was a great
admirer of field sports, and had an intense passion for
the witnessingand exercising of horsemanship,and, like
many a bishop since, was more than fond ofhorse-racing.
Of the many remarkable occurrences in which the
history of Saint John is closely allied to that of his
favourite town, the account of the manner in which the
possession ofhis shrine was the means of the church and
town receiving its second impetus towards great prosperity
is most interesting,besidesfurnishing a noticeable
example of the benefits that may arise from superstition
inbarbarous times. In the year of our Lord934, or, as
some historianshave it,937, the sons of Sithric, the King
of Northumbria, who had been exiled for his nonacquiescence
in the consolidationof the Heptarchy, had
raised the standard of revolt in the north. They were
largely reinforced by bodies of Scottish troops, Constantine,
King of Scotland, being ever anxious to engage in
any dispute or dissension between the rival factions of
the south. Athelstane, while marchingnorthwards, was
informed of the great power and virtue given out from
the shrine of the departed Saint John, and so turned
thither out of his way to pay his devotions,leavinghis
army to proceed to York, and there await his coming.
Arrived at Beverley, he proceeded at midnight to the
sacred tomb, under the guidance of the resident Abbot
and his monks, and there spent many hours, prostrating
himselfbefore the shrine,beseeching the protection of the
Saint, and imploringhis aid in the forthcoming struggle.
He then made a sort of arrangement, whichpartook of

ST. JOHN OF BEVERLEY. 11
the nature of a bargain, with the Saint. He promised
that if his expeditionproved successful, which of course
would be due to the influence of the Saint, he would
return to Beverley, and in princely manner evince his
gratitudeby amplifyingthe privileges and possessions of
theChurch and town. As apledgeof his good intentions
in the matter,he concluded the imposing ceremony by
drawing his dagger from its scabbard and leavingit upon
the high altar to awaitits redemption. As a visible sign
of the protection of the Saint, he took with him a consecrated
banner, which, no doubt,had considerable effect in
inspiriting the superstitious Saxons under him. In
addition,it is said that, not overlookingmaterialsupport,
whileinvoking the aid of spiritualinfluence,he took with
him from Beverleyan armed contingent. The site of the
battlein which the success of this expedition was decided
is extremelyuncertain, and various are the explanations
ofthequestion. Suffice it to say thatat some point north
of the Humber a most sanguinaryand obstinate conflict
took place,calledthe Battle of Brunnaburgh, inwhich the
Scots and their allies sustained a most crushing defeat,
beingchased by the conquerors across the Tweed, and as
far north as Dumfoeder. According to the legends,
Athelstane, the night preceding the encounter, had a
vision, in which the holy man of Beverley appeared to
him, promising victory for the morrow. The battle is
variously known as that of Brunanburgh and Brunnaburgh.
Athelstane, keepingin mindhis promise, came back to
Beverley, and returning the auspicious banner to its
place, proceeded to redeem his pledge and promise. He
endowed the monastery with the lordship of Beverley,
and gave it other lands. He founded in the church a
College of Secular Canons, seven in number, and to be
perpetual benefices, witha distinct charter andprivileges;
he gave the town the right of sanctuary,a " Frid-stol " or
chair of peace beingput in the church near the high altar,
and four stone crosses erected in different directionsone

12
ST. JOHN OF BEVERLEY.
milefrom the church. By this latterimportant right of
sanctuary, any person who had transgressed the laws of
the realm by any crime (excepting high treason) was
exempt from the summary justice of the times until he
could be properly placed upon his trial or banished the
country. The town or church (it is doubtful which) was
granteda charter by whichthe townsmen wereauthorised
to traverse the realm free from all imposts and tolls.
From the impulse thus given to the prosperity of the
church, it rapidly developed into great splendour and
opulence. At the time when the Dooms-day Book was
compiled, the canons of Beverley were the possessors of
20,000 acres of land and a number of churches.
This is not the only account of the wonders effected by
the agency of Saint John's miraculousrelics. On the day
upon which the great Battle of Agincourt was fought, the
shrine is said to have sweat with blood; consequently,
the victory, bypopularassent, was declaredto beowing to
the aid of this spiritual protector of English arms, and in
like accordance with the beliefs of that day, Henry V.
and his queen came afterwards to worship at the shrine
in token of thankfulness for the aid thus vouchsafed.
Among other wonderful effects of places and objects
which have had connection with him, may be also
mentioned another instance in whichhis banner was the
accompanier of victory, namely, at the Battle of the
Standard. The banners of Saint John of Beverley,
Saint Peter of York, and Saint Wilfrid of Ripon were
mounted upon a standard ormast, which was carried on
a waggon to the battle-field, to whichit gaveits name.
Edward I., in his numerous encounters with the
Scotch, also carried with him Saint John's efficacious
banner.
Near the churchyardalso, at Harpham,maystillbe seen
by theroadside SaintJohn's well. The chronicler,William
of Malmesbury, states that the fiercest bull when led to
this well is rendered as gentle as a lamb, by the holy
influence which is supposed to hover around the place,

ST. JOHN OF BEVERLEY.
from some association with Saint John himself. We
obtain many valuable particulars concerning Saint John
from Mr. FrederickRoss's " Celebrities of the Yorkshire
Wolds," amongothers, the fact that some timeduringthe
reign of EdwardVI. a portrait of Saint John was placed
in one of the windows of University College, Oxford.
Representations ofhim also are met with throughout the
carvings and in one window of Beverley Minster. In
these he is generallyshown in company with Athelstane,
and the general impression given by this frequent companionship
is, thattheywerecontemporary. As examples
of these carvings in the Minster, we may mention an
instance in oak on the canopy of the choir stalls, a
sculptured one on the east side of the rood screen,and
another portrait in the modern glass of the great west
window. There is also a painting in the great South
Transept, representing Athelstane presenting a charter
to Saint John inperson. Upon the scrollofthe charter is
the followingcouplet inblack-letter: —
" Als free makIthee
As hert may thinke or egh may see."
This painting appears to be inoils, of but the Jacobean
period,and consequentlyis of little value to the antiquary.
In most representationsof Saint John, he is shown in the
robes of an archbishop, his left hand bearing a crosier,
and the right raised as if in the act of pronouncing a
benediction.
In the County of Nottingham, Whitton Church is
dedicated to Saint John of Beverley. Godwin says of
him, " He alwaysehad the reputation of a wonderfulholy
man, and Beda reporteth many miracles done by him,as
the curing of divers folkes desprately sicke, by prayer;
opening the mouth of a dumb man, &c; which thinges,
either they were true or Beda is muche to blame." To
the same intent quaint old Fuller says, " He was tutor to
the Venerable Bede, who wrote his Life which he hath
so spiced with miracles that it is of the hottest for a
13

14
ST. JOHN OF BEVERLEY.
discrete man to digest into his belief." Berthun, the
first prior ofhis monastery, wrote a detailed narrative of
his miracles, as did also Henschinus, contained in four
books, and compiled from the testimony of actual eyewitnesses.
The writings of Saint John of Beverley were:
"Pro Leuca Exponenda."
"Homilies in Evangelia."
" EpistolS ad Haldam Abbatissam."
" EpistolS ad Herebaldttm Discipnliiin."
" EpistolS ad Andvenum et Bertinum."
The remains of Saint John were first deposited in the
portico or porch of the monastery. There was then a law
which prevented the interment of the dead in the actual
body of the church, and the bodies of distinguished
persons were, as a sort of compromise,usuallyplaced in
the entrance. Upon the canonisation of the holySaint,
Archbishop Ælfric had his relics transferred, or as it is
called, translated to the interior, where they wereplaced
in agolden shrine, which, it is said, afterwardsbecame a
perfect incrustation ofprecious stones, the tokens ofpiety
from devoteesand pilgrims. In 1416, says Mr.Ross,the
Synod of London orderedthe festival of Saint John to be
held annually, and not only once, but three times during
each year, upon which occasions the sacred relics were
conveyedwith reverentialceremonial through the streets
of Beverley, followed by a procession composed of the
chief burghers, who went bare-footed and fasting. It is
doubtiul whether the relics here mentioned were the
veritable bones of the Saint,for, on opening a grave in
the bodyof the Church in 1644, a vault built of squared
freestone was discovered, and within this was a sheet of
lead, four feet in length, containing some ashes, beads,
etc. Across this lay a box oflead, inlength about seven
inches, six inches broad, and five in height,and in which
were several pieces of bone, mingled with a little dust
yielding a sweet smell; there were also a pair of silver
slippers, a knife, and several beads. The knife, or

ST. JOHN OF BEVERLEY.
dagger, has been supposed to be the same which Athelstane
had left as an earnest of the bona fide nature of his
intentions when he besought the aid of the holy John
against the Scots. On the leaden covering was the
following inscription in old English lettering: — "
Anno
ab incarnatione Domini MCLXXXVIII. combvsta fvit
hæc Ecclesia inmense Septembri,in seqventi nocti post
Festvm Sancti Matthæi Apostoli, et in Ann MCXCVII.
VI. Idvs. Martii, facta fvit Inquisitio reliqviarvm Beati
Johannis in hoc loco; et inventa sunt hæc ossa in
orientali parte sepvlchri, et hie recondita; et pvlvis
cemento mixtvs ibidem et in inventvs, et reconditvs;"
the translationof whichruns as follows: — " In the year
for the Incarnation of our Lord, 1188, this church was
burnt, in the month of September, the night after the
Feast of St.Matthew the Apostle; and in the year 1197,
the sixth of the Ides of March, there was an Inquisition
made for the relics of the Blessed John in this place;and
these bones werefound in the East part of his Sepulchre
and here deposited; and dust mixed with mortar was
found likewise and re-interred." After these particulars
were taken(in 1644) the relics were carefully re-interred
in the middle aisle of the nave in the place where they
had been found, but upon the present pavement being
laid down they were again disturbed and taken up
until an arched vaulting was prepared, in which they
were placed, after the addition of the followinghad been
made to the original inscription: — Reliqvæ eadem effosæ
et ibidemrecompositæ fornice lateritiodignabantvrXXV.
die mensis Martij DominiMDCCXXVI. qvando et tessalatvm
Ecclesiæ hujus pavientvm primo fvit instratvm,"
the translation being to this effect — " The same relics,
having been taken up and replacedin the same situation,
were honoured with an arched brick vault,the 25th day
of the month of March, 1726, when the chequered pavement
of this church was first laid."
The vault nowcontainingthe remains is in the middle
aisle of the nave, towards the centre of the church,
15

16
ST. JOHN OF BEVERLEY.
beneath the fifth diamond-shaped slab of black marble
westward from the central tower, and exactly below the
second boss or keystone in the groining of the roof.
AboutJuly, 1868, the workmen occupied in cleansingand
scraping the ceiling immediately over the repository of
the saintly relics, brought to view the followinginscription,
which was previouslyknown to be there under the
limewash: — " Beverlacen sis beati Johann, is subtus in
theca ponuntur ossa." (Beneath, in a vault, are contained
the bones of Blessed John of Beverley.) This
inscription has been restored,and is always an object of
inquiry by visitors.
In Alban Butler's " Lives of the Saints " we are told
that the mortal remains of Saint John of Beverley, which,
before the Reformation, wereplaced under a costly shrine,
were hid in the nave of thechurch in the beginningof the
reign ofEdward VI. This must be incorrect, unless the
relics were taken up between1197 and 1644.
Numerous lives of Saint John of Beverley have been
written. The first was by Bede in his Ecclesiastical
History. Next was that of Folcard, a Benedictine monk,
written in Latin about 1066. Afterwards came those of
Alured of Beverley,1120 (the manuscript of whichhistory
is in the Cotton collection);Asketal of Beverley,1320;
an anonymous author, 1373 ; Fuller, 1660; Thomas
Gent, 1732 ; andDrake, 1736.

Chapter III.
LEEDS BEFORE THE CONQUEST, AND NOTES
ON LEEDS CASTLE.
HE echoes whichroll to us down the centuries
give us of the early history of the ancient
town of Leeds but a feeble and uncertain
sound. We hear nothing at first but the
rippling murmur of a silvery stream as it
passes through thick forests of oak and beech
"zr and elm. Then the voice of nature is less
distinct, for suddenly we hear the ringing blows which
stalwart arms are raining upon the venerable trunks
with axes whose blades are of stone. Soon a little
spot is cleared, a " town " of huts is erected, and
surrounded by the huge limbs of the fallen monarchs of
the forest, and we hear nowthe lowing of cattle and the
bleating of sheep. Such brief description is all that is
needed for Leedsinits origin. What its first namewas
there is nothing to tell us. Nennius, a historian who
lived somewhere about a.d. 850, speaks of twenty-eight
cities of the Britons, one of which was Cair Luitcoith (or
Caer Loid Coit), which means " the city in the wood,"
and this is supposed to be the ancient Leeds, and
surmised by Mr. Wardell to have been on or about the
siteof the Parish Church. It has also been derived from
Lede, or Leod, the name of a British chieftain whoheld
sovereigntyoverit. ButHume says that this leader was
slain by the Saxons, which gives the name to the place
much later than if we takeNennius as our authority.
2

18
LEEDS BEFORE THE CONQUEST.
There was a sound of clashing arms before the arrival
of foreign invaders. The Britons were ever carrying on
an intestine warfare, which was but exchanged for a
divided and futile conflict with the veteran legions of
Rome. The Brigantes held out for more than a century
after the first arrival of the invaders, but once fallen, they
became submissive subjects, and Leeds was made a
station of the conquerors. There have at various times
been discovered considerable Roman remains. There
was a castrum or entrenched camp on the hill lying
between Charles Street and High Street, and called
" Wall-flatt." Across the Aire was a trajectus, not
far from where stands its more modern successor.
Leeds was, as we should expect, " on the high-road," or
rather on one of the great Roman roads, which (passing
from Tadcaster to Manchester) layin a part ofits course
a little to the east ofBriggate. Leedsparticipated,doubtless,
in the prosperity which prevailed over the land
during a greater part of the Roman supremacy, and in
an equal degree in the tribulation which followed the
Roman departure. At a period about 308 years after the
birth of Christ, the Imperial empire began to be hemmed
in by her barbarian foes, and the Britons, feeling the
growing weaknessof their masters,made several attempts
to throw off their yoke. At a battle in 326 the Romans
suffered a signal defeat, and in 440 they had retired to
concentrate against the Goths, leaving Britain and the
Britons to the Picts and Scots, who poured down from
their northern strongholds, and speedily had the effete
population at their mercy. These, calling in the aid of
the formidable Saxons, found their friends their direst
enemies, for after repellingthe Caledonians, the Saxons
turned their victorious arms against those they came to
help,and in time drove them to the remotest parts of the
island, leaving but a few bare names to show that ever
such a people lived. This was not performed without a
protracted struggle. The ancient ferocious spirit of the
Britons which remained unbroken after nearly five

LEEDS BEFORE THE CONQUEST. 19
centuries of Roman dominance,ever and anon gathered
itselftogether for the repulse ofthe Saxons,and numerous
are the accounts of their success. Hengist, one of the
great chiefs of the invaders, was slain at Conisbrough by
Ambrosius the Briton, who also defeated twice his two
sons at York. Leeds was a part of the old district of
Elmete, and it is said that here, long after the country
generally was subdued, an indomitable little kingdom
held out. But eventuallynumbers prevailed, the great
Arthur was dead, and Britain became Angle-land, the
Angles being the most powerful of the Saxon tribes.
Leeds now assumes a new character. A new derivation
is found for it, namely,Loides, either fromLoid, a people,
or Loidi, its first Saxon possessor (according to Bede),
and we find the familiar names of to-day were coined
during this period. Briggate is the Saxon for Bridgegate,
Kirkgate is the Church-gate, Swinegate is Saxon,
Allerton is the " town of alder trees,'' Cottingley is the
" house in the meadow," Farnleyis the "field of ferns,"
Gledhowis " Hawk-hill," Kirkstall is the " place of the
church," Skelton is the "water town," and so on to an
almost limitless extent. Another notable instance is
Osmundthorpe, the thorpe or village of Osmund; this
was formerly written Ossenthorpe,and in the Doomsday
Book it stands Ossethorp. Here was the " Villa Regia "
of Oswy, the King's Village, where he built a palaceand
held his court. There are several localnames which are
evidence of this. Coney-shaw is " King's Wood," and
Coney-garthis " King's Field." This Oswy was he who
defeated the Pagan Penda. Penda was the King of
Mercia, and cherished up to old age the most inveterate
hatred of the Christian religion,and this was increased
towards the Northumbrians, for his son Peada, on a visit
to that part of the country, had, by influence of the
beautiful daughter ofOswy,beenledto abandonPaganism
for the " White Christ." Penda, haughty and sanguinary
at the age of eighty as ever in his youth, prepared to
invade Deira and Bernicia (united under the title of

20
LEEDS BEFORE THE CONQUEST.
Northumbria). Oswy, whose brother Oswald had been
slain by the hoary warrior, knew and feared his power.
He made proffers of submission and tribute, but in vain;
Penda's design was the annihilation of the northern
Christians, and their envoys were treated with disdain.
Oswy, therefore,lefthis palaceat Oswythorp, and took the
field, preparing to make a stubborn fight against the
overwhelminghosts rapidlymarching for his destruction.
One night, when the pendingbattle was imminentfor the
morrow,he made a solemn vow that if he should,by the
aidof heaven, provevictorious,hisinfantdaughterElfleda
should be dedicated to a life of celibacy in a conventual
establishment. The morningdawned,and the battle was
fought, the contending armies meeting on Winwaedfeld
(Winmoor), at Seacroft, near Leeds, with the result for
whichOswy had so ardently prayed. The inappeasable
Penda was slain,while his officers,including many Saxon
princes, were left dead on the field to the number of
thirty. The vanquishedMercians fled in such confusion
and dismay that in crossing the Winwaed (probably the
Aire), which was then overflowing its banks, more of
them were drowned than had been slain by the Northumbrian
swords. After subduing Mercia,Oswy fulfilled his
vow by placing his daughter under the guardianship of
St. Hilda,the abbess of Hartlepool,afterwardsofWhitby,
and whom she succeeded in the abbacy. This was in
655. A few years later was born at Jarrow (near Shields)
the celebrated " Venerable Bede," from whose writings
the above accountis derived.
King afterking succeededto the throneof Northumbria;
local history is suspended for a continuity of bloodshed
and anarchythat visited nearlyeverypartof the kingdom.
At last the heptarchy gave place to the one throne of
Egbert, but still the country remained unsettled. The
Danes, too, arrived to lend their aid to the general state
ofmisery and confusion. There are remains of aDanish
fortification at Giant'sHill,Armley, and traces in other
parts, and theyin a great measurebecame naturalised.

LEEDS BEFORE THE CONQUEST. 21
The relics of Saxon times in this neighbourhood that
have come down to the present age are numerous. At
Barwick-in-Elmete is Weadle Hill,the mount of the keep
of a Saxon Castle, and human bones have been found in
the vicinity in a great quantity. Osmundthorpe had
formerly Saxon remains, so also had Gipton, while at
Bardseyis yet the relics of a Saxon stronghold,and there
are Saxon remains at Dewsbury and Hartshead-cum-
Clifton.
The onlyitem whichremains to be recordedprevious to
the Norman conquest is the fact that about iooo, one
Seleth, called a shepherd, was instructed in visions to
leave the southfor the north, and accordingly he settled
at Kirkstall, where he built a hermitageupon the spot, it
is stated, where the Abbey afterwardswas erected by the
Lacy family.
After the Norman Conquest, Leeds would probably
suffer from the resentment of the Conqueror at the
devastation of Yorkshire. In 1080, Leeds,together with
Holbeck and Woodhouse, was given by the Conqueror to
Ilbert de Laci, at which time it was onlyan agricultural
village with a population which was estimated at less
than three hundred, but boasted among its possessions,
according to the Doomsday Book, a priest, a church (St.
Peter's), and a mill. Now was added to these that
indispensable adjunct of feudal authority, a castle.
Leeds Castle was erected on the site now enclosed by
Mill Hill, Bishopgate, and the western portion of Boar
Lane. From the several names of " Park Row," " Park
Square," etc., it was most likely surrounded by a large
park. A tower likewise was built near Lydgate, in
Woodhouse Lane, called Tower Hill. There is now,
however, no remnant left of either of these structures,
though in 1836 the remains of the Castle moat were
discovered. We have this brief account of the erection
of the Castle,butit may almost be said to be without a
history, and was probably a structure of second-rate
importance as a fortress. In 1139 it was held against

22
LEEDS BEFORE THE CONQUEST.
Stephen as he marched northward against the Scotch,
but he tookit after a short siege. In 1222 it was but one
of the 1,115 castles which ground down the people of
England. From 1139 to 1399 there is scanty mention of
it in the annals of the country, but in the latter year a
circumstance took place within its walls which has
rendered its name memorable. This was the imprisonment
of the unfortunate RichardII.,whowas incarcerated
herebefore being finally removedto Pontefract, the scene
of hisprobablemurder. Thesojourn of the kinglycaptive
is noted in " Hardynge's Chronicle," printed by Grafton
in 1543 in the following quaint lines: —
The Kyng then sent Kyng Richard to Ledis,
There to be kepte surely in privitee;
Fro thens after to Pyckering went he needis,
And to Kna'nesbrurgh after led was he,
But to Pontefrete late wherehe did dee.
Excepting the moat above-mentioned, there has been
found little to indicate the Castle. The date of its
destruction is unknown, it probablyfalling into gradual
disuseuntil finally abandoned.

Chapter IV.
LEEDS UNDER THE NORMANS.
HE Normans wouldfind Leeds a meanvillage
composed of but about three lanes or streets,
possibly Briggate, Kirkgate, and Swinegate,
inhabited by some threehundred villains,who
were governed by seven thanes or esquires,
who held the seven manors into which "Leedes"
was divided. The town was granted to Ilbert
de Laci as onemanor at the Conquest, and by that great
warriorit was bestowed,probablyat some period previous
to 1089, upon Ralph Paganell,for we find him in that
year presenting the Church of Leeds and the Chapel of
Holbeck to the Priory of York. Probably the Castle was
built by the Paganellfamily to maintain their authority.
That after the ConquestLeeds began to assume a more
important characteris evident. There is in existence a
charter granted to the burgesses of Leeds by Maurice
Paganell, the lord of the manor, in the reign of King
John. This charter, written in the rudest and most
undecipherableLatin, has been made intelligible by the
learningand labourofDr. Whitaker; and a few references
to it will afford a striking picture of the state of Leeds in
that good old time, and an echo offering a startling
contrast to the sounds whichrise to-day from " the busy
Mart; the temperate Council Board * * * the
patriotic voice of ancient Leeds."

24
LEEDS UNDER THE NORMANS.
This charter had for its fundamental purpose the
granting of " free burgage " to the inhabitants; and the
conditions and regulations springing from it, slavish as
they may seem now, would be considered light by the
burgesses compared with the uncertainty of previous
arrangements. Theadministration ofnearlyall the affairs
of the town wasin the hands of an individual appointed
by the feudal lord,and who, as his delegate and representative,
had to see to the collection of all rents and
revenues, and to make the same over to the lord at
Pentecost yearly. The office was an annual one, and
must have had some advantages in addition to the
honour of acting as a " Prætor" (translatedinto Mayor),
for the charter mentions that " the burgesses shall have
the nearest claim, provided they will give as much for
the office as another." This gives the appearance ofthe
appointment being given to the highest bidder. The
lands, which are described as " tofts "— that is, homesteads,
gardens, orchards, etc. — might be sold by the
newly-created burgesses to any except religious fraternities;
and in all cases the buyers were to be as
subservient to the lord and amenable to the charter, as
had been the original holder, a condition which was
secured by the selling burgess transferring the property
into the hands of the Prætor, together with a penn)'; and
likewise the buyer was to pay a penny, upon which he
receivedthe lands, etc., as though it werea free gift,with
a warrantto maintainhis right " against allmen."
That the populationof Leeds was increasing is shown
by a clause permitting the burgesses to dispose of part of
their tofts for building purposes, the proportion of one
house to each toft being already insufficient. These
part-owners had all the privileges of burgess-ship,while
also had part-tenantsupon the payment of fourpenceas a
yearly fine to the Prætor. The same functionary also
presided in most cases of offences by the inhabitants,or
within the town; and curious details of legislation are
laid down for his guidance. If a charge was brought

LEEDS UNDER THE NORMANS.
against a burgess before the Prætor, the full denialof the
accused party should be considered a sufficient defence;
but it is to be supposed that this full denial included
proof, for it is further specified thatif the denial be made
andnot fully substantiated, the defendant should lose his
case,equally with him who could offer no denial of the
offence. In either case, after the forfeiture fixed by the
Prætor had been paid, the defendant was accounted a
competent witness. These rules were for the simpler
offences, and the jurisdiction may be termed an ancient
county court. For the graver charges of outrage,or the
shedding of blood, the accused must clear himself by
the oath of seven who would swear to his innocence.
If blood had not been shed three were sufficient ; butif a
burgess was impleaded of the offence bya burgess, twelve
of these compurgators wererequired.
Other libertieswere,thatno burgesscould be compelled
to go out of the borough to answer a plaint, excepting
those of the Crown; and if a stranger owed money to a
burgess,it was lawful to distrain upon his goods any day
of the week, except Fair days, without leave of the
Prætor. Should any of the burgesses fail to payin their
rents or other due moneys, there was appointed a severe
fine,in the proportion of five shillings to a farthing, in
addition to the original amount demanded. One of the
most curious privileges of the burgesses of Leeds was
the (in this day) humorous one of being permitted to
"
bake in the lord's oven according to custom."
" This
communefurnum," or publicoven,according to Parsons,
remained at the end of Kirkgate centuries after Maurice
and his Leeds charter had been forgotten. In the reign
of Queen Elizabeth it was farmed of the Crown at a
rental of £12 per annum, though it was said to yield a
clear profit of £120
per annum.
A convincing proof that the age of whichwe speak was
yet extremelybarbarous is given by another provision of
the charter, which speaks in the true spirit of its time,in
forbidding to females the place due to them as the
25

26 LEEDS UNDER THE NORMANS.
companions, andinmany respects the equals, of the alldominantmales
— This was the enactment that a woman
sold into slavery should not pay the usual tribute or tax
leviedupon the sale of other goods and chattels!
The same charter also recognises the superstitious
forms of trial, the ordeals ofwater and of single combat,
for second offences.
That Leedshad now a comparativeprosperityis evinced
by the increase of the numberof dwellings,but itis further
demonstrated by a privilege of the charter, by which the
burgesses were allowed to " convey grain and all other
goods by land or by water," which shows conclusively
thatthe peopleof Leeds were willingto avail themselves
of the proximity of the Aire, which would be the first
cause of the town's founding, andwhichin 1098 had been
rendered navigable,probablybymeans of dams, as far up
as KirkstallBridge.
This memorablecharter was granted in 1207, and soon
after the deathof Maurice Paganell the manor reverted to
the Lacies, who, as Earls of Lincoln, have frequent
mentionas its possessors. Theonly daughter and heiress
of the last Earlmarrying Thomas, Earl of Lancaster, the
Manor of Leeds passed with the other vast possessions
of the Lacies to the Duchy of Lancaster, and on the
ascension of HenryBolingbroke,Duke of Lancaster, as
HenryIV., to the Crown,inwhose possessionit continued
until the death of Anne,Consort of James I., who had it
as part of her jointure. It was then sold to private
individuals, apparently more than once, being finally
purchased in theyears 1629 and 1636 by Richard Sykes,
Alderman of Leeds, and the great grandfather of the
historian, Ralph Thoresby. He, however, permitted
seven other gentlemen to become joint purchasers, the
shares being each one-ninth, reserving a share each for
himself and his son. The lords of the Manor still have
power to holda Court Leet.
The harvests of 1314 and 1315 were very bad, and
extensive distress prevailed in Yorkshire, the poor being

LEEDS UNDER THE NORMANS. 27
driven even to devouring the corpses of those who first
fell victims to the pangs of starvation. We find,however,
that the monks of Kirkstall were very assiduous in
cultivating the land, draining themarshes, enclosing and
reclaiming commons and woods, by which the district
round the neighbourhood of Leeds was considerably
improved,and in 1372 we find, instead of the one mill,
rude, and valued, according to the Doomsday Book, at
four shillings, two corn mills, which, styled " the corn
mills of the Queen's
Majesty at Leeds," were held by
special letters patent under the seal of the Duchy of
Lancaster, and it is stated that in the same reign
(Edward III.), fulling mills stood near the Castle. In
1376 the increasing prosperity and extent of the town
rendered desirablethe building of a bridge over the Aire
at Leeds. This,probably, was not the first bridge which
took the place of the Roman trajectus or ford, but was
most likely the mostpermanent in characterand material,
affording a means of transit as well as communication,
and is in any case the first bridge of which any distinct
mention is made. It was stated to have been built from
the ruins of the Castle,but that is not likely,the Castle
being used for the imprisonment of RichardII. twentythree
years after the noticeof the bridge's erection. The
same was also stated of the chantry which was built on
the bridge, but this was refuted by the discovery at its
demolitionthat the foundations of the chapel were incorporated
with those of the bridge itself,
The next episode in the history of the county in which
Leeds took any part was the disastrous " Pilgrimage of
Grace" of 1535. On the dissolution of the innumerable
religious houses, and the dispersion of their monkish
inmates, these worked on the superstition of the people,
and the personal awein which they themselves wereyet
held by the ignorant, to arouse an agitation by their
harangues,having for an object the reinstatement of the
expelled clerics. An immense multitude was speedily
raised in the northern counties, and which, armed and

28
LEEDS UNDER THE NORMANS.
accompanied by the priests in the vestures of their
respective orders, marched south under the captaingeneralship
of Robert Aske, of Aughton. Among the
leaders were the bailiffs of Leeds, and as the vast
procession passed through the district on its wayto the
destruction which awaitedit, wemay suppose that many
of the devout Romanists of Leeds wouldhelp to swell the
fanatic ranks.
From that time to that of the Stuarts there is little
callingfor notice. In 1612, the ninth year of the reign of
James I., a survey of the Manor of Leeds was prepared,
inwhich three " Waugh Milns" arementioned. In 1620,
in the same reign, an inquisition into the administration
of the chief charities of Leeds was instituted under a
commission to inquire into "Charitable Uses." From
the accounts of the inquisition we learn that a toll or tax,
called the " Toll Dish," which had been anciently levied
by the holders of the Duchy of Lancaster, was still in
force. This was a tax upon all corn brought into the
Leeds market, and the sums raised by this means were
divided into three parts — one-third beingpayable to the
chief officer ofthe town, the bailiff; one-thirdto be given
to the poor,and one-thirdto be expended on the repair of
the highways. In orderto secure the fair divisionof the
toll under the existing arrangements,two persons were
appointed by the bailiff and the commissioners respectively,
and these fulfilled their duties every market day
by accordinglycollectingand dividing the tax. This tax,
possibly well fitted for the rude days in which it was
instituted, but utterly out of characterwith the advanced
state of trade at the later periods of which we speak,
continued to be demandeduntil the end of the eighteenth
century,when it was finally abolished.
The visit of the plague next requires attention.
According to Thoresby, Yorkshire had, during the
hundred years previous to 1644, been often visited by
the epidemic, and Leeds had suffered much, in 1596
and 1597 " the death roll increasing from 120 to 311."

LEEDS UNDER THE NORMANS. 29
In March, 1644, however, the pestilence broke out in
unprecedentedviolence, and though the greatest fatality
occurred among the squalid and poverty-stricken, yet the
disease ragedin every part. All who were able departed
from the town, now the abode of death. The deserted
streets wereovergrown with grass, and the markets were
removed to Woodhouse, while the door of the Old Church
waskeptshut,anditis evensaid thatsuch wasthecontaminatinginfluence
ofthe air that the birdsfell down dead as
they flew over the devoted spot. The localities where
this fearful scourge was most fatal were Marsh Lane,
The Calls, Call Lane, Vicar Lane, the Vicar's Croft,
Lower Briggate, and Mill Hill. The minister of St.
John's
Church, Robert Todd, remained in the town to
afford the consolations of religionto the unhappy people;
while Robert Saxton, assuming the charge of Leeds
parish, at once opened the doors of the Old Church, and
the suspended services were resumed. It is recorded in
the parish register that in August, 1645, 131 persons had
died of the distemper " before the plague was perceived!"
But by the end of December it had abated, and finally
died out, after carrying off 1,325 persons, which number
was more than a fifth of the inhabitants. Before concluding
the relationof the subject of epidemics, of which
the echo that remains is an indignant cry against the
reckless indifference with which it is too common to
regard the wretchednessand squalor of the poor, we may
imitate a notable historian by quoting from Thoresby's
work a paragraph dealing with a later visitation upon
Leeds. " In December, 1675, was an epidemicdisorder,
profanely calledthe jfolly Raut;it was a severecold and
violent cough,which not onlyaffectedYork,Hull,Halifax,
in these parts,but the counties ofWestmoreland, Durham,
Northumberland, etc.; the weekly bills of mortality in
London were also increased three hundred. ... It
affected all manner of persons, and that so universally,
thatit was almost impossible to hear distinctly an entire
sentence of a sermon."

Chapter V,
THE JEWISH MASSACRE AT YORK.
ROMINENT among the many important
events which have rendered the ancient
Roman metropolis of York famous in the
historic annals of our country, is the terrible
incident known as the Jewish Massacre.
The time was the reign of Richard of the Lion
iP Heart; the scene was York Castle, whoseimposing
structure will be familiarto any who have visited that
city; and part of which (Clifford's Tower) boasts of
erectionby William the Conqueor.
At the time of which wewrite, namely,the early part
of Richard I.'s reign, the records of almost every
European nation were stained with accounts of the
inhuman usage of the Jews, and a dark page of our own
history is found when weinquireintothe treatmentof that
unhappy peoplein England at this period. The student
of history will remember that a predominatinginfluence
was exercisedon the peopleof that epochby the institution
of Crusades, and the development of chivalry,to which,
indeed, all other progress had to give way. Crusading
expeditions could not be organisedwithout incurring very
considerable expense, and hence we find that in England
an immense number of estates had to be mortgaged to
obtain the funds necessary for these warlikepilgrimages.
Hence the Jews held the Crusaders, to acertain extent,in
their power,for the warriors were compelled to place in

JEWISH MASSACRE AT YORK.
pawn their property as security for the money advanced
by the Hebrews, who were then the richest persons in
the country. In additionto the pecuniaryobligations of
the Christians inclining them to dislike the Jews, the
superstition of the time credited the mysterious people
with possessing a supernatural power over Christians, an
influence supposed to be resident in the glances of the
Hebrew eye, so we see that Richard, ostensibly for this
reason, wouldpermit no Jew to be present at his coronation
under penaltyofdeath, and,in general, treated them
with such contempt that we cannot but consider him as
indirectly responsible for the popular fury against them.
In spite, however, of the royal injunction for the nonadmittance
of Jews at the coronation, several from York
presented themselves at Westminster Hall, laden with
valuable gifts for the King, thinking, no doubt, by this
means to propitiate him, and so render the state of
constant dread, in which the Jews throughout the country
lived, more tolerable. But instead of this, on being
detected,they were treated with extreme cruelty,beingso
severely beaten that several were killed; one was forcibly
baptised, and they were robbed of their rich gifts and
expelled. The examplewas followed wherever the Jews
resided; robbery, ill-usage,and murder was their portion
on every side.
We now arrive at the outbreakof the massacre. It was
on a bleak March night that certainparts of York were
discovered to be in flames, and it was at once conjectured
that the fire was intentionalin its origin,and intended as
a cloak for some ulterior design. Such, indeed, proved
to be the case, for upon the same night the house of a
Jew, named Benedict (one of those who escaped from
London alive, but had subsequently died from the
injuries received at the hands of the truly Christian
coronation mob),was entered,and his widowand children
ruthlessly murdered, the house sacked, and then burned.
The consternation spread amongst the resident Jews of
the city by this barbarous act was such as no description
31

32
JEWISH MASSACRE AT YORK
can enable us to fully realise,for none knew whose turn
might come the next for similar treatment. Another of
the Hebrews, Jocenus, who had escaped from London,
and had, therefore, special need to fear the mob, asked
leave ofthe Governor to takerefuge with his family in the
Castle. He had but shortly availed himself of the
Governor's permission, and vacated his house, whenit
was attacked. The exampleof Jocenus was followedby
a large number of his race,until almost all the Jewish
population of York had taken refuge in the Castle, a
proceedingwhich greatlyprovoked those who had hoped
to secure a rich bootyby the persecution. The exciting
events of the following days are well treated in the
following paragraph culled from Miall's " Yorkshire
Illustrations of English History." In the rage of the
conspirators they subjected the few Jews
within their
reach to the most torturing treatment, and set before
them the alternative of baptism or death. In the meantime,
the majority of the body remained in the Castle.
But one day, seeing the Governor leave the building, a
a sudden terror seized them that he would be gained over
by their enemies, and that the whole body would be
delivered over to their malice. Influenced by this fear,
when the Governor returned the Jews denied him
admission. Indignant at this treatment, the Governor
went to Randal de Grenville, the High Sheriff, to whom
he toldhis tale,and he also was extremelyirritatedat the
insult offered to the royal authority represented in his
person. He hastilyorderedthat entrance should be made
by force. The populace caught the excitement, and
took their measures accordingly. Seeing the effect of
his words the High Sheriffwouldhave retracted his order,
but it was toolate. The desire of themultitude toattack
the Jews in the citadel had becomeuncontrollable. Led
on by a canon of the Premonstratensian Order, they
surrounded the Castle and began the work of demolition.
The monk headed the people, shouting out, ' The
enemies of Christ must be destroyed ' till,in attempting

JEWISH MASSACRE AT YORK. 33
to batter down the walls, a dislodged stone fell upon his
head and killed him." The besieged probablynumbered
about a thousand,of which five hundredis computed as
the number of women and children.
We canform but aninadequate idea ofthe sufferings of
the unfortunate Jews as the maddened mob gradually
forced an entrance into their stronghold. Loud were
their cries for mercy, and enormous were the sums of
money offered as its price,but both cries and bribes were
equally inefficacious, for the crowd became more and
more infuriated and violent, until it was evident, from
their uncontrollable excitement, that the doom of the
besieged was sealed. The Jews themselves recognised
the hopelessness of any escape, but resolved, with a
courage lent by despair, never to fall alive into the hands
of the ruffian mob. One of the Rabbis, recollecting the
sacrifice of Abraham, urged upon the Jews, in response
to their lamentable cries, that they should console themselves
as much as possible, as for the cause of their
religion did they suffer this oppression which had been
brought upon them; and as they refused to be comforted,
conclude, in these terribleterms: — " Men of Israel, listen
to my advice! It is better that we should kill each other
than fall into the hands of the enemies of our Lord."
The Jews consented to conform to this advice,deeming
self-murder the only alternative left for their choice.
Some few only,who hoped to make conditions for their
lives, dissented from the proposal. They then commenced
proceedingsby piling togetherin a vast heap all
their combustible property, which was then fired, thus
depriving their enemies of much valuable plunder. In
addition to this they battered and defaced their plate.
Next came the awful sacrifice. Each father of a family,
acting with a stern abnegationof everytender feeling of
humanity,being actuated by higher feeling of consideration
for his loved ones, acted the part of executioner
towards them, first cutting the throats of his children,
then that ofhis wife! Then the heads of the families did
1

34
JEWISH MASSACRE AT YORK.
the like office for each other, till remained of the party
who had bound themselves by the compact but Jocenus
and the Rabbi. The latter consummated the horrible
butchery by cutting the throat of Jocenus as they both
stoodsurrounded by the bleedingbodiesof their ill-starred
brethren; he then killed himself. The few who had held
alooffrom theself-massacrenowattemptedto excite some
littlecompassionin the breasts of the besiegersbyrelating
from the wall the dire occurrences which had just taken
place,and sought to removetheir incredulity by throwing
over some of the corpses. But there were those among
the leaders of the attacking party, those whose interests
hardened their hearts and dulled their ears against any
appealfor mercy. The fortress was on the point of being
entered, when the Hebrews threw open the gate and
themselves on the mercy of the mob,whichwas such that
in an instant every survivorwas killedin spite of agonised
calls for baptism,on nearlyall other occasionsthe alternative
of death. The Jews of York being thus rootedout,
their enemies and,it may be presumed, creditors, made
haste to the Minster, where the Jewish records and deeds
had been deposited,and heapingthem on the floor of the
holypile itself, burnedall the documents which relatedto
the advanceof money. Such was the slownessofinternal
communication in this country at the time this awful
tragedy tookplace that it was several months before the
details were known by the authorities. Richard,whohad
since taken his departure for the HolyLand, was exceedingly
indignant with the citizens of York for their
behaviour, and ordered the Bishop of Ely to use every
effort to find and bring to justice the perpetrators of the
crime. The result was exceedingly small. The Bishop
marched upon York at the head of a small army, but
found on reachingthe city thatthe leadersof the persecution
had fled to Scotland, and the inhabitants denied all
participation in the deeds of violence. The High Sheriff
and Governor were, indeed, removed from their offices,
but with this and the levying ofa fine to repairthe Castle,

JEWISH MASSACRE AT YORK. 35
the Bishop seems to have been satisfied, not one individual
being everpunished for the lawless outbreak. It
might be imagined that after these terrible reminiscences
the City of York would be abhorredby the Jews, and that
a Jewish foot would never more have been set in its
environs; but such were its facilities for their various
occupations that they again gathered within its walls,
where many of their race now dwell in peace and
prosperity.

Chapter VI.
MYSTERY PLAYS IN YORKSHIRE.
O better index to a certain phase and epoch of
mediæval life can be obtained than from the
ancient Mystery Plays. Prevalent on the
continent, and performed there with great
spirit from very early times, they were introduced
into England by, it is said, an Englishman
named Hilarius, soon after the Norman Conquest,
and rapidly became popular. During the 12th century
they werereceived with the greatest favour, but gradually
declined towards the end of the 14th, though they were
performed(on Sunday) so latelyas the middleof the 16th.
The origin of the Mystery Plays, Corpus Christi Plays,
or Moralities,is ascribable to the Church, monks being,
as a rule, both the authors and actors of the pieces,and
the object in presenting these strange performances to
the people was the expounding of the Bible's lessons.
As might be expected,the arrangements are, to a modern
mind, extremely ludicrous. The stages on which the
plays were shown usually consisted of three floors, the
highest representing Heaven, the next Earth, and the
lowermost Hell. On one occasion we read of " Hell "
being accidentally set on fire, and great uneasiness was
thereupon exhibited by its occupants! Such accidents,
of course, rendered repairs necessary, and we hear of an
item — payd for mending hell mought, ijd.; and payd for
keeping of fyre at hellmought, iiijd. Hell was generally

MYSTERY PLAYS IN YORKSHIRE. 37
represented by the type of whale's open jaws, behind
which a fire waslighted in such a manner as not to injure
thedamned whohad to pass through this gaping mouth,
or the persons sustaining the character of the demons
inside. It is said that these latter actors sometimes gave
offence by walking among the spectators who were
witnessing the performance. So much for the general
stage management. We now propose to deal with the
subject so far as it relates to Yorkshire from the earliest
introduction of the plays into this county, which was
probably during the 13th century. This we learn from
the formation of a guild at York, to organise such performances,
which was done in the year 1250, under the
title of the Corpus Christi Guild. Under its auspices as
many as fifty-six plays were there enacted at different
times, opening with a play entitled the "Creation," and
closing with that called " Doomsday," betweenwhichtwo
events all the chief occurrences narratedinthe Bible were
included. The plays were exhibited in the principal
streets, and were so performed as to follow in proper
succession. After the Creation had been performed in
one street it was reproduced in another, and so on,until
the wholefifty-six had been shown in each of the streets.
We read that the Mayor, WilliamBowes, on the 7th of
June, 1417, ordered that the plays should be shown in the
following order: — First, in Micklegate, at the gates of
the Holy Trinity Prior)*; then at the door of Robert
Harpham; after this at the door of the late John Gyseburn;
next at " Skelder-gate-hend" and " North-stretehend;"
then at the end of " Conyng-strete," towards
" Castel-gate;" afterwards at the end of " Jubir-gate;"
then at the door of " Henry Wyman, deceased, in
Conyng-strete;" next at the Common-hall at the end of
Conyng-strete; next at the door of Abraham del Brig,
deceased,in " Stayne-gate;" next at the end of Staynegate,
at the Minster-gates; next at the end of " Girdlergate,"
in Peter-gate; and,last of all, upon thePavement,
making in all twelve representations. The object of this

38
MYSTERY PLAYSIN YORKSHIRE.
was to keep the streets as clear as possible, for the concourse
of people who would crowd from all parts to
witness the Mysteries must have been immense, and by
the observance of the above method good order was
generally preserved. One of the best known of the York
Mystery Plays was that of " Noah's Flood," from which
we give a few extracts to illustrate the curious nature of
the performances and the character of the " libretto."
The play openswith the entrance of an actor representing
God, who, after lamenting the universal wickedness of
the world,determines to destroyit and all the " folke that
are thereone." Noah next appears, and is told by the
other to construct an ark, by means of which to save
himself and family. Noah's sons enter, andtheyconverse,
and then prepare to construct the ark, Noah (the orthographyis
somewhatmodernised) saying —
O Lord,Ithank thee, loud and still,
That to me art in such will,
And spares me and my household to spill,
AsInow smoothly find.
Thy bidding, Lord,Ishall fulfil,
And never more thee grievenor grill (provoke),
That such gracehath sent me till
Amongst all mankind.
Have done, youmen and women all,
Go we work,but din (without noise),
AndIam ready bound.
After this the wife and sons of Noah say a few words
respecting their respective duties during the construction.
Noah commences the building of the " shippe," and the
play proceeds as follows: —
Noah:
Now in the nameof God,Ibegin
To make the ship that we shall in.
That we maybe ready for to swim
At the coming of the flood.
These boardshere pinItogether
To bear us safe from the weather,
That wemay row hither and thither
And safe be from the flood.

mystery playsin Yorkshire. 39
Of this tree willImake themast,
Tied with cables that will last,
With a sail yard for each blast,
And each thingin their kind;
With topcastleand bowsprit.
Both cords andropes,Ihave all mette (measured)
To sail forth at the next wet,
This ship is at an end.
Wife, we shall in this vessel be kept,
My children and thouIwould yein leapt.
Noah's Wife:
In faith, Noah,Iwould aslief thou slept !
For all thy fryrish (nice) fare
Iwill not do after thy rede (advice).
Noah:
Good wife, do now as Ithee bid.
Noah's Wife:
I'faith I'llnot tillIseemore need,
Though thou stand all day and stare.
Noah next laments the "crabbed" nature of womankind.
The ark,however,is at lengthfinished,and afterreceiving
from God a list of the animals that are to enter into it
with him, Noah enters the ark with all his family except
his wife. Here considerable liberty is taken with the
Biblical version, and a strange scene is witnessed.
Noah's wife, a person of exceedinglywhimsical temper,
inreply to herhusband's appeal to her to enter the ark,
gives vent to a volley of strong language, saying that
unless her "gossips " are allowed to go in with her she
" will not out of this town," and tells him to "row where
he lists," and get a new wife. At last the dutiful Japhet
compels his mother to enter by main force, and immediately
upon her entrance she gives herself the task of
boxingNoah's ears. He remarks —
Ha, ha, marry, this is hot,
Itis good for to be still.
Ha,children, methinks myboat removes,
Our tarryinghere grievesme ill,
Over theland the water spreads.
God, do as thou wilt.

40
MYSTERY PLAYSIN YORKSHIRE.
Ah, great God, thou art so good
That [who] works not thy will is wood (mad)
Now all this world is one flood,
AsIsee well insight.
This windowIwill shut anon,
And into my chamberIwill go
Till this water so great mowe (may)
Be slacked through Thy might.
The window of the ark is now closed for a short time,
supposed to be during the periodof the Flood,after which
it is opened,and Noah thanks God for granting him such
grace. The Almightyreplies, and blesses the Patriarch,
the play finishing with the following: —
My bow between you and me,
In the firmament shall be,
By everytoken that you shall see,
That such vengeance shall cease.
Man shall never more
Be wasted with water, as he hath beenbefore;
But for sin that grieveth me sore,
Therefore this vengeance.
My blessing, Noah,Igive thee here,
To thee, Noah, my servant dear;
For vengeanceshall nomore appear;
And now farewell, my darling dear.
At Wakefield the acting ofMysteryPlays was practised
to a great extent. They were thirty-two in number, and
to the end that they might be easily understood by the
commonpeople,were writtenin the north countrydialect.
One of the Wakefield Mysteries was named the " Shepherd'sPlay,"
and we find in it numerouspassages which
in our day decidedly seem to verge on the comic. The
First Shepherd gives utterance to the following realistic
and detailedcomplaint,which, however, is not wantingin
a certain wit: —
Lord, what these weathers are cold andIam illhappid!
Iam near hand dold, so long haveInappid;
My legs they fold, my fingers are chappid;
Itis not asIwould, forIam all lappid in sorrow.

MYSTERY PLAYSIN YORKSHIRE. 41
Then the Second Shepherd has to say —
Benste (Benedicte) and Dominus ! what may this bemean ?
Why fares this world thus of have we not seen.
Lord, these wethers are spiteous, and the weathers full keen,
And the frost so hideous they water my een,
No lie.
Now indry, now in wete,
Now insnow, now insleet,
When my shoon freeze tomy feet,
Itis not all easy!
This playcontinues in a similar strain to the end, when
the shepherds are gladdenedby the tidings of the birth of
the Saviour ofthe world,and they joyfully set out to offer
their gifts for his gracious acceptance.
Another of the Wakefield plays, which is of a notable
description,isthat entitled " Abraham," openingwith an
apostrophe to the Almighty which lacks the ludicrous
character ofthe instances alreadygiven, for which reason
it is quoted here.
Abraham: Adonay (Lord) thou God veray(true)
Thou hear us when we to thee call!
As thou art he that best may,
Thou are most succour and help of all !
Mightful Lord ! to theeIpray,
Let once the oil ofmercy fall!
ShallIne'er abide that day ?
Truly yetIhopeIshall.
Mercy, Lord Omnipotent !
Long since he this world has wrought:
Whither are all ourelders went ?
This muses mickle in my thought.
From Adamunto Eve assent,
Eat of that apple sparedhe nought,
For all the wisdom that he ment,
Full dear that bargain has he bought
From Paradise that bade him gang:
He went mourning with simple cheer,
And after livedhe here full lang,
More than threehundred year,
Insorrow and in travailstrang.

42
MYSTERY PLAYSIN YORKSHIRE.
To which the following rejoinder,made by the person
undertakingthe part ofGod: —
Then says —
Iwill help Adam and his kind,
MightIlove and lewte [loyalty] find;
Would they to me be true, andblin [cease]
Of their pride and of their sin:
My servantIwill found and frast [prove and try],
Abraham, if he be trast [trusty],
On certain wiseIwill him prove
Ifhe to me be true oflove.
Abraham! Abraham !
Abraham:Who is that ? ware,let me see,
Iheard oneneven [name] my name.
God:ItisI, take tent [heed] to me
That formed thy fatherAdam,
And everything init [its] degree.
After which follow God's command to Abraham to
sacrifice Isaac, and the ensuing events.
At Hull theMysteryPlays were accompaniedby various
pageants. They were generallyheld on what was called
" Plough Day," when the numerous guilds of the town
paraded through the streets with great ceremony. The
members of the different trades had each their peculiar
dresses, badges, banners, etc., and as they marched
through the town to the sound of various kinds of music
and the pealingof the church bells they must have presented
an impressive and brilliantappearance. Amongst
the different crafts which joined in the procession were
the " tylers, saddlers, walkers, ropers, crelers, glovers,
shermen, watermen,bowersand archers, mustard makers
andchandlers,husbandmen,vintners, goldsmiths,barbers,
fishers, coopers, shoemakers, scryners,labourers, millers,
skinners, barkers, lusters, tailors, butchers, merchants,
drapers, cutlers and potters, weavers, bakers, cooks,
wrights, and smiths."
After the large numberof guilds connected with these
crafts had marched through the principal streets of the

MYSTERY PLAYS IN YORKSHIRE.
town, they proceeded to the Holy Trinity Church, where,
for their entertainment and instruction,the Mystery Play
was performed.
There are some very curious entriesin the HullTrinity
House books respecting the fees paid to the actors, etc.
The following are extracts: —
Item for a payrofnew mytens to Noye 4d.
amendingNoye Pyleh 4d.
payd to Nicholas Helpby for wrytg theplay .. yd.
for arope tohyng the shipp in ye Kyrk 2d.
payd for drink to Noe
ix galons of ale 13d.
for taking down shype,andhyngyng up agayn.. 2s.
for wyr when the shype went about 2d.
In 1421 a new " shype " was required, and it cost £__ 8s. 4d.
In 1447 the wages ofRobert Brown, who represented God,
were 6d.
And so continueduntil 1484, when Thomas Sawers played
the part, andwas paid 8d.
Which, in 1487, was increased to iod.
In1520 the payment went up to is.
Andso continueduntil 1529.
In 1469 the wagesof Noye and his wyffwere 2id.
In 1470 the wagesof Noye and his wyffwere 23d.
In1485 the payments were separated and also reduced, to
Noye I2d.
To Noye's whyff 8d.
In1520 the payment had beenincreased to Noe 2s.
Noe's whyff i8d.
In other towns we hear of quaint Mystery items which
add to the interest of the somewhat similar records of
this relic of mediæval religion. We read of payment
being made for such pyrotechnic feats as " setting the
world on syer," A strangeitem is that, too,which states
that ten shillings was " payd for making the ij devells'
facys," or that there was " payd to Crowe for makyng
of iij worldys, ijs." Demons seem to have been a better
paidclass than angels,probablybecause their duties were
heavier, or there may have been some difficulty in procuring
persons willingto assume the outward semblance
43

44
MYSTERY PLAYS IN YORKSHIRE.
of wickedness. The demonsare enteredat three shillings,
whiletwo is considered sufficient payment for an angel.
It will not, perhaps, be out of place here to mention
that the best English examples of Mystery, or Miracle,
plays are those which wererepresented at Chester, which
are yet, for the most part, extant. They number twentyfour,
commencing with the " Fall of Lucifer," and
terminatingwith the usual " Doomsday."
We may say that the subject of our title is far from
being exhausted by this account, but sufficient is here
presented for the reader to form a just idea of the curious
observances as held in Yorkshire. The carvings in our
cathedrals and churches, and the songs and writings
which have come down to us from the days of Mystery
Plays are full of references to that now extinct institution.

Chapter VII.
BOLTON ABBEY: ITS HISTORY AND
TRADITIONS.
HERE are few places in this England of ours
more attractive than the locality in which
Bolton Abbey is situated, and the memories
of the past with which that venerablepileis
associated are as romantically interesting as
the district is charming. The ruins of the Abbey
are enclosed in a rocky dell at the village bearing
the same name,and is countedamongtheprettiest resorts
of picturesque Ciaven. The local, but world-known
historian, Dr. Whittaker, in critically comparing the
situation of Bolton Priory with that of other similar
buildings, justly elevates it in point of grandeur above
any other Abbey in the north. He says it has " no equal
amongst the northern houses, and perhaps not in the
kingdom. Fountains, as a building,is moreentire,more
spacious and magnificent; but the valley of the Skell is
insignificant and without features. Furness, which is
more dilapidated, ranks lower still in point of situation.
Kirkstall, as a mere ruin, is superior to Bolton; but
though deficient in neither wood nor water, it wants the
seclusion of a deep valleyand the termination of a bold
rocky background. Tintern,perhaps, most resemblesit ;
hereyou have rock,wood, and water inperfection,but no
foreground whatever."

46
BOLTON ABBEY.
The original situation of the Priorywas at Embsay,
where it was founded in the year ii2i,by William de
Meschines and his wife Cecily as a Priory of Canons
of the Order of St. Augustine. After an existence of
thirty-three years at Embsay, the Priory is said to have
been transferred to the present locality, and numerous
reasons are given for the change. The chief and most
generally credited is that contained in the following
account: —
On the death of the founders an only daughter, Alice,
was left, who adopted her mother's name of Romelli.
This lady married William Fitz Duncan, nephew of
David, King of Scotland, by whom he was established,
" by force ofarms," in the honour of Skipton and Crafra
(Craven) in the year 1152. A son was the issue of this
marriage,who bore the name of the Boy of Egremond,
and who was much adored by his mother. Tradition
says that this boy was drowned in attempting to jump
over the Strid,a narrow part of the river Wharfe, with a
greyhound in leash. The dog did not bound over with
his master,but held back, and the consequence was that
the youth was thrown into the torrent. The accident
was witnessed by a forester, who immediately proceeded
to the boy's mother, andin sorrowful tones asked, " What
is good for a bootless bene ?" which curious question was
at once understood by Romelli, who replied, " Endless
sorrow," and she is said to have been thrown into the
utmost grief by the sad occurrence. The accident has
given originto some verses by the poet Rogers,which are
worthyof reproduction. We quote fromthem asfollows: —
" Say what remains when hope is fled ? "
She answered, " Endless weeping!"
For in the herdsman's eye she read
Who in his shroud was sleeping.
At Embsay rung the matinbell,
The stag was roused in Barden-fell;
The mingled sounds were swelling, dying,
And down the Wharf ahern was flying;

BOLTON ABBEY.
When near the Cabin in the wood,
Intartan clad and forest green,
With hound in leash andhawk in hood,
The Boy of Egremond was seen.
Blithe washis song — a song ofyore;
But where the rock is rent in two,
And the river rushes through,
His voice washeard no more!
'Twas but a step! the gulphhe passed;
But that step — it was his last!
As through themist he winged his way,
(A cloud that hovers night and day,)
The hound hung back,and back he drew,
The master and his merlin too.
That narrow place of noise and strife
Received their little all of life!
There now thematin bell is rung!
The " Miserere " ! duly sung;
And theholy menin cowl and hood
Are wanderingup and down the wood;
But what avail they ? Ruthless Lord,
Thou didst not shudder whenthe sword
Here on the youngits fury spent,
The helpless and the innocent.
Sit now and answer groan for groan;
The child before thee is thy own.
And she who wildly wanders there —
The mother, in her long despair,
Shall oft remind thee waking, sleeping,
Of those who by the Wharf were weeping;
Of those who would not be consoled,
When red withblood the river rolled.
This sad occurrenceis said to have been the cause ofthe
removal, whichis considered a sort of commemoration of
the event, and the selection of Bolton is explainedby its
being the nearest eligible site to where the accident
happened.
But the change had more probablya connection with
monkish appreciation of the superior advantages of
Bolton. Mr. Walbran, who may be quoted as an
authority on the subject, is of opinion that the legend
cannot be implicitly received as truth; for when the Lady
47

48
BOLTON ABBEY.
Alice gave the Canons ofEmbsay her manor of Boltonin
exchange for their manors of Skibdeen and Stretton, her
son, William — andin a pedigree exhibited to Parliament
in 1315 he is set down as her only son — appears in the
charter as a consenting party to the transaction. For
this reason, Dr. Whittaker conjectures that the legend
refers to one of the two sons of the first foundress,bothof
whom died young; butit may be betterreconciled to the
stubbornpiece of evidence affordedby the charter above
referred to, by supposing that the manor of Bolton had
been exchanged for the convenience of Alice before the
loss of her son, and that subsequentlythe Canons were
glad to find a pretext in her disconsolate sorrow for
descending from the bleak and cheerless heights of
Embsay to the warm and sheltered nook in their newlyacquiredpossession.
To this suppositionisMr.Walbran
inclined, from the fact that neither in this deed of
exchange nor in its confirmation by King Henry II. is
there any allusion or reference to the future dispositionof
their donation; and, in another charter made apparently
soon after, whereby Alice confirmed the grants of her
parents and herself, she states that the translation to
Bolton was made by her " wish, assent, and ordination."
It is in the latterpart of this second charteronly that it
is recited that she " gave to the church of Bolton that
place, and the whole village of Bolton to found there a
church of Canons Regular," and added the donation of
" the place called Stede and the land between Passford
and Speetbek, and the rivers Wharfe and Walkesburn."
' To whatever reason the Abbey owes its present situation,
it has come down to us asaninterestingmementoof
that period of our history when monks and abbotslorded
it overmany a fair estate; and it is the constant resort of
the tourist and antiquary,who, in the solemn quietude of
itsvicinity,findsereneenjoyment andfood for speculation.
On the north side of the Prioryis the cemetery, in which
are many curious and antique tombstoneswell worthy of
inspection. But the chief interest of this place is in

s
BOLTON ABBEY. 49
connection with a strange tradition, which, like that
already dealt with, has been the theme of a poet pen.
This is the legend of " The White Doe of Rylstone."
The tradition is to the effect that at a period a little
subsequent to the DissolutionoftheMonasteries, a white
doe long continued to make a weeklypilgrimage from the
village of Rylstone over the fields to Bolton, and was
constantly found in the Abbey Churchyard during divine
service, after which being ended she took her return
journeyhome as regularlyas the rest ofthe congregation.
The explanation is as follows: — Rylstone belonged to
Richard Norton, whowas engagedin the religious rising
in the North, and who for his share in it was executedat
York. He had a son named Francis Norton, who was
present during his execution. Francis is said to have
immediatelyset out for his ancestralhome, but was overtaken
and slain by a troopof horse despatched after him,
according to the instructionsof the Earlof Sussex,and he
was buried in Bolton Abbey. He had an only sister,
named Emily, who was passionately fond of him, and it
is related that she was in the habitof visiting his grave
every week, accompanied by a white doe, which her
brother had tamed and presented to her. The attached
animal, through so frequently visiting the grave, became
accustomed to the journey,and was able to find its way
alone from Rylstone to Bolton, and when in course of
time the Lady Emily died, the white doe continued the
weekly visits. The doe was regarded by the people of
the surroundingparts with the most reverential awe, and
many of the superstitious believed that it was the Lady
Romelli who had assumed this form and performed the
regular pilgrimage to mourn over the overthrow of the
Priory. Wordsworth has beautifullyversified the strange
and touchingstory thus: —
4
Most to Bolton's sacred pile
On favouringnights she lovedto go
There ranged through cloister, court,and aisle,
Attendedby the soft-paced Doe;

50
BOLTON ABBEY.
Nor did she fear in thestill moonshine
To look upon Saint Mary's shrine;
Nor on thelonely turf that showed
Where Francis slept in his last abode.
The poet then deals with the solitary wandering of
doe and her continued visits to the grave.
. . bears amemory and amind
Raised far above thelaw ofkind;
Haunting the spots withlonely cheer
Which her dear mistress once held dear;
Loves most whatEmily loved most—
The enclosure ofthis churchyard ground ;
Here wanders like a glidingghost;
And every Sabbathhere is found;
Comes with the peoplewhen the bells
Are heard among themoorland dells,
Finds entrance through yon archwhere way
Lies open on the Sabbath day;
Here walks amid themournful waste
Of prostrate altars, shrines defaced,
And floors encumbered with rich show
Of fretwork imagerylaid low;
Paces softly, or makes halt,
By fractured cell, or tomb, or vault,
By plateofmonumental brass
Dim-gleaming among weeds and grass,
Andsculptured forms of warriors brave;
But chiefly by that single grave,
That one sequesteredhillock green,
The pensive visitant is seen.
the
Besides the fictitious and legendaryassociationsofBolton,
there are in the detailsof its interesting architecture and
in the grandeffect of the church and landscape a hundred
clinging reminders of times long past, giving an air of
reality that seems to snatch us from our own day intothat
of centuries ago, and makeus feel a momentary surprise
at seeing no cowled inhabitant passing to and fro, or
hearing no echo of chants long since diedaway never to
be renewed. One who has vividlyrealisedthe appearance
of the Abbeyin old days thus writes: " When this fine old
Abbey wasin the zenithof its powerand splendour; when

BOLTON ABBEY.
the windows of the choir, with their matchless stone
tracery, were filled with beautiful stained glass; when
the numerous marble altar tombs yet retained all their
freshness unmarred by the puritanical hand of the
destroyer; and when the banners and other armorial
insignia of the good and the great of a bygone generation
— the Cliffords, the Romellis, the Meschines, the Mauleverers,
the Claphams,and the Nortons — hung from the
lofty roof, very beautiful must have been the scene which
presented itselfon some solemn festival or Saints'day, as
the monks, with torch and banneret and crucifix, walked
in solemn procession round the Abbey, while one of
those angel-boy'svoices, which we still sometimeshearin
cathedrals,chanted thesolemnlitany, which was ever and
anon lostamidst the swellof ' Ona,ona pro noblis.' But
a holier,because a more scriptural, form of worship has
long superseded the gorgeous ceremonials of the old
ritual. The prayersto theSaints — to the blessed Michael,
the archangel — to the holyApostles, Peterand Paul, and
all the holyangels, have givenplace to prayers to Him
alone through whom we obtain remission of our sins;
the fasts, penances, and genuflections, the adoration of
saints and images, to the worship of the invisible God,
who sitteth over all from the beginning, and in whose
sight the nations of the earth arebut as the small dust of
the balance."
The Canons of Bolton were celebrated as students of
astronomy, alchemy, and astrology; such a seclusion
couldnot fail to be the congenial home of patient study
and laborious inquiry.
51

Chapter VIII.
BLACK-EACED CLIFFORD.
Evenat this sight
My heart is turned to stone;andwhile 'tis mine
Itshall be stony. York not our oldmen spares;
Nomore willItheir babes;tears virginal
Shallbe to me even as the dew to fire;
And beauty, that the tyrant oft reclaims,
Shall tomy flaming wrathbe oil and flax.
HenceforthIwillnot have to do withpity;
MeetIan infant ofthe house of York,
Into as many gobbets willIcut it;
As wild Medea, young Absyrtus did,
In cruelty willIseek out my fame.
Shakespeare.
HE name of Clifford is a familiar one in the
recordsofoldEngland,and concernedinmany
historic transactionsofYorkshire. The family
was of eminent Norman descent, and during
the early days of the strife between the rival
Roses occupiedprominentpositionsin the affairs of
the nation, evincing great zeal and bravery on
behalfof the Lancastriancause.
John de Clifford, eighth baron, known as Black-faced
Clifford, and by the even less enviable title of " the
Butcher," was the son of Thomas de Clifford, who was
slain at the Battle of St. Albans, where he was commanding
forces on the Lancastrian side. It is said that
he was killed by the Duke of York, and the cruelties

BLACK-FACED CLIFFORD. 53
perpetrated by Black-faced Clifford, which we proceed to
notice, are explainedas the resultof a desirefor vengeance
on the part of his son. The repellingsobriquets of John
de Clifford may seem strangelyinapplicableto a member
of so illustrious and " gentle"afamily as the Clifford's;
but a glance at the man's life and character cannot fail to
make apparent the appropriatenessof the surnames, for
he was as inhuman as he was courageous, and never
hesitated at the committalof any act, however cruel,if it
assisted in the carryingout ofhis plans. His disposition
was in this respect entirely different from that of his
father;both unflinching in endeavours to establish the
cause they had espoused, the kindliness whichhad predominated
in the nature of John de Clifford was supplanted
in his son John, by sanguinary fierceness and
cruelty.
One of the foulest deeds of whichClifford was guilty
was the murder of the Earl of Rutland during the Battle
of Wakefield; which act, indeed, would be sufficient,
withoutany of the others that have beenlaidtohis charge,
to have justified the title of " Butcher." The Earl, a
youth of seventeen, was with his father, the Duke of
York,in Sandal Castle, and, inheriting the high courage
of his race, insisted upon followinghis father to Wakefield
Green, although his tutor and guardian, a priest
named Aspall, endeavoured to dissuadehim, urging the
great danger to which he wouldbe exposed. We are told
the youth exclaimed,"I will go and see myfatherkillthe
cruel Queen ; and, whenIam a man,Iwill go and fight
and killhis enemies too. * * * Think not, sir priest,
that a son of Richardof York is afraid of an arrow! Stay
under shelter of these walls like a craven priest if you
will;Iwill go and see the deeds of men who are men!"
He went accordingly in the charge of his tutor, and the
consequenceswere sad and serious. Hall,in his account
ofthe conflict, says: — "Whilst this battle was fighting, a
priest called Sir Robert Aspall, chaplain and schoolmaster
to the young Earl of Rutland, son to the above-named

54
BLACK-FACED CLIFFORD.
Duke of York, scarce of the age of 12 years,a fair gentleman
and a maiden-likeperson, perceiving that flight was
safer than tarrying, both forhim and his master, secretly
conveyed the earl out of the field, by the Lord Clifford's
band, towards the town; but ere he could enter into a
house, he was, by the said LordClifford, espied, followed,
and taken, and,by reason ofhis apparel,demanded what
he was. The young gentleman, dismayed, had not a
word to speak, but kneeledon his knees imploringmercy
and desiring grace, both with holding up his hands and
making dolorous countenance, for his speech was gone
for fear. But the cruel " Butcher" had no pityfor the
innocent boy. Shakespeare makes him reply to the
youth's appealas follows: —
Thy father slew mine;therefore die.
Plantagenet!Icome, Plantagenet!
And this thy son's blood, cleaving tomy blade
Shall rust upon my weapon, till thy blood,
Congealed with his, do make me wipeoff both.
Hall tells us — " Clifford said, ' By God's blood, thy
father slew mine, and so willIdo thee and all thy kin',
and with that word struck the Earl to the heart with his
dagger,and badehis chaplainbear the Earl's mother and
brother word whathe had done and said."
The man who could commit so dastardly an act of
revenge as this was capable of performing the most
barbarous deeds, and such Clifford continued to show
himself. He had sworn to be revenged,and, in accordance
with the spirit of the times, considered his oath
binding. Exulting,no doubt,in the murder ofthe young
Rutland, and glutted with the desire of further revenge,
he took his wayback to the battle-field,and ordered that
search should be made for the body of his great enemy,
the Duke of York, who, it was known, had been slain.
According to Hall, " Clifford came to the place where
the corpse of the Duke of York lay,and caused his head
to be stricken off, and set on it a crownof paper, and so

BLACK-FACED CLIFFORD. 55
fixed it on a pole, and presentedit to the Queen,not lying
far from the field, in great despite and much derision,
saying, " Madam,your war is done; here is your King's
ransom," at whichpresent there was much joy and great
rejoicing. But many laughed then that sore lamented
after, as the Queen
herself and her son. Many were
glad then of other men's deaths, not knowing that their
own werenear at hand,as the Lord Clifford and others."
The paper crown of the Duke of York bore the words,
" This is he whowould have been King of England," and
his head, togetherwith thatof the Earl of Salisbury, were
sent by Margaret to be set on poles over the gates of
York,with the message, " Leave roomfor the head of my
Lordof Warwick, for he shall soon bear them company."
There are, however,several accounts givenof the death
of the Duke of York, which, however, all agree in one
point, and that is the derision to whichhe was subjected,
either before he was dead, or, when it mattered little —
whenhe had ceased to live. In Holinshed's account of
these events we read: — "
Some write that the Duke was
taken alive,and in derisioncaused to stand upon a molehill,
on whosehead theyput a garland insteadof acrown,
which they had fashioned and made of segges or bulrushes,
and having so crowned him with that garland
they kneeleddown before him,as the Jews did to Christ,
in scorn, saying to him, " Hail, King withoutrule;hail,
King without heritage; hail, Duke and Prince without
people or possessions." And at length, having thus
scorned him with theseand divers other the like despiteful
words, they stroke off his head, which, as ye have heard,
they presentedto the Queen."
These incidents may be taken as illustrative of the
character of Black-faced Clifford, and others might be
noticed,which,if not as diabolical, are sufficient tojustify
the opprobrium with which his memory is surrounded. It
was through his instrumentality also that the Earl of
Warwick's father, the Earl of Salisbury, who was taken
prisonerin the same battle, was executed at Pontefract.

56
BLACK-FACED CLIFFORD.
His career of ferocity and crime was soon,however,to be
ended,and it is difficult to avoidafeelingof regretthat the
nature of his death was comparatively painless, and
wantingin that retributivejustice which so frequentlyhas
fallenupon the tyrannicaland cruelinhistory.
Immediately previous to the Battle of Towton, the
issue of which so materiallychanged the political aspect
of the country, Clifford commanded one of the main
bodies of the Lancastrian army, and he was instructed,
on the eve ofthe battle, to capture from the Yorkists the
passageof the Aire, which he did with great slaughter of
the enemy's troops. But the valuable position was soon
after retaken by a body of Yorkistsunder Neville, Lord
Falconberg, who crossed about four miles up the river,
swept down upon Cliffoid's band without any notice,
and after a severestruggle, put them to flight. Clifford
fled towardsTowton, and it is said stopped at Dittingdale
or Dittondale, to refresh himself at a brook there.
Apartyof Yorkistssuddenly appearingwhilehis gorgetwas
yet off (to permit his partakingof a draught of water) an
arrowstruck himinthe throat; hefell,andin a short time
was no more. Shakespeare puts into his mouth, while
dying, thefollowing words: —
Here burns my candle out,
That, whilst itlasted, gave King Henry light.
Oh, Lancaster!Ifear thine overthrow,
More than my body's parting from my soul.
My love and fear glued many friends to thee;
And nowIdie, that tough commixture melts,
Impairing Henry, strengthens misproud York:
The common people swarm like summer flies,
And whitherfly the gnats but to the sun ?
And who shines now but Henry's enemy ?
Oh, PhSbus! hadst thounever given consent
That Phaethon should check thy fiery steeds,
Thy burning car had never scorch'd the earth;
And, Henry,hadst thou lived asKings should do,
Giving no foot unto the house of York,
Iand ten thousand in this woful land
Hadleft no mourning widows for ourdeaths,

BLACK-FACED CLIFFORD. 57
And thou this day hadst kept thy thronein peace.
For what doth cherish weedsbut gentle air ?
And what makes robbers boldbut lenity?
Bootless are plaints, and careless aremy wounds.
No way to fly. no strength tohold out flight;
The foe is merciless, and will not pity me,
And at their handsIhave deserv'dno pity.
The air has got into my bleeding wounds,
And much efluse of blood doth make me faint.
Come, York and Richard, Warwick, and the rest;
Istabb'd your fathers, now comesplit my breast.
Thus ended the life of this bravebut cruel warrior, whose
services to the Lancastrian cause are little exaggerated
by the poet, but whose inhuman and bloody excesses
render him oneof the most detestable characters of even
that sanguinary period.

Chapter IX.
THE SHEPHERD LORD.
But not in wars didhe delight,
This Clifford wished for worthier might ;
Nor in broad pomp, or courtly state,
Him his own thoughts did elevate —
Mosthappy in the shy recess
Of Barden's lowly quietness.
And choice of studious friends had he
In Bolton's dear fraternity;
Who standing on the old church tower.
Inmany a calm propitioushour,
Perused with him the starry sky;
Or in their cells withhim didpry
For other lore — by keen desire
Urged to close toil with chemic fire. Wordsworth.
TRANGE are the accounts we read of those
high and nobly born, who, through political
causes, have been forced to abandon their
lofty positions, and to avoid imprisonment
or assassination, been compelled to pass a
secludedlife engagedin some humbleoccupation.
One of the most remarkableexamples is thecase of
Henry Clifford, whose name will be familiar to all readers
of English history. The Cliffords were a family of very
noble standing, being descended from Richard, fourth
Duke of Normandy. Through union with the heiress oi
the De Viponts, the seat of the Cliffords became established
at Skipton, in the charminglypicturesque district
of Craven,in the West Ridingof Yorkshire. The subject
of our sketch,Henry,tenth Baron, the "ShepherdLord,"

THE SHEPHERD LORD. 59
wastheson of the JohndeClifford, who was knownby the
name of Black-faced Clifford. The mother of Henry
was born at Londesborough,near Market Weighton, in
the East Riding; she was the heiress of the Bromfletes,
Barons de Vesci, and by her marriage with John de
Clifford, ninth Baron, this estate, on the death of her
father, cameinto the possessionofthe Cliffords.
Let us now briefly glance at the aspect of affairs in this
country at about the period of whichwe treat. The whole
nation was being torn and harassed by the disastrous
internecine warfare of the rival Roses of York and
Lancaster. The Duke of York had been slain on Wakefield
Green, and the Yorkists defeated. The Duke's son
had won at Mortimer's Cross, and lost at St. Albans.
Queen Margaret proceeded to Yorkshire and raised a
large army. Edward followed her, and the bloody field
oi Towton was fought, resulting in the total rout of
Margaret and her friends. As we have seen, John de
Clifford was previously struck by an arrow, which gave
him his death-wound.
We now resume the story of the ShepherdLord. As
might be expected, the death of the Black-faced Clifford,
who had caused such atrocities to be perpetrated on the
Yorkist adherents,as wellas imbuedhis hands deeplyin
their blood himself, exposedthe lives ofthe Lady Clifford
and her children to great jeopardy. Innocent as they
were, and irresponsiblefor the evil deedsof the deadlord,
the revengeful nature of Edward was too wellknown to
leave any doubt in the mind of Lady Clifford as to the
course he would pursue if the family of his bitterest foe
came into his power. She was wellaware that a cruel
fate was in store for her children if they came into his
terrible clutches; for there wasevery reasonfor supposing
that their innocent lives would be requiredin atonement
for the excesses of their father. Therefore, immediately
the news of the Lancastrian overthrowand the death of
her lord reached Lady Clifford, she was thrown into a
state of the utmost distress,her first thoughts being for

60
THE SHEPHERD LORD.
the safety of her children. Grief gave way to solicitous
consideration, and she soon decided to take up her abode
at Londesborough,whereher father was yet living; and,
as soon as an opportune moment arrived, she fled from
her pleasant home at Skipton, disguised as a farmer's
wife, and at length arrived safely amongst the scenes of
her childhood's days. Her children were three in number,
Henry, Richard, and Elizabeth;the eldest,Henry,whom
we know as the ShepherdLord, being about sevenyears
old. The illustrious and unhappy party had not long
arrived at Londesborough when it was ascertained that
Clifford's children were being eagerly sought for, and
plans were at once devised for keepingthemin secrecy.
Theyounger son was entrusted to a reliable retainer, and
they were sent together to the port (now swept away) of
Ravenspurne, and thence escaped to Flanders. The
little daughter had less reason to fear the resentment of
Edward,and she accordingly was allowed to remain with
her mother. Henry, it was arranged, should be given
into the care of a shepherd on the Londesborough
estate, husband of the woman who had nursed the
Lady Clifford in her early childhood. This was done,
and he continued to be brought up as though he were
actually the son of the Shepherd. He lived thus for
some years, whenin 1466 Lady Clifford, by the death of
her father,becamepossessed of theLondesboroughestate,
and about the same time it was reported that the King
was intent upon discovering the hiding place of the
children. On this account the LadyClifford caused the
Shepherdand his youthful charge to be sent to a remote
part of Westmoreland, where discovery would be rendered
almost impossible by the seclusion of the place.
Here, in the most solitarypart of that desolatecounty, the
young Shepherd developed into manhood, carrying on
the humble occupation of sheep-tending, allunconscious
of his noble descent. Here he lived a peasant's life in
every respect, eating the same coarse food, wearing the
same clothes, and partaking in the same rural festivals

THE SHEPHERD LORD. 61
and labours, as thoseinhis adoptedclass of life,his home
being nothing more than a lowly thatch-roofed cottage.
In this incongruous condition he is said to have been
happy enough,careless, because ignorant, of the luxuries
and privileges of his proper station. He had not the
advantage of any education whatever, and grew to man's
estate without being able either to read or write. He
was, however, very intelligent, and delighted in watching
and studying, as well as might be without teacher or
book, the heavenlybodies whilst with his flock at night,
and thus gained some crude notionof the constellations
and their movements. Thus he lived,littlethinking he
was a descendant of the illustrious Cliffords, until his
thirty-second year, when (1455) the Battle of Bosworth
Field was fought, and the cause of York decided by the
death of RichardIII. Richmond ascended the throne as
Henry VIL, and the Cliffords might now leave their
seclusion withoutfear, and the Shepherd Lord was called
from his lowly avocation to assumethe name and position
of Lord Henry Clifford. At first, we are told, his honours
sat uneasily on him, and the splendours of his position
so embarrassed him, that he lived for a long time in a
keeper's lodge,whichhe fitted up in accordance with his
ownprimitive tastes. The day he passed in hunting and
the night inhis favourite studyof astronomy,in company
with the learned Canons of Bolton. He felt keenly his
want of education, and appliedhimself with great energy
to the various studies which weremost likely to be of use
to him.
Dr. Whittaker says — " He was at this time almost,if
not altogether,illiterate, but far from deficient in natural
understanding; and, what strongly marks an ingenious
mind in a state of recent elevation, depressed by a consciousness
of his own deficiencies. The narrowlimits of
his residence show that he had learned to despise the
pomp of greatness, and that a small train of servants
could suffice him who had lived to the age of thirty a
servant himself."

62
THE SHEPHERD LORD.
The Shepherd Lord was twice married, taking for his
first wife Anne, daughter of Sir John St. John,of Bletshoe,
by whom he had issue Henry, first Earl of
Cumberland, and for his second wife, Florence, the
daughter of HenryPudsey,of Bolton. He commandeda
force during the expeditioninto Scotland in 1513, when
in his 60thyearof age,and valorously sought at the Battle
of Flodden. He diedin the year 1523, in the70th year of
his age, and is said to have been buried at Bolton,
although some historians dispute the place ofhis interment.
But
Lovehad he found inhuts wherepoor men lie;
His daily teachers had been woods and rills,
The silence that is in the starry sky,
The sleepthat is among thelonely hills.
Glad were the vales, and every cottage hearth;
The ShepherdLord was honouredmore and more;
And, ages after he was laidin earth,
" The good LordClifford " was the name he bore.

Chapter X.
HOW KING HENRY ;RY III. KEPT CHRISTMAS
AT YORK.
AD the readerbeen in bodily presence at York
some days before Christmas, 1252, he would
have seen a sight that presented the old
feudal days in their best aspect. As he
stoodby the postern gates, or on one of the
roads leading to that ancient city, his attention
would have now been attractedby a party of gailyattired
knights, their partial armour gleaming out from
silken scarves and waving plumes, while their spirited
horses stepped high and restively to the music of their
bells; now by a bevy of fair ladies, with their cavaliers
and pages, their joyous tones and laughter making the
keen frosty air ring with mirth;nowby some staid priest
or prelateupon quiet-walkingpalfrey,but with,perchance,
some carnal weaponof defence girded on (for the roads
were but rough in these days, and bandits and outlaws
plentiful) ; and now-by strolling parties of musicians,
tumblers, and posture-men,who evidently scented some
gainin the approaching season. As, however, the reader
cannot thus translate his existence to the days of the
past, he must content himself with our account that such
was the sight at the time we mention, and that the
occasion was the marriage of the third child and eldest
daughter, Margaret, of King Henry III. of England,
to Alexander III. of Scotland. The alliance was con-

64
HENRY THE III.'s CHRISTMAS AT YORK.
sideredof great politicalimportance,and to render every
honour to the celebration of the nuptials,Henry himself
and his Queen left their familiar subjects of the south to
take part personallyin the auspicious ceremony. The
knights and warriors we have described as wending their
way towards the grey walls of old York were the nobles
and gentlemen from every part who thus congregated to
evince their fealty, the ladies were their wives and
daughters, whose presence was to lend such a peaceful
and charming aspect to the gatheringand thefestivities;
while the ecclesiasticalpersonages,whoseattendance was
of importance,had drawn from all parts to countenance
the alliance, and partake of its immediate benefits, or a
part of them.
The crowds continued to pour in, and it was with difficulty
that accommodation could be provided. But
numerous special provisions had been made beforehand
for the properlodgingof all comers, in order to avoidany
unseemly brawl or dispute as to the quartering. The
whole of one street was reserved for the Scottish nobles
and their retinues, which included many knights whose
prowess and pride had been the theme of many a story,
and celebrated inmany a song. This precaution was one
of great wisdom, as otherwise a sanguinaryconflict might
have arisen, and the most disastrous results ensued.
What the consequences of a dispute between the fiery
representatives of the two nationalitiesmight have been,
can be well imaginedwhen we learn that the mareschals
among themselvescouldnot agreewhile selecting suitable
billets for their lords, and resortedto their fists as a handy
methodof argument. But the northernbloodthus roused,
speedily their staves, and finally their swords, were
brought into requisition. The tumult was quelled, but
only after one zealous partizan of his master's right to
certain advantages of lodgment was killed, others mortally
wounded, and many beside placed hors de combat
and the festal proceedings for some time. The aid of the
clerics was also utilised to good purpose in smoothing

HENRY THE III.'s CHRISTMAS AT YORK. 65
over the numerous difficulties attending the billeting of
such large numbers of fierce warriors and unbending
squires.
So the day drew near,and the town was full of jollity
and good feeling. Besides the English and Scotchnobles
and their followers, there was also a goodly number of
French knights, for the queenlymother of Alexander had
consented to honour his marriage by her presence; and
in the train which had followed her from France were
many polished courtiers, who would doubtless view with
wonder the vast expense and the rude manners of many
of their insular fellow-guests at York.
The bells rang,and masses were sung, for Christmas
Dayhadarrived. Prodigious must have been theamount
of preparationof the dress of the ladies andknights, the
fitting of hoods, of wimples, and plumes, of chausses and
spencers, and fixing of gypseers (the pouches through
which some carriedtheirdaggers) to containgoldpieces to
throw away for a gibe from the mountebank or a stave
from the "glee-wood" of the harper. Prodigious,too,
must have been the preparations in the butteries, or
kitchens, of thecitizens of York, and of their king. What
fat beeves must have yielded up their lives to furnish
that mountain of beef, credited with being the chief support
of a true Briton; whatpiles of fish from the silver}'
Ouse; what heaps of game — deer,black fowl, etc., etc.;
what boars' heads, garnished with lemons, were on all
sides;andwhatprodigiousanxietymust the various cooks
andkickshaw-makershavedisplayed,as thoughupon their
individual efforts the wholesuccess of the day depended!
But we will leave the steaming butteries, with their
legions of hurriedly-busy cooks and waiting-men, and
step into the street. Here the spectacle is one of great
magnificence,as on every side are all the gay company
we havepreviously seen, andin their best costumes, and
with their most sunny smiles are the knights and citizens
and their ladies. On this day the great event is the
ceremony of making the young Scottish king a "belted
5

66
HENRY THE IIL's CHRISTMAS AT YORK.
knight." HenryhimselfgirdedAlexander and twenty other
aspirants with the belt, by virtue of which they were
institutedas trueknights;and the wholeofthe ceremonial,
with its religious details and observances, must have
been of supreme grandeur and interest to the applauding
thousands, as well as the actual participators themselves.
The following day was the Feast of St. Stephen, and
this was the day appointed for the actual performance of
the nuptial ceremony; but in order that there might be
no impediment or hindrance from immense crowds of
unruly spectators, the ceremony was performed at an
earlyhour before the masses had expected,or assembled
to doit honour. However,the great magnificenceof the
spectacle of the brilliant company, who afterwards displayed
themselves for the generalbenefit,atoned for the
deprivation. A thousand English knightspresented themselves
in suits of silk (cointises), and the followingday in
equally costly and elegantattireof a different description.
It wouldbe a task for an artistic epicureto describe the
feast which succeeded the wedding. The first course
consisted of beef, furnished by more than three score
pasture-fed oxen,which were supplied by the Archbishop
of York,who was one oftheleading spirits of these times
and occasions of festive enjoyment. He was,moreover,
of a determined and sagacious character, that made his
name revered and his counsel respected even by the
turbulent and warlike barons, with whom he vied in the
zeal ofhis loyalty and his methodsof evincingit. Upon
this particular occasion, he not onlyfound house-room for
a great number of the guests, but also gave them for
their use domestic utensils, and fodder and fuel. Inother
wayslikewisehe addedto the popularity of hisname, and
the success of the gathering, though subsequently he
might possiblyregret the expendingof such considerable
sums of money on mere reputation. But to return to the
banquet. We see peacocks re-clad in their gorgeous
natural habiliments,and their beaks gilded; we see pigs
here and there along the tables roasted whole, and now

HENRY THE III.'s CHRISTMAS AT YORK. 67
glittering with gilding; we scent the delicious aroma
which ascends from the delicious soups, and the boar's
head, with a lemon on each tusk, or between his jaws;
we see thousands of small birds,includingnightingales,
thrushes, larks,etc., roasted,while sweet pies,jellies, and
marvellous dishes, some of which would be strange to
the reader and others not, were in abundance, whilenot
onlyhoopedmugs of strong ale wereset for the guests,
but also delicateand well-flavouredwinesof high price.
Another important part of these Christmas celebrations
of long ago was the performanceof homageby the
Scottish Kingfor his Englishpossessions. Thequestion
as to whether Alexander should not also do homage for
the Kingdom of Scotland was likewise raised by Henry,
but the young Scottish monarch, with much spirit and a
display of tact that speaks well for his intellectualparts,
replied that he came to York to marry the Princess of
England and not to discuss State affairs, and that he
would not take so important a step without the concurrence
of the national council. Upon this the English
king suffered the matter to drop.
Yet another demand was made,which againroused the
spirit of Alexander. It was the customfor those novices
who had just received the honours of knighthood to surrender
to the Earl Marshal as a perquisite the palfrey
upon which they rode, with its trappings. The Earl
Marshal thought it necessary to explain that in his
demandhe was actuatednot by an avaricious motive,but
by necessary regard for ancient custom, and that he
merelypressed his claim to ensure the due regard of the
observance in the future. Alexander, however, declined
being bound by any such ancient observance,saying that
had he wished, he could have been knighted by any
Catholic prince, or even by one of his ownnoblemen, and
that simply his respect for the King of England caused
him to prefer being belted by him. The Earl Marshal
resigned his claim with good grace, more especially as
Henry sided with his newly-acquiredson-in-law.

68
HENRY THE III.'s CHRISTMAS AT YORK.
We cannot further describe the splendour and regal
magnificence of the grand feast. As at many a banquet
since, strains of music werepouredforth byan assemblage
of harpers, bagpipe players,and players on the pipe and
tabor at intervals during the progress of the banquet,
while mimes, jesters, joculators, and tumblers now and
then diverted the guests with caustic jest or harmless
frolic.
Other incidents occurred which doubtless lent some
interest to the scene at the time as they do to the narrative
now. Whilst the company wereseated in the midst
of the conviviality the Scottish King publicly addressed
to His Majesty of England an entreaty for the pardon of
one PhilipLovel, a clerk, who had been commissionedto
gather the taxes from the Jews of the North, and who
had been charged with an oppressive and extortionate
performanceof his duties. The resentment of theEnglish
King had already been partially appeasedby the present
from Lovel of a thousand marks. The remembrance,
possibly,of this large sum, and the entreatiesof theroyal
Scot and other noble guests, had the effect of causing
Henry to yield. He granted the dishonest clerk a full
pardon. It is not recorded by what good offices Philip
Lovel was entitledto the intercessionof his pleaders.
The ceremonies were over; Margaret, Princess of
England, was now Margaret, Queen of Scotland. She
and her royal husband departed north, taking with them
their own Scottish retinue, and also a portionof Henry's
people to attend the queen. Henry and his train of
nobles turned their faces south, after bidding an affectionate
farewellto his son-in-law, and promising to send
counsellors to assist and advisein allmatters relating to
any dispute or controversy that might arisebetween the
couple. Then he returned to his capital,and to the complications
and troubles which disturbed his reign. Thus
ended all the pageantry and splendour of King Henry's
Christmas at York in 1252 — (some chroniclers have it
1251).

Chapter xi.
THE TRAGIC STORY OF THE ELLANDS.
HE Ellands were ever known for their bold,
overbearingcharacters, which were constantly
leading them into quarrels with all who did
not acknowledge their superiority, and the
great bodily strength and courage of the
membersof thefamily made them as intolerableto
their friends as terrible to their enemies. These
were the qualities always associated with the Elland
name, but if tradition is to be credited, the true Elland
blood has little to do with them. The story goes that in
the time of Edward the Confessor, Wilfrid, Lord of
Elland, gave shelter in a storm to one Hugo Beaulay, a
youngNorman, whopossessedgreat personalattractions,
but was of humble extraction. He had come to England
in the train of the Confessor-King,and his visit to Yorkshire
was due to his friendshipwith a son of EarlGodwin,
and whom he accompanied. The Norman,falling inlove
with the wife of his hospitable entertainer, a young and
lovely woman — who, moreover,proved false to her lord,
and returned the affection of the stranger — lingered at the
Manor House so long that the Ellandbecame aroused to
his treachery,and challengedhim to mortal combat. The
strife in the feasting hall was terribleand protracted,but
at last the Norman, assisted, it is even said, in someway

70
THE TRAGIC STORY OF THE ELLANDS.
by the faithless wife,succeeded in plantinghis murderous
dagger in the breast of his host. The yeomen of the
household — house-knaves, as they were called — forced the
door ofthe hall, butit wastoo late — theLordof Ellandlay
prone,his coursenearlyfinished;butsummoningup allthe
remnants of his dying strength, he dipped his hand in the
blood that slowly welled from the ghastly wound, and
casting some upon the face of the Norman, said with his
last breath, " Even as thou hast won this heritage, by
such means it shall go from thee and all thy house.''
Hugo then married the guilty womanwho was the cause
of the tragedy,and assumed the nameof the deadElland,
together withhis possessions. Upon the coming over of
William in 1066, Hugo lent his services, and for his
assistance was rewarded by the title of Knight, and the
granting of large estates; but retribution overtookhim at
the time of the great attempt of the Saxons to throw off
the Norman yoke, in 1069, when he was killed by one
whose land he had seized.
There is no reliable account of the Ellands during the
period which elapsed between the above date and that of
the struggle betweenEdwardII.and his barons, but it is
considered that the descent was direct from that time
when an Elland was one of the refractory nobles hanged
at Pontefract by Edward. His son, Sir John Elland,
becamea great favourite with Edward III., chiefly by his
successful efforts against the Scotch. He was a good
type of the baron of those days. Oneof themost powerful
of the secondary nobles, his influence, especially in his
native Yorkshire, was enormous. An ancient ballad,
which deals with occurrences of his life, says —
At Eland Sir JohnEland dwelt,
Within the ManorHall,
The town his own, the Parish held
Most part upon him all.
He was a man of ungovernable passions, and being
remarkablystrong and huge, with a perfect masteryof all
weapons of war,it is not surprising that he was held in

THE TRAGIC STORY OF THE ELLANDS. 71
great awebymost of those who came in contact withhim.
He was revengeful and tyrannical. It is said that from
the death of Wilfrid of Elland,every one of the descendants
of Hugo was born marked in the forehead with
three blood-red spots, and that Sir John had these distinguishing
signs. It may be mentioned here that Elland,
at the timeof which we now write (about the fourteenth
year of Edward III. — 1339), was a place of considerable
importance, and had already,under the precedingking,
had a charter by which it held a weeklymarket, and other
privilegesof an advancedmediæval town.
Sir John thrice entered the bonds of marriage. He
espoused first Alice, the daughterof Sir Robert Lathom,
and by whom he had severalchildren; byhis second wife,
Ann,he had no issue; and byhis third wife, Olive,hehad
one son, Robert. Surrounded on every side by the
evidences of his wealth and power, he looked with the
watchfulness of jealousy upon the fortunes of his neighbours,
especially upon the wealth and influence of Sir
RobertBeaumont, of Crossland Hall, whom he regarded
with feelingsof the utmosthatred,partly for these reasons
and partly, it is thought, because Sir Robert and certain
of his friends had come into some estateswhich Sir John
had expected to inherit. Doubtless he would in his
capacity of sheriff strainhis authority tobe revengedupon
his enemies. The ballad we have referred to hints at
somethingof the sort, for
Some say that Eland Sheriff was
By Beaumont disobey'd,
Which might him make for that trespass
With him the worse appaid.
Amongst Sir RobertBeaumont's friends who shared with
him the hatredof the Elland were Hughcf Quarmby, and
Lockwoodof Lockwood, holders of manorsinthe vicinity.
So high did the furious passions of Sir John run against
these three gentlemen that he organised a murderous
scheme for removing them from his path. He called a
large number of his friends and followers together one

72
THE TRAGIC STORY OF THE ELLANDS.
night; and with them, ruthless,it may wellbe supposed,
as himself, marched upon Quarmby Hall,whichnot being
speciallyconstructed for defence, and surprised, was soon
possessed. The owner, Hugh, was killed in cold blood.
This being accomplished, they directed their implacable
footsteps towardsLockwood,and there with as littledifficulty
took the place, andleft Lockwood dead in his hall.
The next step was towards Crossland Hall, the seat of
Sir RobertBeaumont. This place,having better protection
than the two previous mansions, was more difficult
to enter, being surrouuded by a moat. Lurking silently
about, and almost despairing of being able to effect an
entrance, they presently espied a serving maid let down
the drawbridge for the purpose of crossing the moat to
visit the village, not far away, where her lover was
awaitingher. Scarcelyhadthe " serving-wench " reached
the outer side ofthe moat when Sir John and his myrmidons
swept across the bridge, broke open the doors ofthe
hall, and commenced to deal death and destruction upon
all within their reach. Sir Robert andhis ladyhadretired
to their chamber for the night; but Sir John, without
taking the slightest notice of the cries and entreatiesof
the alarmed lady, rushed in and dragged Sir Robertout
into the greathall downstairs. By this time theservants,
who seem to have been more in number than was
expected, had roused themselves, and, hastily arming,
rushed to the defence of their beloved lord, who now
struggled to aid their efforts; but the largerand stronger
band eventually prevailed. All Sir Robert's retainers
were overcome,and himself bound and beheadedin the
sight of his wife and children. The assassin-knight and
his followers then sat in the hall to feast, the Beaumont
domesticsbeingcompelledto serve them withbread,wine,
and ale. The cruel-hearted Sir John then obligedLady
Beaumont and her two littlesons to sit with him at the
table. The young and beautiful lady, so recently rendered
a widow, had to serve Sir John with a tankard
of wine, in which he pledged her, making a jest

THE TRAGIC STORY OF THE ELLANDS. 73
of her grief, but the eldest of Sir Robert's sons, Adam,
a child of five, would not eat or drink, and on
the savage knight offering him bread, the child, with
glowing eyes, threw it at his face, at which disdainful
act Sir John broke out into a fit of passionate anger,
swearing to eliminatethe seedof the Beaumont from the
earth, or rather weed out the offspring of his blood as
weeds are weededfrom the corn. The horrible festivity
continued for a long period into the night, but at length
the atrocious murderersdeparted, andtook their wayback
to Elland Hall.
Such was the fear in which Sir John
Elland was held
byall his neighbours,that, though the wholecountryrang
with the accounts of his violent deeds, none dare arouse
his resentment by commencing any legal or other
measures; so the matter was apparently forgotten. Sir
John continued to hold the office of Sheriff, and was
prosperous in every way. His eldest son grew up and
was married, whilst his eldest daughter,too, was married
to a Savile of HowleyHall.
Immediately after the tragedy last recorded, Lady
Beaumonthad sent messengers to herrelatives in Lancashire,
the Townleysand Breretons, informingthemof the
unhappy occurrences and asking a shelter. She, therefore,
and her children and the membersof the two other
families were welcomedunder the hospital roofs of the
two halls.
A period of nineteen years had elapsedsince the death
of Sir Robert, and during that time the heirs of the three
bereaved houses occupied themselvesin all warlike exercises
and grew up into stalwart men with all the courage
and boldnessof their familyblood. About this timethey
decided upon concocting some plan of revenge against
the shedder of their father's blood, and with that end in
view communicated with persons ofQuarmby, friendly to
them in the matter, and not longafter Townley Hall was
visited by two men, called Haigh and Dawson. These
informed them that Sir John had to keep his " Sheriff's

74
THE TRAGIC STORY OF THE ELLANDS.
Turn " at Brighouse on a certain day, and that on
returning, his path lay through Cromwel-bottomWood,
a lonelyroad in which he was almost sure to be alone.
On that day accordinglythe three young menwereguided
to the spot, and there awaited.
Beneath Brookfoot, a hill there is
To Brighouse in the way,
Forth came they to the top of this
There prying for their prey.
The doomed knight came riding up the lane, and they
standingquickly beforehim, he made as though to pass
them, raisinghis plumed bonnetin courtesy, which, however,
he was told would avail him nothing, for they who
stood before him were the avengersof blood. He recognised
the boy who had cast the bread in his face, and
though much dismayed, with much of his natural ferocity
warned them of the consequences of their act,but it is
little use to argue with injured men. Sir John sprang
suddenly at young Adam Beaumont, and with his sword
would have split his head in twain, butit was struck from
his graspby Lockwood, and while Quarmby pinionedhis
arms, their swords speedily laid the murderer of their
fathers dead on the ground.
Mounting,the three lords fled to the swampyfastness
of Furness, where they remaineduntil the indignation of
the Ellands had somewhat subsided. The new Lord of
Elland,also Sir John,a manof peacefuldisposition, and
much esteemedbyhis neighbours,wasnow in possession.
Him the confederates resolved also to slay. On the
evening of Palm Sunday after the deathof Sir John,they,
with a companion named Lacy, went secretly to Elland,
and concealed themselvesin " Elland miln," binding the
miller and his wife. The young lord was expected to
pass there on his return from Botham Hall, where he
went twice a year, round by Savile Gate, and the
murderers were not disappointed, for he came in sight,
and presently,the water being low, the knight with his
wife, child, and servants, crossed overby the dam. The

THE TRAGIC STORY OF THE ELLANDS. 75
party then rushed from the mill, and Adam Beaumont
shot withhis bow at Sir John, but the arrow glanced off
fromhis breastplate;Lockwood was with his first arrow
as unsuccessful, but his second struck Sir John in the
head, killing him, and his little son was also mortally
wounded. Their vengeance beingnow fully glutted, the
four departed, fleeing by the end of Whittle Lane, and
on to the old Earth-gate, hiding themselves in Annely
Wood.
The town of Elland was speedily aroused, and the
inhabitants set off in hot pursuit of the flying murderers.
The three lords prepared to defend themselves in the
wood,and indeed made such a desperate resistance that
the pursuers were beaten back, and the fugitives got
further away. The pursuit being continued, Quarmby
was found, scarcely alive, in the wood, and he was
despatched. Lockwood was overtaken at Camel, near
Cavvthorn (now Cannon Hall),by the Sheriff, where,after
a valiant struggle against overwhelming odds, he was
put to death, and the family by this act became extinct.
The Beaumont escaped from the neighbourhood, went to
France, and became connected with the famous Knights
of Rhodes, residing sometimes with that brotherhood at
Rhodes and at others in Hungary, andin the latter place
he died while engaged in knightly warfare against the
Moslems.
The family of Elland now being extinct, the estates
which were gained and maintainedby so much violence,
crime, and blood, came into the hands ofthe Saviles.

Chapter xii.
THE FALL AND DEATH OF RICHARD II.
REAT changes were takingplacein oldEngland
in 1399. A banished nobleman returning to
his native country, andwith but a followingof
sixty men, not onlyregaining his inheritance,
but,by thesympathyand assistancehe gained.
takingviolent possession of the crown itself, is a
El/ sight which excites theutmost surprise. Let us see
how such circumstances came about. Richard of
Bordeaux, having rendered himself unpopular by his
misgovernment of the nationand fondness for favourites,
his uncle, the bold and ambitious Duke of Gloucester,
possessed himself of the reins of power by forcing his
nephew to appoint a Commissionfor the managementof
national business; but on Richard attaining the age of
twenty-two,he threw off theyoke ofGloucesterby taking
advantage of a full Council to declare openly that he
should for the future act byhis ownjudgment. Gloucester
was shortly after arrested and sent to Calais, where it is
supposed that he was murdered by his nephew's order.
Those nobles who had, in a more or less degree, been
partakers in the seizure ofpowerby Gloucesterwere next
the object of the King's lawless resentment. Among
those who had reason to fear this were the Duke of
Norfolk and Henry Bolingbroke,Duke of Hereford, son
of John of Gaunt. It wouldappear that the former had
put some inquiries to Bolingbroke as to the best method
of avertingthe dangersof the King's anger. Bolingbroke,
however, betrayed the communication to the King,
openly accusing Norfolk of high treason. Richard,

THE FALL AND DEA TH OF RICHARD II.
seeing here an opportunity for ridding himself of two
nobles who were so likely to disturb his peace, decided
that the impeachment should be tried by wager of battle
as demanded by Norfolk. The Parliament was now
separating, and in order that legislative authority
might be available,should the result of the duel render
its exercise desirable, the extraordinary expedient was
used of delegating the full powers of the Houses of
Parliament to a committeeof twelve lords and six commons.
The lists were fixed at Coventry, and party
enthusiasm ran high; but upon the day appointed,when
the combatants were actually face to face, the King interfered,
forbid the combat, and banished them both —
Norfolk for life, and Bolingbroke for ten years. This
was in 1398. The following year Bolingbroke's father,
John of Gaunt,Duke of Lancaster, died,and the banished
Bolingbroke, now Duke of Lancaster, applied to be put
in possession of the rights and estatesof the Duchy; but
Richard,withablindness that entirelyoverlookedthe consequences
of such arbitrary conduct, withheldthe lands,
reversing his own letters patentby which the succession
had been secured. Thus we find that while Richard was
foolishly absent in Ireland, Bolingbroke, with his feeble
retinue, landed at Ravensburg,a town on the Humber,
now washed away. He was speedilyjoinedby the Earl
of Northumberland,his son Hotspur, and many others.
In the presence of these nobles,and of the Archbishop of
Canterbury, and the Earl of Arundel, that prelate's
nephew, which two latter had accompanied him from
Nantes, Bolingbroke solemnly affirmed an oath that his
object in returning to his country was simply therecovery
of the Duchy so wrongfully withheld. Thus propitiating
what few friends remained to the tyrannous Richard,he
invited all lovers of justice to aid him in recovering his
rights, and found himself speedily at the head of 60,000
men eager for revenge against the absent monarch.
Richard landed from Ireland at Milford Haven with an
army of 20,000 warriors, but of these fully two-thirds
77

78
THE FALL AND DEATH OF RICHARDII.
deserted him before he could execute a single measure;
and now whollydespairing,he stole away from those who
remained, and hid himself in the Isle of Anglesea,
intendingprobablyto embark thence for France, there to
await a changein the tideof fortune whichmight tend to
restorehim hisnow practicallylost crown. HenryBolingbroke,
to obviateanyuneasiness for thefuture, determined
to take possession of Richard's person,and commissioned
the Earl of Northumberland to go to Richard, assuring
him of Lancaster's loyal feeling towards him. Richard
was thus persuaded to accompany Northumberland, or
rather was seized upon, for he was conveyed to Flint
Castle, where Lancaster awaitedhim. Now commenced
the solemn farce in which Lancaster posed as the protector
of Richard,while he was reallyhis gaoler. He was
so conveyedto London, where the citizens heaped curses
upon the head of their defencelessking, and received his
captor with expressions of the most unbounded affection
and allegiance. It is even said that the people, through
the Recorder of London, advised the immediateputting
to death of Richard; but Lancaster, wishing to give all
his acts some show oflegal authority, compelled Richard
to summon a Parliament, before which he was accused
on thirty-three different charges. With one exception,
that of the Bishop of Carlisle, in the House of Commons,
the voice of Parliament was against Richard. He was
declared deposed, and Lancaster came forward, even
though he had so shortlybefore declared that his aimwas
simply the recovery of his rights, and challenged the-
Crown that he was the rightfulheir; and he was crowned
with the utmost pomp of the ceremonial.
Richard,inthe meantime, was a prisonerinthe Tower;
but plots and revolts speedily arising on his account, it
was deemed advisable to remove him. Lancaster,now
Henry IV., sent the Earl of Northumberland, who had
already borne so base a part, to the peers to ask their
advice as to the future disposal of the deposed monarch,
with the addition of remarking that Henry was resolved

THE FALL AND DEATH OF RICHARDII.
not to take his life. The peers accordinglyadvised that
he be placed in safe keepingin some fortified castle, and
preventedfrom holding the slightest communication with
his friends. It was popularlyreported that the scene of
his incarceration was Leeds Castle, Kent, or Pontefract
Castle, Yorkshire. The latter is the more probable, as
there is abundant evidence to show. It was wellinto the
nextyear (1400) thatit was deemedexpedientthat Richard
should be announced as dead, for some of those turbulent
spirits who are ever ready to raise the standard of revolt
upon never such hopeless ground, had not only raised
agitations in favour of Richard, but even assumed his
person. Therefore, the Council,professingutterignorance
as to the place and circumstanceof Richard's seclusion,
advised that if living he be placed in close confinement,
or if dead, or when he died, that his body should be
exhibited publicly, in order that the people might no
longer surround his name with the possibilities and
probabilities of reassumed regal power. Consequentlyit
was shortly afterwards annouced that Richard was dead.
The gates ofPontefract Castle were opened to permit the
egression of a procession draped in funeral black. A
hundred dark-robed mourners went before and after the
carriage in which reposed the remains of the dead
prisoner-king, and which was sumptuously covered with
the ornaments and trappings of woe, whilefour banners
bearingthe arms of St.Edward and St.George were held
aloft. The lugubrious train went south, and neared the
metropolis, where Richard had latelybeen such a humiliated
and insulted captive, when it was met by thirty
citizens, who, clad in white and bearing torches, came
out to do honour to the remains; and Henry, too, his
well-knit, if somewhat short, figure distinguishing him
from the rest by akingly dignity ofbearing,accompanied
the cortege, and bore a corner of the pall. The procession
stopped at St. Paul's, where the body remained for two
days for public exhibition. The faithlessLondoners came
in crowds to look upon the dead face of Richard, and
79

80
THE FALL AND DEATH OF RICHARD II.
which was only exposed from the eyebrows to the chin.
The corpse was conveyed to King's Langley,in Hertfordshire,
and there buried; butit was afterwards, by the
order of Henry V., removed to WestminsterAbbey.
The mystery which shrouds the end of Richard II. has
never yet been fully clearedup, and the immediate cause
ofhis death at Pontefract Castle, oreven whether he died
there at all,has yet to be determined. Those wholooked
upon the emaciatedface in St. Paul's and believed*it to
be that of their late king, spoke below their breath of
starvation,and it was reported by those that such was the
vitality of Richard, and such the robust nature of his
constitution, that he defied the pangs of absolute starvation
for fourteen days after his cruel gaolers had ceased to
supply him with food, and only at the expirationof that
protracted period of torment did he die. Others, also,
believingthat he came to his deathbystarvation,affirmed
that he, in the extreme melancholy and dejection of his
mind, utterly refused to take food, and so voluntarily
starved himselfto death.
Yet another account is that recorded in the text of
Shakespeare,who derivedit from the writings of Fabyan,
by whom it was adoptedfrom a manuscript in the Royal
Library at Paris. It runs as follows: — As soon as the
Council had advised the safe custody of the already imprisonedking,and
the production of his bodyif already
dead, Sir Piers, of Exton,was deputed by King Henry
to leave no doubt as to the matter of his death in fact,
to murder him. Sir Piers, with seven armedattendants,
set out for Pontefract, and on arriving there entered the
cell of the condemnedking. He at once read his fate in
the meaning glances of the ruffianly soldiers, and, with
resistless impetuosity,snatching a battle-axe from the
hand of one of his assailants, slew him, and was likely
to have defeated the whole party by the courage and
address of his attack, when Sir Piers, stepping behind
him, smote him down with a cowardlyblow that decided
the assassination; and the wretched king was finally

THE FALL AND DEATH OF RICHARD II. 81
despatchedas he lay in agony on the ground. Theprobabilityof
this account seems to receive confirmation from
the fact we have mentioned as to the carefully covered
form of the displayedcorpse, leavingonly the face visible
andnot that entirely.
That the unhappy Richard met his deathat Pontefract
there seems on first consideration to be littlereal doubt.
The question as to whether it was hunger or the sword
which was the immediate cause of his end is of little
moment, one being as foul a deed as the other. The
fact thatit was really the body of Richard has, however,
been doubted, and improbable as the story of Richard's
escape is, we cannot regard it altogether as a fable, and
the recorded fact an impossibility, while so far as mere
accounts are concerned one is as likely to be correct as
another. The chronicler, Andrew Winton, relates that
the persons to whose care the captiveking was entrusted
were two gentlemen of position, named Waterton and
Swinburn, who,beingofhonorable andloyaldispositions,
connived at the escape of their prisoner, and for their
own safety and that of all concerned, spread abroad the
report that he was dead. In the meantimeit is said that
Richard passed through numerousadventures, coming at
last to the Court of Robert III. of Scotland, where he
was hospitably received and afterwards maintained in a
manner suited to his high degree. The story is brought
to a close by a record in the history by Bower, the Scottish
chronicler. In narrating the events of 1419, he
includes a statement to the effect that in that year died
Richard, King of England, on the feast of St. Luke, in
the Castle of Stirling, and that the Royal visitor was
buried in the Church of the Preaching Friars, with the
specific place of interment, namely, on the north side of
the altar.
Insupport of theaccount of the escape beingpermitted
by the individuals already named, it may be stated that
the Waterton family has a tradition that Sir Robert
Waterton,Masterofthe Horseto KingHenryIV., wasone
6

82
THE FALL AND DEATH OF RICHARDII.
of the guardians of Richard during the period of his imprisonmentat
Pontefract. This lends colour to the tale,
andit may be that the merciful and humane character of
Richard's gaolers reallydid permit his escape, and that
he, out of gratitude for their hazardous kindness, was
willing afterwards to lay aside all attempts to resume
the kingly prerogatives, and so effect their safety, while
securingforhimself a secludedretirement,which,possibly,
the changing fortunes of kingship had made welcome to
him. The Scottish King undoubtedlyspread the report,
and encouraged it, that Richard was his guest. It may
be urged against this, however, that he was a man of
weak mind, who might be easilypersuaded by conspirators,
to do so to favour their designs. Again, it weighs
against the probabilityof the truth of the story to learn
that Richard, at the Scottish Court, declined to receive
thoseEnglish nobleswho had been on terms of familiarity
with him in the days of his power and prosperity.
Henry found this reporthad a dangerouseffect, and to
discourage the furtherance of its belief in England he
executed many who gave expression to their credence.
These executionsbut gave strength to the popularbelief.
In support of it Mr. Tytler, in his History of Scotland,
has reference to certain entries in the accounts of the
Duke of Albany (the King, James, was a prisoner in
England: Robert died in 1406), which deal with the cost
of maintenanceof King Richard of England for the years
1408, 1414, 1415, 1417- Itmay bebrought asan objection
that had the captive so escaped, the two implicated persons
would have been surely executed, but this would
most of allhave increased the beliefin the escape. However,
we find RobertWaterton the prisonerof the Earl of
Northumberland in 1405, whoafterwards, as though influenced
by his charge, agreed with Robert of Scotland
for the support of Richard.
The arguments and speculations for and against are
wellbalanced, and, like others of the dubious points of
our history, can but be leftin their original darkness.

Chapter XIII.
THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE.
ORK was originallya centre of the Brigantes,
one of the most ancient of the aboriginal
tribesof Northumbria. As were most ancient
■British towns,it was probably at first nothing
more than a collection of rude huts, surnded
by a trench and a rampart composed of
the trunks of the trees which had been cut down
to clear a place in the forest for the erection of the town.
Its name in the British tongue,as near as can be ascertained,
was Eburac, or Eborac, which is of Celtic
derivation, and means a town or fortified place on the
banks of a river, or near the confluence of waters. Its
situation at the union of the Ure and the Swale fully
corroborate this origin, while the same considerations
lead us to see how fitting the position wasfor all purposes
of fortification and defence. At the incursion of the
Romans, Eborac stillretained itssupremacyas avaluable
military position. In a.d. 79 it was converted into a
regularly garrisoned station by either Agricola or one of
his generals, during that general's second campaign,in
which the Brigantes were entirely subdued. Its name
was retained, but Latinisedinto Eburacumor Eboracum.
It quickly became the principal Roman station of the
North of Britain,and,as there is great evidence to prove,
of the whole country. The principal point of dispute
upon which antiquaries divide is the question as to
whether the recognised Romanclassification of Eboracum
was colonia or municipium. Upon the stationing of the
Sixth Legion of the Roman army in Britain,Eboracum
was made their headquarters by M. Pontius, who came
overat their head in the reign ofHadrian, in a.d. 116. It

84
THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE.
took the place of the Ninth Legion,which remained and
was incorporated with the Sixth. From, at least, the
time of Septimius Severus, it was the residence of the
Roman Emperors when they visited the province, and at
other timesoftheImperial legatees. HereSeptimius,and
also Constantius Chloras, died,and here too, though this
fact rests but on tradition, the Emperor Constantine the
Great was born. Here the immense garrisons of the
Romans lay for a long period, occupied not only in
constant warfare with the fierce predatory tribes of the
north, but also in the building of the Roman wall between
Burdoswald and Carlisle, other walls and fortifications,
roads, and the ramparts of Eboracum itself. There can
be little doubtthat the walls of stone would be erectedon
the immediate site of the earthen rampart, at Eboracum,
whichwouldbethe first protectionagainstthe unsubduable
Picts;and this Roman wallundoubtedlycoincideswiththe
wallswhichareextantat the presenttime. Oneof theangle
towers — known as the MultangularTower — and a portion
of the wall connected with it, are in an extraordinarily
perfect state. At a comparatively recent removal of a
largeportionof the more modernerection a largepart of
the Roman wall was found connected with the same
angle tower, but in anotherdirection,and also theremains
of two wall towers, and buried deep below the ramparts
were found the foundations of one of the entrance gates
of the stationof Eboracum. Other excavations at various
times and in different directions have resulted in the
discovery of the remains of the ancient fortifications.
From these it would appear that the station was of
rectangular form, occupying a space of about 650 yards
by 550, having a wall and a rampart on the inner side of
the wall,and a fosse without. It had fourprincipalangle
towers, and several minor wall towers or turrets, and
with four chief entrances, from which proceeded the great
military roads to the neighbouringstations. That there
were extensive suburbs, more particularly on the westward
side, is indisputable, as is evident from the very

THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE. 85
abundant remains of villas, temples, baths, tombs, etc.,
while innumerable relics of Roman manufacture are
plentiful throughout the site, and serve effectually to link
the situation of Eboracum with the modern York. The
period between the departure of the Romans and the
invasionby the Saxons is devoid of any markedfeatures
of interest. Eboracum was considered of greatimportance
by the British, and in common with Lancaster was again
the chiefbulwark against the incursions of the Picts. Its
namewas nowalteredtoCaer Ebrauch. The Anglo-Saxon
Ida, in 547, came and laid the foundation of the kingdom
of Northumbria, of which Eboracum was indubitably the
capital, andit retainedthat name for a considerabletime.
The Venerable Bede calls it so. On some Anglo-Danish
coins the corrupted term of Ebraici occurs. In the Saxon
chronicle and elsewhere it appears as Eoferwic, which
term, even to the end of the reignof HenryIII.,is found
on coins which were struck at York. The spelling is
varied, but in each instance the connection withBritish
Eburac can be distinctly traced, so also does the transition
form of Eurewic connect with it the present name
of York. York figures prominently in Anglo-Saxon
history. It was again the birth-place and burial-place of
kings and princes. Here they held their courts and
garrisons; here they were crowned; or abdicating,ended
their livesin its church's cloister.
There can be little doubt that there was some principal
citadel at Eboracum for the housing of the garrisons of
the Romans and to command the then deeper waters of
the Ouse, up which the war galleys and grain vessels
of the Romans were wont to sail to the very gates; but
the earliest actual mention of a castle is in the time of
Athelstan, who, on returning from his great victorious
excursion against Constantine, Kingof Scotland, Anlaff
the Dane, and others, caused the Castle of York to be
levelledto the ground to prevent its being again the focus
for rebellion. The Normans next bring York and its
Castle into notice. Hastings had been fought two years,

86
THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE.
and yet the North of England was unsubdued. Then,
1068, William, fearing the result of the increasingopposition
if unchecked, put Robert, Earl of Northumbria, in
Durham with 700 men. His oppressive conduct caused
the smouldering embers of revolt to kindle into a flame;
the peoplerose and massacredhim with allhis Normans.
The Northumbrian forcesthen marched upon York,where
they werejoinedby Earl Morcar. But the conqueror, by
proceeding northward with great rapidity, defeated their
projects, and seeing that resistance was useless, they
surrendered themselves and the cityinto his hands, and
the city was apparently received by him into great favour,
with, however, certain reservations of his opinion, which
was clearly evinced by his preventative measures for the
future. He at once set about erectinga castleto overlook
and control the disaffected city. He selected as the site
an elevation whose position suggested that it had been
used for a like purposein earlier days. This was on the
ground which ran peninsula-wise between the Ouse and
the Foss, on the heights upon which now stands the
erection known as Clifford's Tower. This was on the
left bank of the Ouse, but held to be within the bounds of
the city, and was probably on the identical spot where
stood the castle razed by Athelstan. A guard of 500
picked knights was appointed under Robert Fitz-Richard
Gilbert of Ghent and William Malet, the latterof which
was made sheriff. Another castle was erected on the
right bank the followingyear. In the Septemberof1069,
the Danes, under Osborn, brother of the Danish king,
with two sons of Harold, and the English under Earl
Waltheof, the son of Siward,Earl of Northumbria,sailed
up the Humber, and thence up the Ouse, for the purpose
of making an attack upon York. Malet, who seems to
have taken the chief commandof the city,probably very
much underjudged the strength of the assailants, who
must have had a really considerable force of English,
Scots, and Danes. The preparations whichMalet made
were eventuallyhis greatest disadvantage,for in order to

THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE.
clear the ground he set fire to some of the adjoining
buildings,but the fire quickly getting out of all control,
destroyed much that was far beyond Malet's original
intention. A great part ofthe city, includingthe Minster
of St. Peter, and with it a valuablelibrary, presented by
Archbishop Egbert in a.d. 300, was destroyed. Under the
cover of the conflagration the hostile forces, which had
come ashore nearFulford,crept up to the walls. Dividing
into two parties, they climbed the walls of the two
fortresses, and carried the whole place by storm, cutting
to pieces not less than 3,000 Normans; Malet, his wife,
and two children, together with Gilbert, and a few others
alone escaping. William, as might be supposed, did not
tarrylongbefore he stood before the walls threateningthe
direst vengeance against the possessorsof the castlesand
city if they did not surrender. Waltheof, who was the
governor,refused, and had it not been for the pangs of
starvation all attacks would have failed, even though
William, by bribery, had induced the Danes to retire,
leaving the Saxons to bear the brunt of the siege. But
famine compelled submission, though the sword failed,
and the garrison capitulatedupon the most honourable
terms, which, however, were totally disregarded by
William, whoput everyoneof the soldiers to death. The
city was razed to the ground, and the whole country for
many thousand acres was laid waste. Peter Langstaff's
Chronicle, as quoted by Twyford,has the following: —
William turned again, andheld whathe hadsworn;
All mad he wasteynpasture, medow, korne,
Andslough both fader and sonne,womenlete their gon,
Hors and houndes their ete uncithis skaped non.
The castles wererepaired and strengthened,and one —
the principal one, that on the left bank — was given in
charge to a trustworthy commander, probably oneofthe
Cliffords. York Castle comes next under our notice in
the reign of William II.,who increased the strength of
the place. In the reign of Stephen its capture was
87
1

88
THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE.
threatened by David, King of Scotland, who appeared
before it with a large army. The great Battle of the
Standard in 1138, however, prevented any actual steps
beingtaken for the reduction of York. We next find the
Castle mentionedin connection with the tragic massacre
of the Jews whichmarked the commencement of Richard
the First's reign. The Jews had beenintroduced into the
country by William I., who had fully recognised the
advantage of having the protection of such a wealthprovidingpeople.
York,like many other places,was the
seat of a large and influential colony of them, and they
no doubt did much to encourage and create theconsiderable
trade of the city. Richardhad forbiddenthe Jews to
be present at his coronation, but many of them went to
London on that occasion to proffer valuable gifts, in the
hopes of havingtheir privileges and immunities,such as
they were, secured. Several who had attended the
coronation ceremony were detected, and were beaten and
expelled,some even being slain. At this the Londoners
rose and massacred a great number of the unhappy
people,an example which rapidly spread to other parts,
being followed at Lynn, Norwich, Stamford, and York.
At York the unhappy Jews all perished under the most
awful circumstances, which are elsewhere detailed.
In the last year of the reign of King John the barons
threatenedthe besiegementof York,but retired on receiving
from the citizens 1000 marks. For longages York
Castle echoed to the treadof armies, and the shouts of
revelling and merrymaking held in the city. All the
splendourof mediæval courts was invarious aspects presented
at onetime or anotherto the eyes of the citizens.
In 1230 HenryIII.kept his Christmas here;in 1252 he
bestowed here his daughter Margaret upon the Scottish
King. In 1298 a Parliament met here, and 1299 the
whole Englisharmy. In 1327 Edward III. had 50,000
menhere, and after his unsuccessful excursion to Scotland,
here he married Philippa of Hainhault. In
whilehe wasin France, Philippa,his queen,gatheredan

THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE. 89
armytogetherat York,and defeated theScotch at NeviU's
Cross. Richard II. held a Parliament at York, and it
held to him in his adversity, and consequently suffered
from the vengeance of Henry IV. Again, in the disastrous
conflicts between the rival Roses of York and
Lancaster, York was the scene of frequent battles,and as
either party was victorious did the heads of the other
garnishin ghostlyarray the gates of the castle.
Henry VII. visited York twice to suppress northern
insurrections. In the reign of his successors York was
seized at the dissolution of the religious houses by the
" Pilgrims of Grace," but this rebellion was put down.
In 1537 Henry VIII. had established a Council and
President for the government of the North, and this continueduntil
1641.
During the disputes and contests between the Royalists
and the Parliamentarians York was in the hands of both
in turn, and Cromwell was twice within the wallsofthe
Castle. In 1745, after the quellingofthe rebellion, those
triedand found guilty at York, were there executed, and
the gates and Castle wereagain set with their remainsin
a manner worthy of an age and country sunk in the
grossest and most barbarous depravity.
From a veryearly period York Castle,after the manner
of all such buildings, has been used as a place of detention
for those persons who either broke the laws or fell
under the displeasure of the dominantpowers. We read
of it, from 1216 to 1272, that is,during the reign of Henry
III.,beingused as a prison aswell for debtorsas traitors,
and for felons as well as the victims of political change.
The executive power appears to have been somewhat
divided. At first the king,in the person of the governor
of the Castle, wouldhave the almost absolute disposal of
the prisoners. Next we find the priests lending their
share towards the general barbarity of the times. The
Abbot of St. Mary's had the charge of a gallowsfor the
execution of culprits, and no doubt certain fees or perquisites
in connection; but in 1370, on account of some

90
THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE.
disturbancemadeby the monks, the privilege was taken
from the ecclesiastical hangsmen. In 1379,at a meeting
of the local and other authorities at York, the question
was finally decided,and a new gallows was then ordered
to be erected,and the place of which was calledTyburn.
Within a month the new gallows was erected and used
for an execution, the criminal first hung on this new
" tree" beingone EdwardHewison. The greater part of
the Castle andits land was handedover to the care of the
county at a date between 1377 and 1399.
The first
account whichbears anystamp of authenticityof a Castle
gaoleris the record of a personnamedOswald Wilkinson,
who was appointed in 1557, but suffered death at
" Tiborne " in 1572 for treason and conspiracy.
After the transfer of the Castle from the custody of the
Crown to that of the county, the towers continued to be
used for purposes of confinement, but want of proper
repair and their general neglect caused them to become
so utterly ruinous that they were levelledin 1701, and a
new gaol erected by a tax being laid on the lands of
the county. The stone used for rebuilding was chiefly
from the ruinedAbbey ofSt. Mary. Howard,about 1772,
visited York Castle,and speaks interms of qualified praise
of the arrangements for the lodgment of debtors and
criminals. The very early days of York Castle as a prison
are,as might be expected,markedwith the cruelty of the
times. Here is an example: — Persons who would not
plead,but remained silentin order to prevent the confiscation
of their estates from their family, were visited by
what was called the Judgment of Penance. The form
was as follows: — " That you be taken back to the prison
whence you came, to a low dungeoninto which no light
can enter; that you be laid on your back on the bare
floor, with a clothround your loins,but elsewhere naked;
that there be setupon your body a weight of iron as great
as you can bear — and greater; that you have no sustenance
save, on the first day, three morsels of the coarsest
bread; on the second day, three draughts of stagnant

THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE. 91
water from the pool nearest to the prison door; on the
third day, again three morsels of bread as before, and
such bread and such water alternately from day to day
until you die." Standing mute was not considered
sufficient for conviction, and before a culprit could be
tried it seems to have been often the case that he could
not be tried until he had declared his willingness to be
put on trial by the laws and customs of the realm; for
we read that early in the reign of EdwardI.the Sheriff
of York surrounded and captured a party of malefactors,
of which it is said that some were killed in the attack,
others made prisoners, while others, because they would
not consent to betried according to law and custom, were
beheadedonthespot— doubtless totheirgreater satisfaction.
The records of the Assize Courts show that from 1370
to the present timenearlysix hundred people have been
beheaded or hanged at York, and the accounts contain
many very curious particulars of the various prisoners
who have been incarcerated or suffered death here. In
addition to the hangingof condemnedcriminals,for some
offences they werepressed to deathby beingplaced on a
board witha spike which pierced the spine, while weights
were added which brokethe ribs. For the crime ofpetty
treason, that is, husband-murder, womenwere commonly
strangled and then burned. The last who suffered in
this way for this offence, at York, was Eliza Bordington,
who,in 1777, was first strangled and her body afterwards
burned. For high treason the sentence was disgustingly
barbarous. Peers of the realm, gentlemen, and ecclesiastics
of high estate, and others, were visited by the
ruthless punishment of hanging,drawing, and quartering.
So perished the leaders ofthe " PilgrimageofGrace," in
which Lord Hussey was a chief participator. He was
first " hanged for twenty minutes, then cut down,
stripped, and laid upon a stage built for that purpose
close to the gallows,wherehis head was cut off and his
body quartered." Others of note might be mentioned.
The heads and the bleeding quarters of those who so

92
THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE.
suffered were hung about the Castle and city. Theheart
was held aloft by the executioner,the entrails drawn out
and sometimescut up andthrown amongstthe spectators,
while the trunk and thighs were sliced and hacked to
increasein every way the repulsive horrors of the exhibition,which
took place before thousands of spectators,who
inits barbarityrecognisedbut a showand an amusement.
There are various instances of the reckless conduct of
prisoners at the York Tyburn. Thomas Wilson, alias
Mountain, who, in 1570, killed the Abbot of St. Mary's,
and stabbed the Archbishop of York, was adjudged to
die. He occupied a considerable time in addressing the
crowd, and called out twice " God save the Queen."
Another,William Borwick, whowilfullymurderedhis wife,
told the executioner that he hoped the rope was strong
enough,asif it were to breakwith the strain of his weight,
he mightbe a cripplefor life.
Among other notableaccounts of prisoners of York are
several which offer the not uncommon instances of omission
to hang the culprits properly. Perhaps the most
extraordinary case is that of John Bartendale, who, on
the 27th March, 1634, was hangedupon the gallowsnear
Knavesmire, at York, for felony. He had hung at the
gallows for the space of three-quartersof an hour, when
he was cut downand buried near the foot of the tree. The
officials and spectatorsleaving the place, a Vavasour,of
Hesslewood, ridingthat way withhis servant, thought he
saw a movement of the earth,and soon had the ex-corpse
dug up "all alive." Drunken Barnaby's doggerel has
the circumstancerelated: —
Here is a piper apprehended,
Was found guilty and suspended.
Beingled to fatal gallows,
Boys did say, " Where is thy bellows ?
Ever must thou cease thy tuning."
Answeredhe, " For all your cunning
You mayfail in your prediction."
Which didhappen without fiction;

THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE. 93
For, cut down and quick interred,
Earthrejected what was buried.
Halfalive or dead he rises;
Got a pardonnext assizes,
Andin York continued blowing.
Yet a sense of goodness showing.
He became an ostler after the obtainingof his pardon.
Not very dissimilaris the case of " Half-hanged Smith,"
another Yorkshireman, who recovered after hanging
fifteen minutes.
The discipline of the prison of York Castle seems to
have, up to within say the last forty years, been in an
extremelylax state. In the latter partof the seventeenth
century we readof governorsand othersmaintainingorder
byswinging enormous keys round and round at the end
of a chain, whichnotinfrequently caught prisoners on the
head,"knocking them senseless "— and no wonder. As
a necessary result of such want of discipline, escapeswere
not uncommon. It will be remembered that Eugene
Aram, who was tried for the murder of Daniel Clarke, in
x759> spoke at great length in his ingenious defence of
the unexplained disappearance of Thompson, a felon,
who had escaped about that time from York Castle. In
1780, however, while clearing away rubbish from behind
the Court House, there was found a human skeleton on a
portion of waste ground, with double irons on the legs.
That this was the skeleton of the escaped convict there
can be littledoubt. Another instance of the ill-keeping of
the prison is that dealing with the escape of twenty
French prisoners, who were confined there in 1761, and
of which six only were recaptured. In 1765 the felons
rose against the gaolers and captured the prison, but the
debtors coming to the rescue,afree fight ensued, inwhich
the under-gaoler's leg was broken. The debtors re-took
the place, and a subscription was afterwardsraised in the
city for them.
The earliest known political prisoner confined in York
Castle was Sir Rees ap Meredith, who for rebellionwas

94
THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE.
"
had to York," where he was " hanged, drawen, and
quartered." Afterhim isa longline of victims, including
the Duke of York, the Earl of Devon,the Earl of Ryme,
Lord Darcy, and others, who, for the cause of right, or
their private aims,had risen against authority. Among
political prisoners we may mention Colonel Morris, who
captured PontefractCastle for the Kingduringthe struggle
of the Civil War, and held it for some time afterwards
against the Parliamentarians. He was,however, obliged
to surrender, and, with six others, was excepted from the
conditions,but was,with them, allowedhis life if he could
cut his way out. ColonelMorris and one other succeeded
in doing so,but in spite of the promise, wereafterwards
captured and taken to York to be tried. They wereboth
condemned to death,buthad nearly escaped. Morris let
himself down from the Castle wall, but the other, Cornet
Blackburn, in following, broke his leg, and Morris,
gallantly refusing to desert his friend,remained by him
until captured. Theywere both executed the next day at
the Tyburn outside of Micklegate Bar.
Leaving againthose cases wheremen were imprisoned
or executed for political offences, we find a principal
crime was "clipping" of the coinage, for the practice of
which one Daniel Auty was imprisoned, and also for the
stealing and melting down of the Minster plate, but he
was not convicted. Highwayrobbery furnished as many
instances as any offence. The first recorded case of
execution for this was in 1585.
Amos Lawson was a
notorious highwayman, whose career was brought to a
close in 1644, being captured by William Taylor, Sheriff
of York, whom he had intended to rob. Ebenezer Moor
was another of the same fraternity, though of that century
the man Nevison is the most celebratedof highwaymen.
He it was who reallyrode from London to York
in one day, a feat which is generally credited to Dick
Turpin, rendered famous by the late Harrison Ainsworth.
Nevison seems to have been all that is commonlyattributed
to Turpin;he was brave, courteous, anc1 charitable;

THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE.
of large size and great dexterity; he was the terror of the
carriers and drovers of the north, whopaid him a regular
blackmail. He frequently gave money to the poor after
making a good haul from the rich, and often robbed
bailiffs and others simply to return their money to the
victims of debt or distraint. The story of his famous
ride is as follows. He had committed a robbery in
London just before dawn, and being recognised he immediatelymounted
his horse, an animal of great endurance,
and by sunset, reckoned to be an interval of fifteen
hours, he entered York, and upon his trial set up an
alibiand was acquitted. On account of this,the " Merrie
Monarch," Charles II., nicknamed him "Swift Nick."
He was afterwards for robbery again sent to York, and
hangedin 1684. Turpin was a much more vulgar description
of rogue, havingbeen guilty of highway robbery,
horse stealing,and murder. He first set up in the business
of stealing cattlein Essex,but afterwards proceeded
to the committal of nearly every enormity in the way
of cruelty and murder. He lived for some time at
Welton, in good repute as a gentlemanhorse-dealer,but
a foolish threat to a gentleman caused him to be summoned
at BeverleyPetty Sessions, whichled to his detection
and conviction. The Beverley magistrates sent him
to York Castle,wherehe was recognised by severalpeople.
An instance of his detection is somewhat characteristic
of the man. A person who pretended to know him, said
"
that this wasnot Turpin,and he would bet half-a-guinea
on it,"upon whichTurpinwhispered to his warder, " Lay
him! I'llgo you halves." He was hangedat York, April
17th, 1739.
Another well known case is that of Mr.
Wortley, an attorney,who, on being arrested by a bailiff,
exclaimed, "I will run you through, thou shalt arrest
none of me," and trying to escape he was prevented,
upon which he thrust the Bailiff through with a rapier.
Mr. Wortley was acquitted. A dreadfulaffair took place
in the early part of the seventeenthcentury,known from
its harrowing particulars as the "Yorkshire tragedy," and
95

96
THE STORY OF YORK CASTLE.
upon which a dramatic composition has been founded, it
is said, by Shakespeare. One Walter Calverly, or
Calverly of Calverly, as he was most commonly called,
murdered his children, attempted to do the same for his
wife and two servants, and was only captured upon his
horse throwing him as he was on his way to murder yet
another of his children. He wascaptured by a friend who
hadcome totellhimofthe imprisonment of his(Calverly's)
brother for a bond. He was taken to York, and refusing
to plead,was threatenedby the judge with the judgment
of penance alreadymentioned, butreplied, " Iam familiar
with everythingyou can urge,my lord. Iknow full well
thatIshall die under lingeringtortures but
such pains are welcome to me; they are the only atonementIcan
offer to man or heaven." He was pressed to
death August 5th, 1604. Eugene Aramis almost thelast
of any particular note who diedat the Tyburn of York,he
suffering there in 1759.

Chapter XIV.
THE BATTLE OF THE STANDARD, 1138.
HE present aspect and condition of our native
England is so different from what it was not
many centuries agothat it is very difficult to
conceive that it has been the scene of so
many bloody struggles as are recorded in its
history, of which,indeed, they form a large proir
portion. Yorkshire, from its size and situation,
was the field of a very considerable number of these
desperate encounters. Here, after the RomanConquest,
the number of Danes and Saxons was largest,and here
the Conqueror found the most stubborn resistance; there
the piratesof the North Sea, the boldvikings of Scandinavia,swooped
down, and gave occasion to many a stern
fight; there also was felt the shock of opposing hosts as
the Scots poureddown from the Northin their ambitious
attempts to conquer the northern part of England,and
were met by the Yorkshire archers,whose "flying devils"
and " stinging flies" made such havoc in the Scottish
ranks. What wonder, then, with such foes, that Yorkshire
is covered with the sites ofbattle-fields,or, that at
one time, so desolate was it that it was styled a waste ?
Not less afterwardsthe extent of moorland, and the situation
in it of important strongholds and centres of
population, gave opportunities for the fell purposes ofwar
that the courageous and sturdy spirit of its occupants
never caused them to shun.
7

98
THE BATTLE OF THE STANDARD.
We find,as time advanced, that the Yorkshire battles
became of more moment; not, indeed, that the cruelty,
ravages, or bloodshed, were any less, but because the
warfare was less desultory and the battles more located,
on account ofthe increasedunity of the country. Hence
the Battle of the Standard of ir38 is more memorable
than any ofits predecessors.
The Scots,at any period,everready toavail themselves
of the slightest pretext for entering into contest with their
southernneighbours, were,in the reign of Stephen, only
awaiting a favourable opportunity to again attempt the
invasion of England. Such a period and such an opportunity
presented itself to them early in 1138, when
Matilda set up her claim to England's throne. The
Barons of England weredissatisfiedwith the attitude of
Stephen,whose policy was opposed to the extreme feudal
ideas of the time. Chief amongthe disaffectedparty was
the Earl of Gloucester, who, inconjunction with others,
planned an extensive scheme of rebellion in favour of
Matilda. Part of the conspiracy was the co-action of
Scotland, to the King of which country, David I., the
uncle of Matilda,the Earlmade overtures, with the result
that he promised to attempt again to invade England.
The English Barons, day by day,desertedStephen,who,
it is said,uttered the words, " The traitors! They themselves
made me a king,and now they fall from me;but,
by God's birth, they shall never call me a deposed
King!"
Meanwhile,Davidwas taking active measures tocollect
a large army. His troops were drawnfrom every part of
Scotland, as well as England and foreign parts,and seem
to have been a mere rabble of soldiery, without discipline
or order, more resembling wild beasts than men.
The Scottish King himself was a man of considerable
refinement — so much so,indeed, that we cannot but consider
him as out ofplace amongthe stormy events of his
day. An old writersaysof him: " As for the Kingof Scots
himselfhe was aprince of a mild, merciful disposition;

THE BATTLE OF THE STANDARD. 99
but the Scots were a barbarous and impure nation,
and their king, leadinghordesof them from the remotest
partsof the land, wasunable torestrain their wickedness."
Such was the King, and such the army, that crossed the
Tweedin the spring of 1138, for the purpose of invading
this country. They marched southward, with the usual
accompaniments of fire and bloodshed, laying waste, in
fact, almost the whole of the northern counties, after
which they marched to York and laid siege to that city.
Thurston was then the Archbishopof York, and adecrepit
oldman; but throwing aside age and infirmity,he immediately
set about organisinganarmy to repeltheinvaders.
He summoned the chief barons of the district, who were
enragedat the ravagesofDavid,to acouncil of war,andan
army was hastilymobilised. These leaderswere William
de Albemarle,Walter de Gaunt, Robertde Brus, Roger de
Mowbray,WalterEspec.GilbertdeLacy,WilliamdeLacy,
William de Percy, Richard de Courcey,William Fossard,
and Robert de Stourteville. David,on hearing of the
energeticmeasures undertaken by the valorous Thurston,
didnot waitthe approach of the English under the walls
of York, but raising the siege,marched towards Northallerton,
then called Elfer-tau, where he was confronted
by the Yorkshire army, and here was decided, in one
pitched battle, the fate of the Scottish attempt. To this
engagement has since been given the distinctive title of
the Battle of the Standard, from thefact that as a rallying
point on the field was erected the standard, ormast, of a
vessel,mounted upona waggonor car. It wassurmounted
by a largecrucifix ; midwaywas placeda pix,or box,containing
the consecrated wafer; while it was likewise
adorned with the banners of St. Peter of York, St. John
of Beverley,and St. Wilfrid of Ripon. The standard of
the Scots was simply a lance entwinedwith the sprigs of
bloomingheather.
Before the battle the Venerable Archbishop Thurston
earnestly harangued the English, beseeching them to
" fight to the lastfor the good of theircountry," and to all

100
THE BATTLE OF THE STANDARD.
who fell he promised eternal happiness! He was not
able, on account of his extreme age,to be present on the
battle-field, but appointed Bishop Raoul, or Ranulf, the
Norman, as his representative. Ranulf, immediately
before the commencement of the strife, sought to rouse
the alreadyhigh-pitched courage of the Anglo-Normans
in the following stirring words: — " Illustrious chiefs of
England, be bold! Brave Normans, before whom bold
France trembles, to whomfierce England has submitted,
under whom Apulia has beenrestoredto her station, and
whosenames are famous at Antioch and Jerusalem ;here
are the Scots,who have done homageto you,undertaking
to drive you from your estates!"
On the Scottish side the battle had been merely prefaced
by a dispute as to which of the different bodies was
to be allowed to take the lead in the fight, a distinction
which was permitted to the bold men of Galloway,the
ancient Picts, though they were the worst clad of any of
the mountaintroops, and possessed no defensive armour
worthy of the name. Armed principally with long thin
pikes, the impetuous hill-men rushed madly upon the
ranks of the English, crying, as they swept down,
" Alban! Alban!" and makingfearful havoc,but far from
intimidating their intrepid mail-clad opponents. The
noted archers of Teviotdale did good service for King
David,but the skill of theEnglish archers soon evinced a
decidedsuperiority, and it became evident that the reckless
fighting of the Scots, however gallant and devoted,
must succumb to the steady, enduring firmness of the
Anglo-Normans. What could avail against such
resources as lay in the good yew bow; as Sir Walter
Scott says: —
To theright ear the cords they bring —
At once ten thousandbowstrings ring,
Ten thousand arrows flyI
Nor paused on the devotedScot
The ceaseless fury oftheir shot,
As fiercely and as fast.

THE BATTLE OF THE STANDARD. 101
Forth whistling came the grey goose wing,
As the wildhailstones pelt and ring
AdownDecember's blast;
Nor mountain targe oftough hill-hide,
Nor lowland mail that storm may bide;
Woe, woe to Scotland's banneredpride,
Ifthe fell shower may last!
Last it did, with the most direful effects. Scotland's
pride was trampled under foot, her warriors beaten and
routed, leaving,it is said, 12,000 dead on the battle-field.
During the fight the success of the English was greatly
assisted by a trick which they played upon the Scots.
The head of a fallen English soldier, who bore some
resemblance to the Scottish king, was fixed on a spearpoint,
and wavedin triumph by the English,whodeclared
it to be the veritablehead of Davidhimself. The credulous
Scots believed their king had been slain, and fled in
the utmost confusion and dismay, though Davidran from
rank to rank to disprove the report. They were chased
with immense slaughter, and if the English armyhad
been able to have continued the pursuit, scarcely a Scot
would have survived to tell the tale. As it was, the
pursuit was obliged to berelinquished, and the retreating
forces committed, on their return, similar ravages to
those described as theirfirst proceedings on entering the
country.
Thus the famous Battle of the Standard was ended — a
complete victory for the English,and one which, though
the Scots met the English on many a subsequent obstinate
field, kept them long in awe of the might of their
southern foes.

Chapter XV.
THE BATTLE OF WAKEFIELD, 1460.
Victorious Prince ofYork,
BeforeIsee thee seated in that throne,
Which now the house of Lancaster usurps,
Ivow by heaven these eyes shall never close;
This is the palaceof that fearfulking,
And that the regal chair. Possess it, York,
For this is thine, and not KingHenry's heir's.
Shakespeare.
HE first ofthe Battles ofthe Roses was at St.
Albans in 1455, in which the Lancastrians
were defeated. HenryVI.wastakenprisoner,
and the Duke of York was placed at thehead
of the governing power. There, however,
was still much dissatisfactionin the country, and
a Parliament was shortly afterwards held for the
purposeof settling the vexed question as to who should
be king. The result was that, after prolonged debates
amongthe Parliamentarybody,it was finally agreed that
as Henry had been recognised as king for more than
thirty-eight years, he should continue to enjoy the title
and privileges during the term of his natural life; and
that if he died, or abdicated,or forfeited the Crown,it was

THE BATTLE OF WAKEFIELD. 103
to go to the Duke ofYork, if living, or to his next heir.
The Duke was in the lifetime of Henry to be Protector
and Regent of the kingdom. The methods by which
Henry might risk the forfeiture of his Crown was the
endeavouring to break or alter the agreement, or "to
compass or imagine " the death of the Duke of York or
his line. This agreement was enacted in the High Court
of Parliament, and signed and sealed by the two parties
upon the vigil of All Saints' Day. Upon All Saints' Day
King Henry, accompanied by the Duke of York, rode to
St. Paul's Cathedral, in the city of London, and there
walkedin procession with the royal diadem on his head,
and was lodged for a considerable space of time afterwards
in the Bishop's Palace, adjoining the cathedral.
Upon the Saturday following All Saints' Daythe Duke
of York was solemnly proclaimed, by the sound of
trumpet, the Heir Apparent to the throne and Protector
of the realm. Thus far all went as well as the Yorkist
faction could wish,but speedily a different complexion
was put upon the aspect of affairs by the news of the
arrangements in the south arriving at Scotland, where
Queen Margaret had taken refuge after the defeat of St.
Albans and the capture of her husband. High-spirited
and ambitious as Henry was weak-minded and yielding,
any settlementof the questionwhich excluded the succession
ofher son,Edward,Prince of Wales, was littlelikely
to be receivedby her with equanimityor resignation. So
it is not surprising to find that immediately on receiving
the unwelcome news the Queen
made all speed to
England, where,from her favourite counties in the north,
she soon gatheredan army 20,000 strong,and preparedto
march down upon the capital. The Duke of York was
then in London, where the tidings of Margaret's operations
werenot long inreachinghim, though the accounts
of the number of her adherents were far below the truth.
Hence he did not think it necessary to muster a larger
force than oneof about 5,000 men,with which numberhe
left London on the 2nd ofDecember,thinking to intercept

104
THE BATTLE OF WAKEFIELD.
the Lancastrians and frustrate all the designs of Queen
Margaret. His army arrived near Wakefield in a short
time, but the Duke of York was here met by the
unpleasant information of his opponent's great superiority
of numbers. Though he had expected to find
Margaret at the head of a merehandful of followers,whom
his army would quickly disperse, he had left orders with
his son, the Earlof March, to follow him shortly with the
remainder of the army. To fight the overwhelmingly
superior forces of Margaret with his 5,000 men was out
of reason. A considerabletime must elapse before reinforcements
could arrive; therefore, he decided to throw
himself into Sandal Castle, near Wakefield, until the
arrival of his son made the opposingarmiesmore equally
matched.
However, for some reason or other, the Duke was prevailed
upon to leave his sheltered position, and offer
unequal battle to the Queen. What that reason was is
one of the unsettled points of history, though it is
generallyattributedto the Duke's chivalric spirit.
The Queen, on reaching Wakefield, endeavoured by
every means in her power to entice the Duke into the
open field,taunting him with cowardice in not daring to
oppose a woman in battle. No artifice was omitted
which might induce him to leave his stronghold before
the arrival of the Earl of March. She pretended to draw
off her troops, and proceed south; then she hid the
greater part of them behind a hill, and with the small
remaindermarched up to Sandal Castle, as though it had
been the whole body,provokinghim to battle,and daring
him by the most insultingmessages to come out. Rapin
says on the subject as follows: — "Probably his hatred
against the Queen ledhim, as it were,against his will to
commit an unpardonable fault in a generalof so established
a reputation. This, at least, was the motive
ascribed to him by historians. For my part, ifImay be
allowed to speak myopinion,IownIthink it improbable.
Ishould rather believe the wantof provisions forced him

THE BATTLE OF WAKEFIELD.
105
to a battle, in order to avoid the danger to which he was
exposed." There can be no question that he did wrong
in permitting the collision of his small army with the
vastly superior forces of Margaret. He should have
retreated onfirst hearingof the great strengthofher army
until he could rejoin his son, who was in the meantime
raisinga powerful force. Whether the Duke was actually
in wantof provisions, was angered beyond endurance at
the Queen's reproaches and upbraidings, or whether he
thought himself deceived in the number of the opposing
army, it is impossible to conjecture. Suffice it to say
that he did commit the rashact of leaving his safe retreat,
and thereby lost the battle and his life together.
Before treating of the battle itself, wequote from Speed
thefollowing quaint descriptiveparagraphofthe affair: —
"
The Castle of Sandal standethpleasantly upon a small
hill, in view of the faire town of Wakefield. There the
Duke of York, coming thither upon Christmas Eve,
reposeth himself, and expecteth the increase of his
numbers. The Queen, advertised, thinks it wisdom to
fight before the Duke grows too strong, and therefore
marchethforward, having an army of eighteen thousand
men, ledby the Dukes of Somerset and Exeter, the Earls
of Devonshire and Wiltshire, the LordsNeville, Clifford,
Rosse, and,in effect, all the northernnobility. The host,
or as much thereof as they thought it necessary to show,
presentsitself before Sandal toprovoke and dare the Duke
to battle. His blood, impatient at these braves, and
ignorant, perhaps, that the enemyhad so great a multitude
will needs fight, though the Earl of Salisbury and
Sir David Hall, an ancient servant of his, and a great
soldier, advisehim to stay till his son, the Earl of March,
approached with such Welchmen and Marchers as he had
assembled in great numbers. The Queen, therefore,
addeth stratagem and wit to her force; to the intent he
might not escape her hands. Whereupon the Earl of
Wiltshire upon one side of the hill, and the Lord Clifford
upon the other, liein ambush to tempt between him and

106
THE BATTLE OF WAKEFIELD.
the Castle. The Dukes of Somerset and Exeter stand
embattledin the open field. Their policyhad the wished
success, for the Duke, not being fully five thousand
strong, issueth out of the Castle down the hill. The
battles which stoodin the front fought furiously, when, so
doing, the Duke of York sees himself enclosed, and
although he expressed great manhood, yet within one
half-hour his whole army was discomfited."
It was the 24th of December, when the Duke, with his
devotedlittle army,passed out from the gates of Sandal
Castle. He led his Yorkists to Wakefield Green, and
there, in the midstof a blindingsnowstorm, theyprepared
to give battle to the Lancastrians. The enemyimmediatelyin
front was alone sufficient to have annihilated his
army, but he faced them with a bravery that calls for
admiration. As might be expected, the carnage was
terrible; when, while stubbornly engagedwith these, the
men which the crafty Margaret had caused to lie in
ambush, suddenlyrising, attacked him in the rear. The
Yorkistswerecompletelysurrounded, and escape rendered
impossible,not less than 3,000 of their numberfalling, as
above mentioned, in half-an-hour. The Duke of York
himself was killed while fighting valiantly, and by the
order of the Lord Clifford his head wasstruck off,and prepresentedto
theQueen,who,it is said, caused to beplaced
onit in derisiona paper crown! Inaccordance with the
repellingcustoms of those rude days,it was subsequently
fixed on a pike over Micklegate Bar, York, as a warning
to his adherents. Thus perished Richard, Duke of York,
and (nearly) King of England,inthe 50th yearofhis age.
According to Hutton: — " The spot where the Duke of
York was killed,upon the Green, is about four hundred
yards from the Castle, close to the old roadfromBarnsley
to Wakefield, now calledfrom the sign of a public-house,
Cock andBottleLane." Mr.Norrison Scatcherd says: —
" This spot, on the right of the lane or old road,leading
from Wakefield to the Three Houses at Sandal, and
which was once the London road,is a triangular piece of

THE BATTLE OF WAKEFIELD. 107
ground, with a fence about it, which the tenant of the
place is bound by his lease to maintain. WhenIsaw it
many years ago some very old trees were growing in the
fence, and vestiges of others stillolder were perceptible."
The Duke's thirdson, the Earl of Rutland, a youth, was
deliberately slain incold bloodduring the battleby Lord
Clifford, a proceeding which in a measure led to the
terribleretaliativemurders of this calamitous strife.

Chapter XVI.
THE BATTLE OF TOWTON, 1461.
FTER the deathof the Duke of York at Wake
field,his son, Edward, outstepping the limits
of his father's ambition, caused himself to be
proclaimedKingunder thestyle ofEdwardIV.
Margaret,whoseactivityleft him no rest,had,
after the defeat of some of her party at Mortimer's
Cross and her own victory at St. Albans,
retired to Yorkshire, the south being more than ever
disaffected to her cause. Here she raised an army of
no less than 60,000 men. Edward, not reposing for an
instant upon his newly-acquired throne, sent out the Earl
of Warwick inpursuit of Queen Margaret. The Earl, so
properly named the " Kingmaker," was of immense
popularity,and espousedthe cause of Edward with such
fervour that when Edward joined him at Pontefract
some four days later it was found that an army of
nearly 41,000 Yorkists had been gathered together.
The first incident of the now imminent battle was the
capture of the passage of the Aire at Ferrybridge by the
" Black Clifford," and its re-captureby the Yorkists, and
the death of that blood-thirsty nobleman by a chance
arrow. The entire army of Edward crossed the Aire,
after a proclamation had been made which gave any
who might be disaffected liberty to withdraw before the

THE BATTLE OF TOWTON.
engagement;but threateningto punish terribly those who
behaved in a cowardly or unwilling manner during the
battle. This and the determination of the Earl of
Warwick, whoslew his horse before the army, swearing
to undergo the same hardships and dangers as his commonest
soldier,gave the Yorkist forces great confidence.
Shakespeare speaks of Henry and Margaret as being
presentat the battle,whereasthey, with their son Edward,
were left by the army at York when it advancedsouthward.
The lines supposed to be spokenby Henryrun: —
Here on this molehill willIsit me down;
To whom God will, therebe the victoryI
For Margaret, my Queen, andClifford too,
Havechid me from the battle, swearingboth
They prosper best ofall whenIam thence.
We have seen, however, that Clifford was killed before
the battlecommenced.
The two armies were now on the eve of the most
momentous battle of the Roses' struggle; each "well
disciplined in arms; each animated by the most bitter
animosity. At last, in the early morning of Palm
Sunday, the 29th of March, 1461, they met. The place
chosen by the Lancastrians was an elevated ridge of
ground, which included in length about four miles, from
the villageof Grimston to that of Saxton, each two miles
above and below Towton. The armies stood face to face,
each awaitingfor a brief period the preliminary measures
of the other. Suddenly the elements threw a cast in
favour of the Yorkists, for a blinding snowstorm swept
down full in the faces of the Lancastrians. This was
quickly perceived by Lord Falconberg (the same who
recoveredthe passage of the Aire), whocommandedhis
ready archers to " send a flight arrow into the enemies'
ranks " and then retiring a few paces, to stand. The
manSuvre succeeds ; the Lancastrians thinking their
foes nearer than was the case, plied their arrows fast and
thick, but with no result whatever, except to exhaust
109

110
THE BATTLE OF TOWTON.
their quivers. Now Falconberg'sarchers again advanced
and pouredin a deadlyshower of arrows — their own and
those which had fallen harmless at their feet. Now the
Lancastrian leaders seeing the havoc wrought by the
arrowsof the enemy, ordered an advance to close quarters.
Swords, bills,and battle-axes are now the weapons
on either side;with these the vast opposing hosts rush
forward with impetuosity and without order; they clash,
surge to and fro, fighting wildly and desperately,till the
whole ridge is a mass of irretrievable, struggling confusion,
in which the twoEnglish qualitiesof courage and
endurance are the sole means of victory on whichever
side happenedto possess them in greater abundance.
All accounts of the Battle ofTowtonare deficient in the
circumstance and detail which are on record of mostof
the Yorkshire fights, which may be accounted forby the
entirely hand to hand and individual nature of this particular
encounter. It began about seven in the morning,
and waged without intermission until three in the afternoon.
During that time the fortune of war had many
times fluctuated;now the Lancastrians seemed to carry
the day — now theyweredrivenback — eachin turn seems
the victor. As Shakespeare says in conjuction with the
passage above quoted: —
This battle fares like to themorning's war,
When dying clouds contend with growinglight.
What time the Shepherd, blowingof his nails,
Canneither call it perfect day nor night.
Now swaysit this way,like amighty sea
Forced by the tide to combat withthe wind,
Now swaysit that way,like the self-same sea
Forced to retire by fury ofthe wind.
Sometimes the floodprevails,and then the wind;
Now one the better, then another best;
Both tugging to be victors, breast to breast,
Yetneither conqueror nor conquered.
Sois the equal poiseof this fell war.
At length the " equalpoise"was thrown out of balanceby
the arrival of reinforcements for Edward's army. The

THE BATTLE OF TOWTON. 111
Duke of Norfolk, coming upon the field with a body of
5,000 unbreathedtroops,the tide of battlenowsteadilyset
infor theWhite Rose,the Lancastrians beingbeatenback,
though eventhen they retreated rather than fled, fighting
all the time, and making several brave but ineffectual
stands against Edward's soldiers. At last these, encouraged
by their decided superiority, dashed forward with
redoubledeffort, and converted the retreat into a helpless,
hopelessrout. Edwardhad issued theorder thatnoquarter
was to be given, and but too well was that command
observed; the fugitives were slaughtered by thousands,
the humble man-at-arms and the haughty noble being
alike ignominiously butcheredas soon as overtaken. The
survivors endeavoured to get over the Wharfe at Tadcaster,
and, in doing so, the Cock, a small tributary of
that river, became filled with the bodies of the fugitives,
who thus formed a ghastly bridge for their friends and
foes. There were slain on this memorable day nearly
38,000 persons,of whom 28,000 were Lancastrians,andit
is said that the Wharfe ran with blood, and the Cock
especially, for forty-eight hours. Afterwards also the
sanguinary nature of the strife became again apparent,
for upon the subsequent approachof milder weather the
frozen blood of the battle-field melted, and deluged the
district's waterways. The principal of the chiefs slain
were buried in the burial grounds of the surrounding
villages, but the "common bodies" were thrust into
immense pits. Stow says " the slain wereburied in five
great pits, yet appearing by north of Saxton Church;"
but Grainge (Battles and Battle-fields of Yorkshire) says
"they have since been removed to the Churchyard of
Saxton." In the neighbourhood,however,are yet many
mounds of a tumuli-like appearance, which may very
safely be conjectured to be due to the interment there of
the devoted partizansof the Red and White Roses. The
disastrous news of the defeat was brought to York by the
Duke of Somerset and the Duke of Exeter; and Henry
and Margaret,witha few of those who had survived the

112
THE BATTLE OF TOWTON.
death-blow to the Lancastrian cause which Towton
inflicted, fled into Scotland, well aware that ample
vengeance would now be taken by Edward for the
beheadal of his father. The barbarous exhibition of
heads over the Micklegate Bar of York now received a
change; those of the late Duke of York and the Earl of
Salisbury wereremovedto give place to those of the Earl
ofDevonshire, the EarlofKyme, and others.
Thus terminated the bloody and useless Wars of the
Roses; the weak-minded but amiable Henry was exchanged
for the vigorous and tyrannical Edward, while
the country received not the slightest benefit from the
struggle whichhad swept away some 100,000of her sons.
Thus did a long and useless struggle terminate in a
battlenotablycruel and bloody.
The district has, as might be expected,not a few relics
of the Battle of Towton, principallyin the tombsof the
nobles,and the traditionsofthecommonpeople; but little
has been found on the site to indicate that here was
fought one of the most obstinate Yorkshire battles on
"
record.

Chapter XVII.
THE BATTLE OF MARSTON MOOR, 1644.
Wouldst hear the tale ? On Marston Heath,
Met, front to front, the ranks ofdeath;
Flourished the trumpets fierce, andhow,
Fired was each eye,and flush'd each brow;
On either side loud clamours ring,
God and the cause! " " God and the King! "
Scott.
HE world-famous writer whose lines we have
above quoted continues
Right English all they rushed to blows,
With naught to win, and all to lose.
But it must be apparent to all who know the
history of the Civil War of the 17th century that
too great a principle was being fought out in that memorable
and protracted struggle for it to be justly said that
there was " naught to win." For the supremacy of the
Royalists meant the winning for the throne absolute
power, that of the Parliamentarians meant winning for
the peoplea liberty whose roots are yet deep in English
hearts.
Of the many desperatecontests of the Civil War which
occurred in the Northern Counties, the Battle of Marston
Moor may claim to be the most severein the slaughter of
its participants and the ultimate effect of the victory.
8

114
THE BATTLE OF MARSTON MOOR.
The Royalists had been driven from every part of
Lancashire,excepting Lathom House andLiverpool, and
these werebeingcloselybesiegedby the Parliamentarians.
Lathom House, a seat of Lord Derby, was heroically
defended by Charlotte, Countess of Derby,but it was felt
that aid was necessary, or the fortress must surrender.
The same was the case withYork; and the Earl ofDerby,
on behalf of Lathom, and others for York, made urgent
appeals to King Charles for assistance, but without any
response,until at last the Royalists, sending a memorial
to Prince Rupert, the King's nephew,he was permitted,
after a lapse of two months, to depart witha considerable
force for the North. On his way,with an army of 10,000
men, heplundered "most fearfully allalong,and especially
taking men and horses," and the subject of his depredations
wereindifferently Royalist or Roundhead. Arriving
in Lancashireon the 25thMay,he defeated a Parliamentary
force at StockportBridge,caused the siege of Lathom
to beraised, and captured Bolton, slaughteringits defenders
with great cruelty, and in a month the same fate
overtook the garrison of Liverpool. This much accomplished,Prince
Rupertfound his forcesincreasedto 20,000
men, and with this formidable army he crossed the
Lancashire border to relieve York, all this timeheld with
great difficulty by the Marquis of Newcastle. The Parliamentarians,
under Lord Fairfax, and the Scots, under
Leslie, were too few in number to completelyinvest the
city, and when the Earl of Manchester arrived with a
considerable bodyof troops,and havingas his commander
Oliver Cromwell, a council of war was held, in which all
these leaders took part. It wasthen decidedthat toawait
the approach of Prince Rupert before the walls of York
would be worse than folly. So the siege was raised, and
theRoundheads and Scots drewup their forces onHessay
Moor, in the hope of intercepting the Prince before he
couldreach York. But by theexercise of that greatmilitary
skill which hepossessed, Prince Rupert struck out in
another direction, and entered York from the side at

THE BATTLE OF MARSTON MOOR. 115
which he was least expectedby either friend or enemy.
The disappointment of the Parliamentarians may be
better imagined whenit is stated that dissensionin their
camp needed at this time a great conflict to unite them,
and to restore confidence. The advice of the Scottish
contingent in this instance prevailed,and the Roundhead
army withdrew in the direction of Tadcaster to await a
better opportunity of giving battle. But the headstrong
Prince, who never won an advantage by his skill and
courage but he lostit byhisrashness, determined,in spite
ofthe strongremonstrances of the Marquis of Newcastle,
to pursue the Parliamentarians at once and measurehis
strength against theirs. Newcastle, who was expecting
in a few days the reinforcement of 5,000 men under
Clavering, threwup his commissionin disgust, though he
entered the service of Rupert as a volunteer. The day
after the Prince had entered the city of York, the 2nd
July,he left it to fight the Parliamentarians. These, on
that day, were on their way to Tadcaster, and the rear
guard were nearly overtaken by the van which Prince
Rupert, with skilful rapidity,had thrown forward. This
rearguard hadpassed the Moorof Hessay,and had a good
position on the Moor, known as Marston Field, which
it was thought desirableto retain. The order was given
to the troops to return, the enemy was held in check, and
finally the whole army was put into position on Marston
Field, which was then occupied by a crop of oats nearly
ready for the sickle. The completest preparations were
madeby each side; the Parliamentarians, to distinguish
their friends in the forthcoming fight, wore white scarves,
or paper bands,ontheir hats;the Royalists beingwithout
any distinguishing badge. The preparations occupied
until the middle of the second week in July, previous to
which, however, a constant interchange of artillery fire
had beenmade. At last the greatbattle commenced. It
is stated by some that a cannon ball struck the nephew
of Cromwell,and so enragedthe iron chief that he ordered
a charge. Other accounts say that the enemy had

116
THE BATTLE OF MARSTON MOOR.
attempted to outflank the Parliamentarians during the
whole of theday,and that Cromwell,perceivingthat some
movement had laid them open, let loose his Ironsides,
who gained the name in this engagement. The army
now advanced down the sloping fields in compact bodies,
while the Prince's musketeers made great havoc as they
came down to theditches,behindwhichtheRoyalistforces
were. Cromwell's cavalryrushed madlyover the ditches;
the Royalists, after a deadly hand-to-hand conflict, were
obliged to give way before their furious charge, and the
right wing was broken through, the guns silenced, and
the cavalry and gunners killed or put to flight. In the
meantime, the right wing of the Parliamentarians had
made a gallant assault, but were driven like chaff by
Prince Rupert's cavalry in the directionof York. Such,
indeed, was the confusion into which this threw the
Parliamentarian right wing that General Leslie, concluding
all was lost,fled to Leeds,wherenews to the contrary
next day overtook him. The real soul of the battle was
now in the encounter of the two centres, that of the
Royalists,under GeneralPorter,seeming tohave adecided
advantage,and graduallyforcingthemainbody,under the
Earl of ManchesterandLordFairfax, backup the incline;
Cromwell, with his impetuous, yet well-calculateddash,
now burst upon the Royalist centre, mowing, "like a
meadow," all before him; " Newcastle's White Coats,"
a bandof athousandpicked men,alone offeringany check
to the Ironsides, and these thousand died, " in rank and
file, as they stood." By this time the position of the
armies, as compared with that at the commencement of
the battle, was reversed. Porter, after pushing back the
Roundheads for some hours, now found himself attacked
in the rearbyCromwell'stroops,and by the re-encouraged
infantry in front, so littlewas left to the brave generalbut
to surrender with his gallantpikemen. It was now near
midnight,and the battle was virtually ended in favour of
the Parliamentarians. The chase-flushed Prince,returning
fromhis headlong pursuit with his jaded cavalry, saw

THE BATTLE OF MARSTON MOOR. 117
by the misty light of the moon that all his brave soldiers
of the morning wereeither dead or prisoners, and all his
expedition to the North rendered worse than useless by
his abuse of his advantages. Dejected and despairing,
the last remnants of theRoyalist army weredriven off the
field, and chased almost to the very gatesof York.
In this engagement all the Royalist ordnance and
baggage was captured, with 47 colours and upwards of
10,000 stands of arms. Some 4,000 Royalists wereslain
on the field,and many more in the flight, while the loss
of the Parliamentarian side has been reckoned as not
being as many hundreds, though this is probably below
the correct number. Major Fairfax diedeventuallyof the
wounds he received, Charles Fairfax died in about four
days, while it is said that Sir Thomas Fairfax (also
severelywounded) only escaped at one period by plucking
the white badge from his hat, and confidently riding
through companies of theenemyas oneof their own commanders
— a ruse which happily succeeded. The battle
was a blow to the cause of the King, which he never
recovered. After the fight, the Marquis of Newcastle,
together with others whom the haughty bearingof Prince
Rupert had alienated, left England for the Continent, and
returnedno more until the Restoration.
As the traveller passes over the interesting locality
where this importantconflict took place,he sees little or
nothing to remind him that here Englishmen fought so
desperately for liberty, and won a victory thathelped to
secure it. Nature here appearsnow in her most peaceful
aspect, the ploughshare's victory is more to be observed
than that of the sword, and but for the blood-stained
revelations of history, the momentous day might have
been forgotten,though its happy effects, never.

CHAPTER XVIII.
THE STORY OF A TAX
OR, THE
DEATH OF THE FOURTH EARL OF NORTHUMBERLAND
ENRY VII.of Englandwasever readyto seize
a pretext for taxation. His desultory war in
Bretagne was going on, so a tax was laid
throughout the wholeof thecountry,amounting,
in fact, to the confiscation of a tenth
part of the propertyof the inhabitants. The mali-
■X cious and distrustful character of the Kingled him
to look upon the house of York and its adherents with
great aversion, and the tax was ordered to be extorted
from them with the utmost severity. The great seats of
the disaffected Yorkists were Yorkshire and Durham, and
in thesecounties the Lord-LieutenantofYorkshire,Henry
Percy, the fourth Earl of Northumberland, met with so
many evidences of dissatisfaction that he made application
to the King that the tax should be levied at a lower
sum. The King, however, whosechief characteristic was
avarice, whichin this case was assisted byhatred,refused
to make any abatement. The Earl, upon receiving the
reply, summonedthe leadingpersonages of the county at
the Toll-boothofTopcliffe, and announced the decision of
the Crown, telling them plainly that he should carry out
his orders to the full, and to every remonstrance from the
land-owners he still declaredthe fixityof his resolve. The

THE STORY OF A TAX.
alreadydisturbedstateof Durham andYork,the gathering
of rebellious mobs, and the open avowals of intended
resistance,wereurged in vain as deterrentreasons for the
obnoxious tax's collection,but the haughty Earl's answer
to these representations was simply a contemptuous
silence. He turned on his heel with an absence of every
form of ceremony,having to force his way through the
angry crowd that jostled him and shoutedafter him with
curses as he mounted and rode off to his manorial seat
about half a mile from Topcliffe. Upon nearing the
wicket gate which opened into the enclosure before the
manor house, or castle, he found clustered round the
entrance a party of boisterous peasants who greeted his
approach with shouts and the wavingofthe rude weapons
they bore. The hot blood of the Percys rushed to the
cheek of the Earl,but disdainingany comment or remark
he passed straight on, the rude mob making a passage
for him with apparent respect, but on bending over the
neck of his steed he found the seeming courtesy was
but a mockery, for the gate was closed,and fastened with
nails. Stung into speech by the jeers of the hinds, he
bid them return to their homes, threatening that their
deeds wouldlead to bloodshed,said witha contempt that
provoked one burly peasant into the replythat the blood
shed should be Percy's own, for they would knock the
breath out of his body, and sellit to pay his master's tax,
if happily it would fetch as much. At the same time
weapons were flourished unpleasantlynear, while a large
stone was thrown which came very near scattering the
brains of the Earl, who, loweringthe visor of his helmet,
put his horse to the gate, clearing it, and leaving his
assailants far behind, disappointed as yet of their prey.
From the foregoingit may, perhaps, be difficult to conceive
that Percy's character throughout the vast districts
over which he ruled was that of a just, generous, and
kind-hearted master. Yet such was the case; hospitable
to a limitless extent, regardful of the prosperity
of every dependent,and the protectorof his tenantry,it is
119

120 THE STORY OF A TAX.
surprising to find all his popularityconverted so quickly
into the greatestodium, which led the very persons whom
he had benefited in every possible way to commit
ungrateful excesses culminatinginhis murder.
From everypart of the surroundingcountry came pouringinto
Thirsk bandsof rough woldsmen,who, incited by
leaders, wore white roses in their hats, and were wrought
up to a high pitch of excitementby the harangues of one
of their demagogues who addressed the congregated
crowds from the Market Cross. Inanintemperate though
eloquent address, he drew a vivid picture of the wrongs
to which they were subjected by the infamous tax, and
more than hinted that the Earl of Northumberlandwas
the prime cause of the levy. The insinuation found an
echo in the thought of the multitude. It passed from one
to another with such variations and additions that it
became received as a stated truth, until the rage of the
crowd breaking beyond all restraint, they shouted with
ferocious vehemence, " A boon for the head of Percy!
A boon for the head of Percy!" The incensed passions
of the rabble found animmediatevent in the destruction
of the beautiful stained-glass window which bore the
Percy arms in the Church of St. Columbs, of which the
fragments were thrown to the winds. TheMarket Cross,
also the gift of the Percys, and from which the denunciatory
speech was made, was levelled with the ground.
This done, " To the Castle!" was thecry, and the infuriated
mob swept in the direction ofthe " Maiden Bower."
In the meantime Northumberland remained alone,
except for his servants,in the Castle. The Countess of
Northumberlandwas at SpofforthCastle withherchildren,
and from that place she had sent Lord Rivers and Lord
Pembroke, entreating him to abandon the Manor House
and join her at Spofforth until the popular tumult had
subsided, but in vain. He expressed his unshakable
resolve to remain at his seat, be the consequences what
they might, being of such a proud spirit that he could
not bear to turn his back in flight upon his base and
J

THE STORY OF A TAX. 121
ungrateful adversaries,however numerousorblood-thirsty.
Seeing that Percy's resolution was fixed, his friends,
concerned for their own safety, fled from the already
beleagured mansion. The Earl,left alone,proceeded to
secure the door and windows of his room, but of little
avail were barricades; for the peasants poured into the
house, and were, even as he began his tardy measures,
engagedin a hand-to-hand struggle with his yeomen and
servants. These, outnumbered and speedily overcome,
giving way, the insurgents were in sole possessionof the
mansion, and at once made their way to the apartment
which was the last refuge of the Earl. The door was
quickly battered down, and the armed and infuriated
horde stood in the presence of their victim, who stood
calmly at bay,his good sword in hand, prepared to sell
his life at what should be a dear price to at least some of
his assailants. He stoodfirmly, the peasants kept at a
distance by the play of his weapon, which had made
several bite the dust, never to rise again, when the
unequal encounter was terminated by the approach of a
fellow armed with a scythe blade fixed pikewise at the
end of a pole. With this formidable and, under the
circumstances, resistless weapon, the villain slew the
Earl, cleaving his skull at one blow. To consummate
the savageryand render their sanguinaryvengeance complete,
they stripped the inanimate corpse and dragged it
for miles through the disaffected country to the great
applause of the malcontents, and until every feature of
that which had been Earl Percy of Northumberlandwas
obliteratedand his form distortedalmostpast recognition.
Many of his servants who had proved so much more
faithful than his friends werealso murdered at the same
time.
Popular fury, if it has no other basis than personal
resentment, speedilyexhausts itself,and the very susceptibility
whichrendered the murderers so ready to receive
the suggestions of a fiery leader, nowled them tobemoan
the extreme to which their rage had led them. Even

122
THE STORY OF A TAX.
those who slew him, on the subsidence of their excitement,
grieved sincerely for his irrevocablefate; while all
others, remembering the splendid virtues and unostentatious
benevolenceofthe Percys, the boast ofthe North,
gave evidence of the universal regret with which his
untimely end was looked upon. His mangled remains
were brought to Beverleyto be interred in the Minster,
and the funeral was in every respect of a most princely
description. The religious communities from all the
neighbouring monasteries marched in procession before
the funeral cortege, each of the recluses bearing torches
and crosses, while the villages on the route from Thirsk
to Beverleyweredeserted, the populace abandoning their
employment and walkingwith the gloomy train in order
that they might behold the mortalremains of their illustrious,
injured benefactor, laid in the tomb. The body,
on finally reaching the Minster, where the impressive
service of the Romish Church was ceremoniously performed,
was laidin a chapelbuiltexpressly for the purpose
to the east of the little transeptand northof the great east
window, and now known as the Percy Chapel.
The bill of charges for the expenseof thismagnificent
funeral amounted to £1,510 8s.in the money of that day,
or about £12,080 present value. From the bill we see
that upwards of 15,000 of the clergy accompanied the
body of the unfortunate earl to his last resting-place, in
additionto the crowdsof knights, squires, and gentlemen,
besides the innumerable crowdof yeomen, servants,and
dependants. The nobles and gentlemen who attended to
show their respect and esteem for the departedearl were
feasted at the expense of the family,while the poor were
equallycared for; 13,340 indigent persons attended the
funeral, and each of these received a sum of money as a
funeral dole, and the sum expendedin this wayreached a
total of£i23 6s. 8d., or about £1,500 present value. The
Percy Chapel was adorned with emblazonedwindows of
stained glass, and decorated with fine sculptures, with a
roof of exquisite Gothic character, and was in every way

THE STORY OF A TAX. 123
worthy to be the final repositoryof the ashes of a good
and brave warrior, who diedrather than disobey the commands
ofhis king.
In the chapelat the present day there is but littleof its
former splendour. The stained glass is all gone, excepting
a fragment in the east window. There are some
delicate remains of sculpture, and the altar tombof grey
marble yet exists, with its compartments and decorated
buttresses. It is said that the compartments of this altar
were formerly filled with silver images. The word
" Esperance " (hope), the motto of the family, is an
inscription on the wall above the tomb, while a date,
1494, is inscribedon the floor.
The window to the north of the chapel is the only
instance in Beverley Minster of a flat-topped perpendicular
window. There are references to the Percy family
throughout the Minster, notably in the Percy shrine.
There is another altar tomb in the great north transept to
a Percy,while the misereres, or seat-carvings ofthe choir,
contain numerous allusions to the Percy arms, proving
that regard for the family had a deep root in the heart of
of the people.
Henry Percy, the fourth Earl of Northumberland,fell
by the hands of his plebeian self-appointedexecutioners,
on the day of the Feast of St. Vitalis, the martyr, April
28th, 1489.
Skelton, the poet laureate to King Henry VIL, and
who seems to have felt the deepest sympathy for the
Earl's unworthy fate, records the occurrence in the
following terms: —
Trusting in the noblemen that were withhim there;
But all they fled from hym for falsehode or fere,
He was envyronde about on every syde
With his enemys that were stark mad and wode;
Yet whils he stode he gave them woundes wyde.
Alas for wathe! What touche his mynde wer good,
His courage manly; yet ther he shed his blode,
All left alone, alas;he fawtein vayne,
For cruelly amonge them ther he wasslain.

CHAPTER XIX.
CATHOLIC PERSECUTION.
UR local annals present a painful picture of
the sufferings ofthe Roman Catholics during
thelatterpart of thereignof Elizabeth. Most
of us are familiar with the facts respecting
the burning of 288 Protestants in the time of
the " Bloody Mary," but the particulars of the
!?? cruel sufferings of themanyCatholics inthe reign
of her sister, the "virgin queen," are not generally
known. It has been truly said,by an eminent authority,
that "the subject has been ignored by the majority of
writers on English history." In this chapter we shall
make an honest endeavour toplace importantfacts before
our readers,and it must be clearlyunderstood that this is
not a defence of the Roman Catholic faith, nor is it
written by a memberof that church.
In dealing with this subject wewill first furnish some
details of the laws affecting Catholics. We only advert
to the most important. In 1547, a law was passed that
anyone speaking against the newly-authorisedliturgy for
the administration of the Lord's Supper " should be
imprisoned, and make fine and ransome at the King's
will and pleasure."
If any priest refused to use the new liturgy he was to
be deprived andsuffer imprisonment for life. Alay person
speaking against the Book of Common Prayer, or going
to anyother religiousservice exceptthat of the Established
Church, for the first offence forfeited ten pounds, or was
imprisoned for three months; for the second offence

CATHOLIC PERSECUTION. 125
twenty pounds,or six months' imprisonment; and for the
third the forfeiture of all goods andchattels, and imprisonment
for life.
It was found that many persons failed to attend the
church on Sundays and holy days after the change of the
religion, and to cause them to go a severelaw was made,
and in default, for the first offence, they had to suffer
imprisonment for sixmonths, withoutbail; for the second
offence a year's imprisonment; and for the third offence
imprisonment for life. The foregoing laws were passed
in the reign ofEdwardVI. Coming down to the timeof
Elizabeth,we readthatin the first year that she occupied
the throne"it was required that laymenor womenshould
pay one shilling for every time they didnot attend their
parish churches, and that if they should speak against the
Book of Common Prayer, for the first offence they should
be imprisoned for six months; for the second should
suffer a year's imprisonment; and for the third should be
incarcerated for life. And if anyone,after Aprilist,1563,
should maintain in writing the Pope's supremacy in the
Church, he should be guilty of high treason — that is,if a
man, he should be hung, but cut down alive, his breast
and stomach shred open, his heart, still palpitating, be
drawnout, and then that whileyet warmhis limbs should
be hacked off, dipped in boilingpitch, and exposed over
the gates on spikes ; but isa woman, that she should be
burned alive."
We learn that another law,passed at a later period,
provided " that they who should reconcile any person to
the Church of Rome, and those who should leave the
Established Church ofthe RomanCommunion, should be
guiltyof high treason — that is,be subjected to the same
horrible death. And also that such as should relieve anyone
who had so reconciled others, or should bring any
crosses,pictures, rosaries, etc., into England,consecrated
by the Pope, should undergo the penalty of præmunire —
that is, their lands and goods were forfeited, and their
bodies imprisonedat the King's pleasure."

126
CATHOLIC PERSECUTION.
At a later date an Act was passed directing that if
those who did not betray the hiding-places of Popish
priests who had reconciledProtestants to the Church of
Rome were to be hung, drawn, and quartered.
We find, according to an Actpassed in 1581, that persons
committing the offences indicated above, and also
whoever should say mass, were to be fined 200 marks
and suffer imprisonment for ayear,andthose whorefused
to attend the Anglican liturgy were fined £20 a month.
In 1598 an Act was passed which is more especially
directed against the poorer class of subjects. If they
could not pay the fines they were " most cruelly and
barbarously whipped in the open market-places, others
had their ears cut off, others burned through the ear, and
othersofboth sexescontumeliouslyand slavishlyabused."
The Earl of Arundel wrote, in 1586, to two Catholic
priests, saying that as he couldnot exercisehis religion
in Englandthat he thought of going abroad,and for this
he was fined five thousandpounds ?
We might quote numerous additional Acts directed
against the Catholics,but the foregoing are sufficient to
show the strictness of the law at the period undernotice.
Hallam, in his " Constitutional History of England,"
says that "the rack seldom stood idle for all the latter
part of Queen Elizabeth'sreign." The Rev. S. Baring-
Gould,M.A., vicar of East-Mersea,gives the number of
sufferersunder Elizabeth. On his authoritywe state that
" two hundred and four died the horrible death of
hanging, drawing, and quartering for their religion.
Fifteen of these suffered for denying that the Queen was
supremehead of the Church, one hundred and twenty-six
for exercising their ministry as priests, and the rest for
having left Protestantism for the Roman Communion."
Mr. Baring-Gould further adds that this in no way
exhausts the number of sufferers. Many died of their
hardships in prison, many lost their property, were
banished, and mutilated. The names of 1,200 who
suffered before the year1588 — that is,before that greatest

CATHOLIC PERSECUTION. 127
heat of the persecution — have been collected by Dr.
Bridgewater. Many of these died in prison under sentence
of death.
We will now direct attention to a few Yorkshire
instances of the suffering Catholics. The first case we
will notice is that of William Hart, a member of Lincoln
College, Oxford. On account of his faith he left
England, and passed some years on the continent. He
suffered from an internal disease, and under a most
painful operation displayed much fortitude. He passed
some time at Douay, Rheims, and Rome, and was subsequently
sent to his nativeland,and to our own county.
The prison of York was filled to overflowingwith Papists,
and his kindness to the poor sufferers endeared him to
them. He administeredto themin secret the sacrament,
and on one occasion at night he narrowly escapedbeing
caught,but escaped. Six months later,namely,the night
after Christmas Day, 1583, when in bed, he was taken
prisoner, and sent to York Castle. He was placed in a
dungeon, and loaded with double irons. An effort was
made by the clergy of the State Church to induce him to
forsake his faith, but he gentlybut firmly refused. Mr.
Baring-Gould tells us that " he was tried on the charge
of havingreceivedordination as a priest out of England,
and of having dispensed the sacraments to Roman
Catholics in Her Majesty's realm. Inreply to a charge
of high treason,he said that he acknowledged obedience
to the Queen on temporal matters, but that obedience to
the Pope in things spiritual was not inconsistent with
hearty allegiance to the Queen
in other matters not
involvingreligion." On hearing his sentence he repeated
the words of Job, "The Lord hath given, and the Lord
hath taken away; blessed be the name ofthe Lord."
Before his execution he passed six days fasting,and spent
his nights in incessant prayer. On March 15th, 1583,
after biddinga lovingfarewellto his fellow prisoners, and
thanking the chief gaolerfor his kindness, he was placed
on ahurdle and dragged to the scaffold. It is recordedthat

128
CATHOLIC PERSECUTION.
on his wayhewas pesteredby the Rev.Mr.Bunnyand the
Rev. Mr. Pace, who beset him with arguments against
Popery,and at last with reproaches. Mr. Hart replied,
with asmile, " Be so kind as to leave me in peace for the
short whileIhave to live." He raised his eyes, and
repeated the Psalm, " To theeIlift up mine eyes, 0 thou
that dwellestin the heavens." A rope was placed round
his neck, and he was instantly thrown from the ladder on
which he stood, andwas, while yetalive,cut downand his
body rippedopen, and his heart torn out of his body. He
was then dismembered.
We will next speak of the case of John Amias, a
native of this county. He was trained at Douay, and
was ordained priest in 1581. In the year he was made a
priest he was despatched to England as a mission
preacher,in company with another priest named Edward
Sykes. At a later period, namely, in 1588, they were
joinedby Robert Dalby,from the same college. Amias
andDalby were taken at York, and condemned to death
for being Roman Catholic priests. On the 16th March,
1589, they were executed. Dr. Champney has left an
account of the painful spectacle. Inhis MS. history he
sayS: — ;"Iwas myself an eye-witness of the glorious
combat of these holy men, being at the time a young
manin the twentiethyear of my age They
were drawn about a mile out of the city to the place of
execution, where being arrived and taken off the hurdle,
theyprostrated themselvesupon their faces to the ground,
and then employed some time inprayer,till Mr. Amias,
being called upon by the Sheriff, rose up, and with a
serene countenance walked to the gallows and kissed it;
then,kissing the ladder, went up. The hangman, after
fitting the rope to his neck, bade him descend a step or
two, affirming that thus he would suffer the less. He
then turned to the people and declared that 'the cause
of his death was not treason but religion;' but here he
was interrupted and not suffered to go on. Therefore,
composinghimself for death, with eyes and hands lifted

CATHOLIC PERSECUTION. 129
up to heaven, forgivingall who had anyways procured his
death, and praying for his persecutors,he recommended
his soul to God,and beingflung off the ladderhe quietly
expired,for he was suffered to hang so longtillhe seemed
to be quite dead. Then he was cut down, dismembered,
and disembowelled,his head cut off, and the trunk of his
body quartered. All thiswhilehis companion,Mr.Dalby,
was most intent in prayer; who,beingcalled upon,immediately
followedthe footsteps of him that had gone before
him, and obtained a like victory. The Sheriff's men
were very watchful to prevent the standers-by from
gathering any of their blood, or carrying off anything that
belonged to them. Yet one, who appearedto me to be a
gentlewoman,goingup to the placewhere the bodies were
in quartering, and not withoutdifficulty making her way
through the crowd, fell downupon her knees before the
multitude, and with her hands joined and eyes lifted up
to heaven,declaredanextraordinaryemotion and affection
of soul. She spake also some words, whichIcould not
hear for the tumult and noise. Immediatelya clamour
was raisedagainst her as an idolatress,and she was drove
away,and whether she was carriedto prisonIcould not
certainlyunderstand."
A priest named Roger Diconson and seven maiden
ladies were condemned to death for taking part in celebratingmass
in their house.
We might give particulars ofmany other cases,but we
think wehavefurnished sufficient instances of theCatholic
persecutions. The list of sufferers is long and painful,
and to allit must be a matterofdeepregret that menand
women should, for the religion they deemedto be right,
have undergone such persecutions as noticed in this
chapter. The facts for this paper aremainly drawnfrom
the " Transactions of the Royal Historical Society,"
Lingard's " History of England," " Memoirs of the
Missionary Priests," by Bishop Challoner, and " Yorkshire
Oddities," by the Rev. Baring-Gould,M.A., and
numerousother works have been consulted.
9

CHAPTER XX.
THE STORY OF PONTEFRACT CASTLE.
ONTEFRACT town and castle areof great,
though uncertain, antiquity. The origin of
either, and even the very etymology of the
name, are alike unknown, the legends and
conjectures of both ancient and modern historians
being unreliableand unsatisfactory. It may
"y have hadits foundation in the timeofthe Celts,the
Romans, or the Saxons. Accordingto Camden'saccount,
the name of Pontefract was given to it by the Romans in
the placeof an earlierBritish appellation. During Saxon
supremacyit was known as Kirkby, andit is not improbable
that in the vicinity was erected one of the first
Christian churches of England. After the Norman
Conquest the place was included in a grant made by the
Conqueror to Ilbertde Lacy of a vast tract of land. He
built at Pontefract his stronghold, which united in
structure the qualities of castle, fortress, and palace.
According to some authorities, it was he who gave the
present name to the place,being reported to have called
it Pontfrete through some imaginarylikeness to his birthplace
in Normandy so called. The castle, princely and
magnificent, was placed upon the topmost part of an
elevated and nearly isolated rock of great extent. Its

THE STORY OF PONTEFRACT CASTLE.
131
situation,uncommandedbyanyneighbouringhill,seemed
impregnableexcept to the force of starvation;it had also
the great advantage of commandinga prospect overthe
surroundingdistrict on every side excepting towards the
south, where the view was interrupted by Baghill Rock,
which was equal in height, if not superior. From the
lofty embattlements could be distinctly discerned the
stately pinnacles of York Minster, the towns of Selby,
Malton,BraytonBurgh,Howden,andHambletonHaugh;
whilst the landscape stretching round in unsurpassed
panorama was completed in effect by the undulating
wolds and the cloud-piercing summitsof the Derbyshire
hills melting awayin the far distance. The wall of the
castle yard washigh, and enclosed no less a space than
about seven acres. The principal feature of the formidable
fortifications was the Round Tower,or keep, which
was raised upon an artificial elevation far exceeding in
height the other turrets, with a diameter of 64 feet. Its
walls were of immense thickness, with embrasures at
intervals. The best description of the Castle gives its
appearance and parts as extant at the beginning of the
Civil War, at which time there is little doubt that it
retained the principal characteristics of the original structure.
The wall was flanked by seven towers, which were
respectively Pype's Tower, also called the Red Tower;
the Treasurer's,or Gascoigne's Tower; Queen's Tower,
King's Tower, Constable's Tower, Swillington's Tower,
and, to the west, a square tower of great size andimmeasurable
strength, calledthe Main Guard, and from which
an embattled wall branched out towards the stables.
Other important buildings were the Great Hall, St.
Conduit's Chapel,and the Barbican, which stood before
the Great Gate, being formed by an exceedingly strong
andhigh semi-circular wall, with its own embattled gate,
and strengthened by two stupendous turrets. From the
Barbican a wall extended in a southerly direction down
the Knottingleyturnpike road to apoint almost opposite
the east end of Baghill. St. Clement's Chapel and St.

132
THE STORY OF PONTEFRACT CASTLE.
Clement's College also stood near the Gatehouse, and
between the Gatehouse and Constable's Tower was the
kitchen. Near St. Clement's Chapel,and deeply excavated
in the solid rock, and reachedby a lengthy flight of
steps, stood the magazine, between which and the
Barbican, with its entrance intersecting the passage to
the former, were situated the dungeons. These, by one
writer, are called "truly dismal places;" another says
they were of a "frightful nature." Upon the western
side, which was the weakest, in addition to the Barbican
with its great drawbridge, there were other gates with
drawbridges and turrets, which were used as watchtowers,
and a deep moat layon this side. Ofthe present
state of the Castle, it may be said that littleeven of its
ruins remain. Gardens now occupy the place where
formerly was nothing but the tread of armed heels, and
the rock which stood proudly impregnable for 600 years
the pride and terror of an immense district, is now
quarried for filtering-stones, known to all parts of the
country. But such a strongholdas our description shows
it to have been could not fail in the troubled times of
England's earlier history to have been the resort of the
Sovereigns, engaged in the task ofsubduing rebellion, or
meeting rivals. Many prisoners of eminentnote were at
various times kept or executed within its silent precincts.
We have mentioned the bestowing of Pontefract with
other possessions upon the Lacyfamily. They continued
in that family until 1310, when, male heirs failing, the
estates were left to a daughterof the house, Alice, who
was marriedto Thomas,Earl of Lancaster, who was the
uncle of Edward II. In the quarrels between that weak
prince and his nobles, the earl took a prominent part.
Together withmany other barons, he was taken prisoner
and conveyed to Pontefract Castle, then in the possession
of the Royalarmy, first imprisoned, and then tried byhis
mortal enemies, who condemned him to die. He was,
however, permitted to be beheaded, while his adherents
were hanged.

THE STORY OF PONTEFRACT CASTLE. 133
Afterwards Pontefract Castle was the sceneof Richard's
imprisonment and probable murder. Here, too, yetlater,
the wicked Duke of Gloucester, afterwards Richard III.,
caused to be executed,without trial, in order tofacilitate
his accession, Anthony Woodville, Earl Rivers, Richard
LordGrey, Sir Thomas Vaughan, and Sir RichardHawse.
In the reign of HenryVIII. the Castle surrendered to the
Pilgrims of Grace, who marched under the captaingeneralship
of the famous Robert Aske, who afterwards
suffered death for his share in that well-meant but unfortunate
undertaking.
On the outbreak of hostilitiesbetween theRoyalists and
Parliamentarians,Pontefract again became the scene of
contending hosts, of bloodshed, and warfare, for here died
out the last hope of the Royal party when the fortress had
ceased to be a bulwark against the Roundhead faction.
The following isan accountof this period: —
Pontefract Castle was held by Colonel Cottrell for the
Parliament, whose tactics had given them supremacyin
the country. The eyes of the Royalists turned towards
Pontefract, and more than once had attempts been made
to take the place for King Charles,but hitherto all the
assaults had endedbut indisappointment. At last, by the
ingenious stratagemof Colonel Maurice, a valiant soldier,
who had been disbanded by Cromwell, but who served,
greatly suspected,under Cottrell, the place was at length
secured. The garrison contained many secret adherents
to Charles, while further forces were smuggled into the
Castle Yardunder the disguise of countrymen who came
thither with provisions, vegetables, and bedding for the
soldiery. Then these country people,after laughing and
drinking in the court-yard with the garrison, threw off
their disguise, a pistol was fired, and speedily the courtyard
was filled with angry and excited combatants. The
struggle everymoment assumed a moreregularcharacter,
while carbines were now discharged in regular volleys.
Colonel Maurice, who had, in the dress of a simple
countrygentlemen,previouslymovedamongthepretended

134
THE STORY OF PONTEFRACT CASTLE.
peasants, now led a party of picked men. He led
them to the gates,which byhis direction they opened,and
admitted immediatelya largebody ofmounted Cavaliers,
whom the Colonel drew up for the attack, ordering them
to " give quarter and spare the Governor." TheGovernor
was in his chamber at the time, and madea brave resistance
with his sword against Captain Paulden, who was
one of Colonel Maurice's confederates. He was taken
prisoner, as were most of the garrison who remained
faithful to Cromwell, and with them released on their
parole. Colonel Maurice, whoseactions throughout seem
to have been promptedby conscience ratherthan military
ambition, would not accept the Governorship,which his
companions endeavoured to force upon him,but insisted
on its beingoffered to Sir John Digby,a gentlemanwho,
after the foolish and fatal battle of Marston Moor, had
managed to hold together for the Kinga smallforce. He
accepted the trust, and came to the Castle with 30 horse
and about 500 foot soldiers. Lord Byron, who had
adhered to the King from the commencement of the
struggle, also arrived, and Sir Hugh and his son, Major
Carteret, Captain Clavering (afterwards so prominent in
the historyof the time),Sir ArthurBeaumont)who became
an esteemed friend of Colonel Maurice), Major Ashburn,
Austwick, and Blackburne,and others, passed under the
dark portcullis of the stronghold that was to be toso many
a sepulchre.
When the news of the bold seizure was carried to the
Parliament and its militaryleaders it was received with
feelings of the greatest surprise and anger. Cromwell,
then engagedin completinghismeasuresfor thedespatching
his unhappysovereign, then a prisoner at Carisbrook,
at once gave orders for General Rainsborough to vigorouslybesiegePontefractCastle.
At the same time orders
weregivenfor astrongdetachmenttoprevent theRoyalist,
GeneralLangdale,from communicatingwith thebesieged.
The effect was soon observable. Foraging parties from
the Castle found themselvesmore and more restricted in

THE STORY OF PONTEFRACT CASTLE. 135
the areaof operation,until at last liberty was limited to a
few miles of the immediate district. News was also
received from Lord Byron, who had journeyed northward,
of the overthrowofthe Royalistsby Lambert, who
had taken General Langdale prisoner, and dispersed his
followers. Rainsborough,in the meantime, took up his
quarters at Doncaster, whence he issued orders for the
blockade of Pontefract. While here, however, Maurice
contrived a scheme forhis capture, and actuallyled a party
of twenty-two menintoDoncasterforthat purpose. Rainsborough
was taken in bed, but resisting, in self-defence
was killedby Lieutenant Austwick, upon which the alarm
was raised, when the intrepid few took to flight, carrying
with them, however, more than double their own number
of prisoners. After this, Maurice, who had planned the
above to effect the escape of Langdalefrom Nottingham
Castle, set off alone, andwithina weekreturned to Pontefract,accompanied
by that general,whohad beenliberated
by his efforts, upon which Sir John Digby insisted on
publicly resigning the Governorship to Colonel Maurice.
He, however, shortly after left the Castle on a secret
expedition to visit King Charles, Sir John Digby being
appointed vice-governor inhis absence. The Castle was
nowin a state of actual siege, Cromwell himself having
the charge of the assaulting party,and the discharge of
cannon was unremitting on either side. Many of the
finest buildings in Pontefract wereshaken down or burnt,
including the beautiful Gothic church of AllHallows, or
All Saints.
Artillery was then in its infancy, but the play of the
cannonon this occasion seems to have been in advance
of the general progress of the death-dealing science.
One of the seven great towers was rent by a large
breach, and the hopes of the besieging Parliamentarians
rose high. Cromwell called upon the garrison to
surrender, but was answeredwith defiance. Three times
he led his iron-sided warriors to the assault, and three
times did the courageousdefenders beat themback from?

136
THE STORY OF PONTEFRACT CASTLE.
the gapingbreach, whilefrom the embrasuresof the walls
the bravest of the assaulters were picked out by skilled
marksmen. Cromwell then abandoned the idea of carrying
this partby storm, and resorted to miningoperations,
which, however, were equally unsuccessful, the miners
being continually harassed by sorties from the Castle,
which also frequently drove theoutposts into the Roundhead
camp. When, too, the mining tactics did succeed
to any extent,it was found that the Royalists had sunk
counter-mines from the very heart of the Castle, and
frequently these met the besieging galleries half way,
which, with their workers, weredestroyed.
Cromwell, finding his presence elsewhere required,
handed over the command to General Lambert, but not
before Captain Carteret had been captured and beheaded
and his head thrown over the Castle wall: to it was
appended a document which purported to be a copy of a
proclamationsignedby Charles orderingallhis subjects to
submit to theParliament,and giveup thestrongholdsheld
againstit. This the leaders inPontefract decidedtodisregard.
General Lambertallowed the assault to slacken,
beinghopeful ratherto compel the besiegedto submit from
starvation than by force of arms. A kindof implied truce
was made, the indirect resultof temporary dearth in the
Roundhead camp,upon which the garrison,in bravado,
had thrown provisions over the wall. In the midst of the
latent storm, the garrison was surprised by the return of
Colonel Maurice, whobrought news of thebeheadal of the
King. He carried with him a copy of the Mercurius
Britannicus of the ist February,1649, which contained
theannouncement inthe followingterseterms: — " Yesterday
Charles Stuart was beheaded at Whitehall,in sight of
the people." Colonel Maurice then proclaimedthe accession,
or rather the right of Prince Charles,in the cry of
" Long live Prince Charles,"and the next daya summons
to surrender was met bya formal proclamationfrom the
walls of " Charles IL,by the grace of God, Kingof Great
Britain, France, and Ireland." But Lambert, hearingof

THE STORY OF PONTEFRACT CASTLE. 137
the arrival of Maurice,recommenced stormingmeasures
with great vigour, and with more visible success; the
garrison,which at the openingofthe siegehad numbered
some 600 men, was now reduced to little more than 80
persons capable of bearing arms. At last a surrender
was entertained by the spirited defenders, and Lambert
offered safety to all,excepting six selected victims, who
were to die. These were: — Colonel John Maurice, Allen
Austwick, and Lieutenant Blackburne, concerned in the
deathof Rainsborough; Major Ashby,Ensign Smith, and
Sergeant Floyd, concernedin the surprise of the Castle.
These names were fixed by Cromwell, and it was further
allowed that these six might have six days in which to
escape, if possible. First Floyd and Austwick made the
attempt, the rotation being decided by lot, and these
escaped; next Smith and Ashby went out, of whom
Smith was killed, though the other escaped with a slight
sabre cut ; next, at the last attempt,Maurice andBlackburne
made such a successful sally into the camp of the
enemy that, though Blackburne escaped, Maurice,
gallantly remaining by his convoy, was wounded and
carried back to the Castle. It is said that he remained
concealed in the dungeon of the place, preferring this
rather than to risk the lives of his friends; and he here
remainedwhile the Royalists marchedout, andthe fortress
was dismantled and nearly levelled, escaping after the
Parliamentarians had left the spot. Whether this be
true or not, it is certain that he did escape and rejoin
Lieutenant Blackburne, with whom he was, contrary to
the stipulations, re-captured and charged with treason.
They were conveyed to York, where they were confined
for six months afterwards,beingtried before Baron Thorpe
and Judge Puliston. They excepted to the jury, and
pleaded in defence a statuteofHenry VIL, which justifies
every man who takes up arms for the King. But the
judges were biassed against them, and, after a tedious
trial, theywerefound guiltyand sentencedto beexecuted.
It is stated by some authoritiesthat the night before the

138
THE STORY OF PONTEFRACT CASTLE.
execution they escapedbymeansof a rope,but that Blackburne
breaking his leg in the descent,Maurice would not
desert him, but the two together were reincarcerated,
and the next day suffered death. Thus perished oneof
the most ingenious, brave, and generous of Charles's
supporters,andwhoselife and deathlend so much interest
to the sceneof so manyof his gallantexploits — Pontefract
Castle — whosehistoryended with his.

CHAPTER XXI.
BEVERLEY SANCTUARY.
HE institution of places of protectionknown as
sanctuaries dateback to an early period. We
find it recorded in the Bible that Moses, in
pursuance of Divine direction, appointed
cities of refuge, " that the slayer might flee
thither which should kill his neighbour unawares
and hated him not in timespast; and that fleeing
to oneof these cities might live." The original intention
was that the manslayer,whoby misfortune or by accident
had killed his fellow-creature, should not be rashly put to
death in personal vindictiveness, but be brought to cool
and impartial trial for his act. Inheathen countries we
are toldthattemples and sacredenclosures were appointed
as asyla to those who fled to them for safety; and it is
most probable that a similarprivilegewas transferred to
Christian churches by general usage long before it was
sanctioned by distinct law. It is asserted that in the
second century of our era King Lucius introduced the
sanctuary into Britain, but we have not any historical
evidenceofthe fact. We find,however,soearlyas theyear
693, at a synod of the great and wisemenof the kingdom
under Ina, King of West Saxons,it was decreed that if
anyone who was accused of a capital crime took refuge,
his life should be spared,but that he should make compensation
as the justice of the case might require; andif
the offence were deserving only of stripes, the stripes
should be remitted. In theyear 887, by the laws ofAlfred
the Great, the privilege of sanctuary was permitted to the
perpetratorof any small offence for three nights,ifhe fled

140
BEVERLEY SANCTUARY.
to a church. This was to give him time to providefor
himself or compound for his crime. It is stated that if
anyoneviolatedthe sanctuary byinflicting bonds,wounds,
or blows upon the refugee, he was compelled to pay the
price set on the life of a man, and the sum of onehundred
and twenty shillings (a large amount in those days) to
the officiating ministerin the church.
The law of sanctuary was moreclearly defined in the
fourth year of the reignof William the Conqueror,and its
privileges in some instances wereremarkable. We have
a good example in the founding of Battle Abbey. The
King invested the Abbot with authority to save any malefactor
if he (the Abbot) happened to come to the place of
execution; and, moreover, he constituted the Abbey
church a place of safety for any felon or murderer.
The generalprivilege of sanctuary was intended to be
only temporary. Within forty days after a felon or murderer
had taken refuge he was, we are told, to appear
before the coroner,clothedin sackcloth,and there confess
his crime and abjure the realm. By Act 21, Henry, c. 2,
immediately after confession, and before abjuration, he
was to be branded bythe coronerwitha hotiron upon the
brawn of the thumb ofhis right hand with the sign of the
letterA,to the intent hemight bethebetterknown among
the King's subjects to have abjured.
If an offender did not make the required confession and
abjuration within forty days, and continued in the sanctuary,any
person who provided him with provisions was
guilty of felony.
During the reign of Henry VIII. considerable changes
weremade in the privilegesof sanctuary. Inhis time an
Act was passed on account of the realm being much
diminishedby persons taking sanctuary and abjuring the
realm,and who instructed foreigners in archery, and disclosed
the secrets of the realm. It wasenacted thatevery
person abjuring was to repair to some sanctuary within
the realm,whichhimself should choose, and there remain
during his natural life,and to be sworn before the coroner

BEVERLEY SANCTUARY. 141
uponhis abjuration so to do. But if he went out of the
sanctuary, unless discharged by the King's pardon, and
committed murder or felony, he was liable to be brought
to trial for his offence, and was excludedfrom the right of
sanctuary. At a later date an Act was passed excluding
from the privilege of sanctuaryallpersons accused ofhigh
treason. According to a lawmadein this King's reignall
sanctuary persons were to wear a badge or cognisance, to
be assignedand appointed by the governorof every sanctuary,openlyupon
their upper garment, of the compass
in length and breadthoften inches,under painof forfeiting
all the privilegesof sanctuary. They were prevented
from carrying any sword or any other weapon, except
their meat knives, and those only at their meals. They
werenot to leave their lodgings between sunrise and sunset,
under penalty of forfeiting their sanctuary for the
third such offence. The same King greatlyrestricted the
number of privilegedplaces.
In the reign of the next King, viz.,Edward VI., the
right of sanctuary was further restrained; and at length,
by the statute of James I., this ancient usage receivedits
death-blow, and shortly afterwards was totallyabolished.
We have so far collated notes respecting the general
history ofthe sanctuary. We next desire to direct attention
to one of the most historically interesting places of
refuge— that of Beverley.
According to Oliver,inhis " History ofBeverley," published
in 1829, we find that the right of sanctuary was
granted to the Church of St. John
ofBeverleybythe pious
munificence of Athelstane; and a Fridstol, or chair of
peace, was placed in a conspicuous situation near the
altar, as an emblem of protection to the refugee. The
limitsof the sanctuary,called Legua,werecomprehended
within the circumference of a circle,of which the church
was the centre, and whose radius was about a mile. It
was defined by four crosses, which were placed on the
four principal roads leadingto the town. One was called
Molescroft Cross, and stood near Leckonfield Park ;

142
BEVERLEY SANCTUARY.
another towards NorthBurton; a third [towards Kinwalgraves;
and the last south ofBeverley,on the road which
led to the ferry across the Humber.
Ifa party seized a fugitive whohad contrived to reach
any one of the four crosses, he was obliged to paytwo
hundredth (a hundredth was equalto £8) ;if he took him
within the town, then he forfeited four hundredth; if
within the walls of the churchyard, six hundredth; if
within the church, then twelve hundredth; if within the
doors of the choir, then eighteen hundredth, besides
penance, as in case of sacrilege; but if he presumed to
take the runaway delinquent out of the holy chair of
" Fridstol" itself the offence was irredeemable by money,
and had become sine emendatione " boteless " (bootless),
and called forth not only the utmost severity of the
Church, but the heaviestpunishment of the secular power
also.
In the British Museum, amongst the Harleian MSS.,
is a thin folio volume containing a list of persons who
have obtained sanctuary for different crimes inpart of the
reigns of EdwardIV. and Richard III.,and part of the
reigns of Henry VII. and Henry VIIL, or from about
1478 to 1539. The registeralso contains the oath taken
by those who sought " its peace within its mile," and
affords, perhaps, the only copy of a sanctuary oath now
extant. The bailiffof the Archbishop,by whom the oath
was administered,is directedto inquire ofthe refugee —
"What man he killed, and wherewith, and both ther
names, and then gar him lay his hand uppon the book,
saying on this wyse: ' Sir, take hede on your oth. Ye
shal be trew and feythfull to My Lord Archbishop of
York, Lordoff this towne; to the Provost of the same, to
the Channons of this Chirch, and all other ministers
thereof.
"' Also ye shall bere gude hert to the Baillies and xjj
governarsof this towne,toall burges and comynersofthe
same. Also, ye shall bere no poynted wepen, dagger,
knyfe, and ne nane other wapenagenst the Kyng's pece.

BEVERLEY SANCTUARY.
"' Also, ye shal be redy at all your pouer if there be
any debates or stryf, or oder so than case of fyre within
the towne, to helpto surcess it.
"' Also, ye shal be redy at the obites of KyngAthelstan
at the dirige, and the messe,at such tyme as it is done
at the warnying of the belman of the towne,and do your
dewtesinryngying, and for to offer at the messe, on the
morne. So help you God and hies Holy Evangelistes.'
And then gar hymnkysse the book.' "
The bailiff's fee on this occasion appears to have been
two shillings and fourpence; thatofthe Clerkof theCourt
for inscribing the name of the refugee in the sanctuary
register, fourpence.
The entries in these remarkable registers comprehend
almost everydescriptionof crime, and afford a wonderfully
interesting pictureof Englishlife in early times. Nearly
the whole of them arein Latin; the record is often very
brief, andin the following form: —
Thomas Francis.
Thomas Francis, of Pullan, in the counte of Norfolk,
came to Beverley the xvij. day of October, the vii. yearof
our Sovereign Lord King Henry VIL, and craved the
liberty and sanctuaryof St. John of Beverley,for the death
of Thomas Hoffley, of Danson, of the saym counte, and
for debts; and is admitted to the liberty, etc.
John Spret, Gentleman.
MemorandumthatJohn Spret,of Barton-upon-Humber,
in the county of Lincoln, gentleman,came to Beverley
the first day of October, in the vij. year of the reign of
KingHenryVII,andasked libertyof St. Johnof Beverley
for the deathof John Weltom, husbandman, of the same
town, and confessed himself to be at the killingof the said
John with a dagger on the xv. day of August.
We have anabstractofthe BeverleySanctuaryRegister,
and it presents a curious record of the crimes and trades
of the period: —
Crimes. — Indefinite, 35. Persons concerned, 35. No
trade described, 10; labourers, 3 ; tylers, 2 ; tailors, 2 ;
143

144
BEVERLEY SANCTUARY.
masons,2; dyers,2; yeomen, 2 ; merchant, 1; husbandman,
1; smith, 1; clerk, 1; butcher, 1; chapman,1;
gentleman, 1; draper, 1; skinner, 1; shoemaker, 1;
haberdasher1; lister, 1.
Murder and Homicide. — Crimes, 173. Persons implicated,186.
No trade or occupationdescribed, 52 ; tailors,
19; husbandmen, 17; yeomen, 16; labourers, 14;
weaversand websters,n; shoemakers, 8; butchers, 6 :
gentlemen, 6 ; mercers, 3 ; barbers, 3 ; brewers, 3 ;
servants, 2; esquires, 2 ; surgeons, 2; millers, 2;
mariners,2;smith, 1;shearman,1; spinster, 1; carpenter,
1; painter,1; chapman,1; maltster, 1; cartwright, 1;
gentlewoman,1; chandler, 1; minstrel, 1; cooper, 1;
literate,1; saddler, 1; shepherd,1: carrier, 1; tanner, 1;
cook, 1; hatmaker, 1.
Felony. — Crimes, 51. Persons implicated, 54. No
trade described, 3 ; labourers,8; tailors, 6; husbandmen,
4; butchers, 4; glovers,3 ; goldsmiths, 3 ; cutlers, 3 ;
tylers, 2 ; plumbers, 2;yeomen, 2 ; merchant, 1; smith,
1; clerk, 1;physician, r; spinster, 1; grocer,1; gentleman,
1; pinner, 1; mariner, 1; shoemaker, 1; fishmonger,1;
fuller, 1; brickmaker, 1.
Horse Stealing. — 1, a labourer.
Treason. — 1,a butcher.
Receipt of Stolen Goods. — 1, a haberdasher,
Coining. — Cases, 6. — Persons, 7. No tradedescribed,
1; yeomen,2 ; fleshers,2; tailor, 1; weaver, 1.
Debtors, 208. — No trade described, 36; butchers, 31;
labourers, 12; merchants, 9; husbandmen, 9; gentlemen,
9; mercers, 8; tailors, 6; weaversand websters,5;
dyers, 5 ; yeomen, 5 ; glovers,4; drapers, 4; shearmen,
3; chapmen, 3; pewterers, 3; smiths, 2; grocers, 2;
fishers, 2 ; bakers, 2; chandlers, 2; wheelwrights, 2;
coopers, 2; pouchmakers, 2; vintners, 2; fishmongers,
2; bowyers, 2 ; tapper, 1; alderman and grocer of
London, 1; carpenter, 1; wax chandler, 1; painter, 1;
goldsmith,1;clothier, 1;waiter, 1;surgeon, 1;maltster,
1; pinner,1; skinner, 1; fustian shearer, 1; tanner, 1;

BEVERLEY SANCTUARY.
woolman,I;purser,i;capper,i;mason,i;haberdasher,
i; salter,I; carrier,i; singing-man,i; woodmonger,
i;cook,i; wooldriver,i; hatmaker,i; bedmaker,i;
barber,i.
The Beverley Sanctuary chair is hewn out of a solid
block of stone, and it has been broken, but repaired with
iron clamps. According to Camden and Leland,it once
bore the followinginscription: — "Hæc sedlapidea Freed
Stool dicitnr, i.e., Pads Cathedra, ad quern reusfugiendo
perveniens omnimodamhabet securitatem." (" This stone
chair is called Freed Stool, i.e., the Chair of Peace, to
which what criminal soever flies hath full protection."
At the present time no trace of an inscription can be
found. The ancient chair forms one of the chief attractions
ofthe interestingMinster of Beverley. It is worthy
of note that only one otherexampleof the sanctuarychair
is to be found in England,and that is at Hexham.
The privilegeof sanctuary was a usage most suited to
the age in which it existed, and its tendency has been
happily expressed by a writer well qualified to form an
opinionupon thesubject. Hesays, " Under a dueadministration
of justice, this privilege would have beensimply
and constantly mischievous, as weproperly considerit to
be in those countries where it still exists. But in the
rapine and tumult of the Middle Ages, the right of sanctuary
might as often be a shield to innocence as an
impunity to crime. We can hardly regret,in reflecting
on the desolating violence which prevailed, that there
should have been some green spots in the wilderness
where the feeble and the persecuted could find refuge.
How must this right have enhanced the veneration for
religious institutions ! How gladly must the victims of
internal warfare have turned their eyes from the baronial
castle, the dread and scourge of the neighbourhood, to
those venerable walls, within whichnot even the clamour
of arms could be heard to disturb the chant of holy men
and the sacred service ofthe altar."
io
145

CHAPTER XXII.
DEATH OF THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM AT
KIRKBY-MOORSIDE.
EORGE VILLIERS, Duke of Buckingham,
was born January 30th,1627. The son ofhis
father ofthe same name, he was educated at
Cambridge,and spent some part of his early
life in travelling; but, on the outbreak of the
Civil War, he returned to England to espouse
GL? the Royal cause. In the battle, however, near
Nonsuch, his brother, Lord Francis, was killed, and the
Duke himself escaped with great difficulty. Again, at
Worcester, at the defeat of Charles, he was obliged to
seek safety in flight. His estates were confiscated,part
being assigned to Fairfax, who allowed the Duchess of
Buckingham, the mother of George, an annuity. The
Duke, encouragedby this, although outlawed,returned to
England and marriedone of Fairfax's daughters. Shortly
afterwards he was thrown into the Tower by Cromwell,
and subsequentlyhe was placed in Windsor Castle, from
which he was released at the Restoration.
He now became the prime favourite of the Merry
Monarch. Alreadyinvested with the Order of the Garter,
he was sworn a memberof the Privy Council,and made
Lord-Lieutenant of the county of York. On the formation
ofthe Cabal a chief memberwas Buckingham. The
King's weak and facile nature was greatly influenced by

I.
DEATH OF THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM.
Buckingham's aptitude for mimicry and ridicule, and so
pronouncedbecame this influence that he was his chosen
companioninevery viceand folly,and wasnotinfrequently
exercisedfor the downfallof personshighin the State.
Himself of a vicious and profligate nature, he was a
fitting instrument in the handsofthe debasedKing. As
an instance of Buckingham'sdepravity,and the shameless
profligacyof the time in whichhe lived, his intrigue with
the Countess of Shrewsbury and its tragic connection
place him in the worst light. Boasting to the Earl of
Shrewsbury ofthe success of his amour, the Earl, though
a diminutiveand feebleperson,was provoked to send him
a challenge. Theyfought in thepresence of two seconds,
who also fought at the same time. The Earl fell at the
first thrust, while the Duke's second was killed at the
same instant. Buckingham, elated with the victorious
result of the encounter, hastened to the Countess at
Cliveden, who received him with every demonstration of
satisfaction. The account of the Countess, disguised as
a page, and holdingthe bridleofthe Duke's horse during
the duelis considered to be entirely fictitious.
The young Earl of Shrewsbury, through the Duke of
Westmoreland,afterwardstriedto annul the Royal pardon
which was granted to the Duke because he had received
great provocation from the Earl of Shrewsbury, having
fought him twice before, "and as often given him his
life," and that the Earl had nevertheless threatened
that unless he would fight him again he would " pistol
him " wherever he found him. These reasons of pardon
werementioned by the Duke inhis defence, and also the
fact that the lady had then "gone into retirement," and
though a datewas fixed for the consideration ofthe young
Earl's petition, it does not seem to have been further
noticed. It is said that the Countess had one son by the
Duke, and who died in earlyinfancy.
On the death of Charles,in1685, the Duke,recognising
the fact that in James he would find a monarch far more
difficult to control, or even conciliate, than he had in
147

148
DEATH OF THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM.
the unstable Charles, withdrew to his Yorkshire seat,
Helmsley. Here,hishealth beingruined byan unbridled
course of vice and intemperance,and his vast revenues
pitifully curtailed by the unmeasuredextravagance of his
whole life, the whilom favourite chiefly occupied himself
in field sports.
The year or two he spent inthis rural retirement would
form a markedcontrast to thedaysof his power andpride.
His life would be thatof an ordinary country gentleman,
and of which there are no records until we come to his
death.
This took place at Kirkby-Moorside,the manorof which
descended to him from his father, to whom it had been
granted by James the First. Prior to 1570 the manor had
beenin the holdingof the Earls of Westmoreland, whose
representative was then attainted,and the estates confiscated
to the Crown.
The Duke of Buckingham came to his end April 17th,
1687.
He had been hunting in the neighbourhood of
Kirkby-Moorside,and being fatigued with an exhausting
chase after the hounds, he had sat upon the dampground,
which, bringing on inflammation and fever, resulted in
his decease.
Lord Arran, who afterwards became the Duke of
Hamilton, and was a blood relation of the Duke of Buckingham,attended
his last moments,of which, in a letter
to Dr. Spratt, Bishop of Rochester, and formerly chaplain
to the Duke,he gives the following account, dated from
" Kerby-moor Syde, April 17th, 1687. — My Lord,—
Mere chance having thrown me into these parts by accident,
asIwas at York,in my journey towards Scotland,
Iheard of the Duke of Buckingham's illness here, which
made me take a resolutionof waitingupon his Grace, to
see what condition he was in. Iarrived here on Friday,
in the afternoon, whereIfound himin a very low condition;
he had been long illof an ague, which had made
him weak; but his understanding was as good as ever,
and his noble parts were so entire, that, thoughIsaw

DEATH OF THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM. 149
death in his looks at first sight, he would by no means
think of it. He told me he was on horseback but two
days before, and that he found himself so well at heart
that he was sure he could be in no danger ofhis life. He
toldme he had a mightydescent fallenuponhis abdomen,
with an inflammationand a great swelling,but he thought
by applying warm medicines the swelling wouldfall,and
then he would be at ease; butit proved otherwise, for a
mortification came on those low parts and rapidly
ascended, so that it soon occasioned his death. So soon
asIhad arrivedIsent to York for oneDr. Waler, for I
found him herein a most miserable condition; he desired
me to stay with him, whichIvery willingly obeyed. I
confess it made my heart bleed to see the Duke of
Buckinghamin so pitiful a place, and in so bad a condition;
and, whatmadeit worse,he was not at all sensible
of it, for he thought in a day or two he should be well;
and when we reminded him of his condition, he said it
was not as we apprehended. The doctors told me that
his case was desperate, and though he enjoyed the free
exercise of his senses, that in a day or two at most it
wouldkillhim; but they durst not tell him of it; so that
they put a hardpart upon me to pronounce death to him,
whichIsaw approaching so fast thatIthought it was
high time for him to think of another world, for it was
impossible for him to continue long in this; soIsent for
a very worthy gentleman, Mr. Gibson, a neighbour of his
Grace's, who lives but a mile from this place, to be an
assistant to me in this work; so we jointly represented
his condition to him, whoIsaw was at first very uneasy,
butIthink we should not have discharged the duty of
honest men, norIof afaithful kinsman,if we had suffered
him to go out of this worldwithout desiring him to prepare
for death,and to look into his conscience.
" After havingplainly toldhimhis condition,Iaskedhim
whoIshould send for to be assistant to him during the
small timehe had to live. He would make meno answer,
which made me conjecture, and having formerly heard

150
DEATH OF THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM.
thathe had beeninclining to be a Roman Catholic,Iasked
him ifIshould send lor a priest, forIthought any act
that could be like a Christian was whathis condition now
wantedmost; but he positivelytold me that he was not
of that persuasion, and so would not hear any more on
that subject, for he was of the Church of England, but
hitherto he would not hear of a parson, though he had
declared his aversion to my offeringto send for a priest.
"But, after some time, beginningto feel his distemper
mount,he desiredme to send for theparson of this parish,
who said prayers for him, whichhe joinedin very freely,
but still did not think he should die, though this was
yesterday at seven in the morning,and he died at eleven
at night.
" Mr. Gibson asked himif he had made a will,or if he
would declare who was to be his heir; but to the first
he answered that he had madenone,and to the last,whoever
was named,he always answered, ' No.'
" First my Lady Duchess was named,and then,Ithink,
almost everybody that had any relation to him, but his
answer was always ' No; ' and to see if he would change
any way the answer or the mannerof it, they asked him
if my Lord Purbeck was to be sent for; but to that he
answered, ' By no means.' Idid fully represent my
Lady Duchess's condition to him, and told him it was
absolutelyfit during the time he had the exercise of his
reason to do something to settle his affairs;but nothing
that was said to him could makehim come to any point.
"I then said, that since he would do nothing in his
worldlyaffairs,Idesired that hemight die like aChristian;
and since he called himself of the Church of England,the
parson was readyhereto administerthe sacrament to him,
whichhe said he would take; so accordinglyIgave orders
for it, and two other honest gentlemenreceivedit withhim
— Mr. Gibson and Colonel Liston, an old servant of his
Grace's. At first he called out three or four times, for
he thought the ceremony looked as if death was near;
which for the strength of his nobleparts (they not being

DEATH OF THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM. 151
yet affected), he could not easily believe; for all this time
he was not willing to take death to him, but in a few
moments after he became calm, and received the sacrament
with all the decency imaginable, and in an hour
afterwards he lost his speech, and continued so until
eleven at night, whenhe died.
"The confusion he has left his affairs in will make his
heir, whoever he be, very uneasy. To tell you truly,I
believe there is no other willin being but what they sayis
in the trustee's hands; for all the servants say they know
there was a parchment sealed, which my Lord said he
would alter, which they looked upon to be his will.
Whether he has cancelleditIcannot find — some say one
Mr. Burrellhas it, but nobody here can give any distinct
account ofit; but my Lord himselfsaid positively,in the
presence of several, that he had no willinbeing, so what
to make of thisIcannot tell you. We suppose that it
might be Sir WilliamVilliers thathe intendedfor hisheir;
but he said several times before us all ' No,' so thatI
cannot imagine,ifhe has any will, to whom he has given
it,Imyself being as nearly related to him as any by full
blood. Mr. Brian Fairfax and Mr. Gibson have been
witnessesof myproceedingssince my beinghere. Ihope
they will give an account of it. Ithought in honourI
could not leave him in this condition, beingso nearly
related to him, especially his Grace being in such a
retired corner, where there was nobody but myself, tillI
sent for this Mr. Gibson. My Lord Fairfax, of Gilling,
came yesterdayin the afternoon;but he was speechless
when he came.
" Ihave ordered the corpse to be embalmedand carried
to Helmsley Castle, and there to remain till my Lady
Duchess her pleasure shall be known. There must be
speedy care taken, for there is nothing here but confusion
not to be expressed.
" Though his stewardshave receivedvast sums,thereis
not so much as one farthing,as theytellme,for defraying
the least expense. ButIhave ordered his intestines to

152
DEATH OF THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM.
be buried at Helmsley, wherehis body is to remainuntil
further orders.
" Beingthenearestkinsmanuponthe place,Ihave taken
the liberty to give His Majesty an account of his death,
and have sent his George and blue ribbon to be disposed
of as His Majesty shall think fit. Ihave addressed it,
under cover, to my Lord President, to whomIbeg you
would carry the bearer the minute he arrives.
" Ihave given orders that nothing shall be embezzled,
and for that reason, as soon as myLord died,Icalled to
see his strong box,but before Mr Brian Fairfax and Mr.
Gibson. Ifound nothingof moment init,but some loose
letters of no concern; but, such as they are,Ihave
ordered them to be lockedup, and delivered to my Lady
Duchess; as also the smallplateand linenhe hadIhave
committed to the care of Lord Fairfax."
This full account, which gives moreparticulars concerning
the last moments inlife of the Duke of Buckingham
than could be obtained from any other source, first
appeared January 3rd, 1784, in The Whitehall Evening
Post.
Familiar to all, to whom anythingofGeorge Villiers is
known, are the following lines of Pope, which, however,
areunduly exaggerated: —
In the worst inn's worst room,withmat half hung,
The floors of plaster, and the walls ofdung,
On once a flock bed, but repair'd withstraw,
With tape-tied curtains never meant to draw,
The George and Garter dangling from the bed,
Where tawdry yellow strove with dirty red,
Great Villiers lies — alas ! how changed from him!
That life ofpleasure,and that soul of whimI
Gallant and gay in Cliveden's proud alcove,
The bower of wanton Shrewsbury and love;
Or just as gay at council, in a ring
Of mimic Statesmen and their merryking.
No wit to flatter left of all his store,
No fool to laugh at, whichhe valued more;
There, victor ofhis health, of fortune, friends,
And fame, this Lordofuseless thousands ends.

DEATH OF THE DUKE OF BUCKINGHAM.
The house in whichhe died was,however, not an inn,
consequentlythe description of " the inn's worst room "
is merely fanciful; the building was his own,but in the
occupation of one of his tenants. At the time of his
Lordship's demise it must have been, with one exception,
the best house in the town. It was built in the ancient
style, with wings, andhavinga frontageof sixteenyards.
The apartment in which the Duke breathed his last was
on the second floor at the front of the house, and is the
best upper room, with boards of fir.
In an old parish register of Kirkby-Moorside is the
following entry: —
" Burials. — 1687, April 17th, Gorges Viluas, Lord
dooke of bookingham."
This,though recording the death of his Lordship,is no
proof ofhis burial at Kirkby-Moorside,for he was interred
in the family vault, under a sumptuous monument in
Henry VIII.'s Chapel,in Westminster Abbey.
His widow administeredto the estate, there being no
will. Leaving no issue, the family by his death became
extinct.
In many respects he was a remarkable man. He
occupied part of his chequered career in literary work,
consisting of dramatic compositions,satires, and poems,
which, among other miscellaneousworks, werepublished
in an octavo volume in 1704. His life was printed by
Curl in 1721, and his works pirated, but the action was
condemned by the House of Lords as a breach of
privilege.
It is stated that the Duke ofBuckingham was the first
to introduce the manufacture of glass and crystal from
Venice into England.
153

CHAPTER XXIII.
EUGENE ARAM, THE YORKSHIRE MURDERER.
OUBTLESS no namein the longrollof those
who have gone out from York Castle to die
on the scaffold is better known in this day
than that of Eugene Aram, the Yorkshire
schoolmaster, nor none to whom are more
widespread,if mistaken, sympathiesvouchsafed.
He was the son of PeterAram, who came of a
good Yorkshirefamily,which, however,wassoreducedthat
his situation in life was that of gardener to Sir Edward
Blackett, in which position he is said to have displayed
great capacity. He also cultivatedin some slight degree
the society of the muses, one poem of his being " On the
surpassingbeauties of Studley Park, and a description of
the venerable ruins of Fountains Abbey." Eugene was
born at the little village of Ramsgill, in Nidderdale, in
1704. When he was six years oldhis parents wenttolive
at Bondgate, a village within the sound of the bells of
Ripon Cathedral. Here he attended school,butremained
merely until he was able to read the New Testament.
This, with the exception of a month's teaching from the
Rev.Mr. Alcock, of Burnsall, a longperiod subsequently,
was the sum total of his learning so far as school tuition
was concerned;yet by he had attained the age of 16 he

EUGENE ARAM. 155
had acquired a thorough knowledge of Latin, Greek, and
Hebrew, which he masteredwith astonishing ease. This
remarkable thirst for knowledge was greatly encouraged
by his father's employer, and he constantly made additions
to his store of acquirements,numberingamong the
sciences he studied as he travelled about the country as
an usher, botany and heraldry, besides surmounting the
difficulties of the Chaldaic and Arabic tongues. In 1731
he was actingin the capacityof schoolmaster at Gowthwaite
Hall, near Ramsgill, and in that year he married
one Ann Spence,the daughter of a farmerand blacksmith,
who lived at Lofthouse. Three years later he removed
to Knaresborough, and had at that time one child — a
daughter. While there he kept a school and continued
the prosecution of his studies, his chiefpatronbeing Mr.
WilliamNorton, who gave him much assistance. About
this time, Aram, refined and cultured as he undoubtedly
was, came to associate with three persons of tastes and
habits diametrically opposite to his own in every way.
These wereRichard Houseman, Henry Terry,andDaniel
Clarke. Much has been written upon Eugene Aram's
connection with these men. By some he was considered
as being throughout a victim and a martyr; by others he
was thought to bea more skilful villain, for his power of
producing sympathyby an appearanceof superior inclinations;but
that he should join in such schemes as they
were co-partners in, has been on all hands agreed to be
inexplicable, butit may fairly be attributed to his yielding
not infrequently to habits of intemperance. Houseman
was a flax-dresser,and Clarke a travellingdealerin plateware,
jewellery, watches, and such articles. The two,
with Eugene Aram, became confederate for the purpose
of defrauding the acquaintances of Clarke of plate. He
was commonlyreported to be in theexpectationof a large
fortune falling to his wife. He purchased goods,also, to
increase his credit, and was widely known for the punctuality
of his payments. He led people to suppose that
he made the purchases on behalf of a London merchant,

156
EUGENE ARAM.
who wanted them for exportation. By these representations
Clarke had gathered together goods of considerable
value, when suddenly he disappeared from the neighbourhood,
and no tidings wereeverheardofhim.
On account of the extensive frauds whichhad beenperpetratedby
the trio,and their operationsbeingsuspected
on the disappearanceof Clarke, the houses of Aram and
Houseman were searched, but nothing was found of a
nature tending to imply complicity. A short time after
this, Eugene Aram left Knaresborough, and nothing was
known of him in that district until thirteen years afterwards,
when the murder was first suspected. In the
meantime he had first proceeded to London, where he
obtained a situation as writing master and teacher of
Latin,an appointment which he retained for two years.
After this,the next trace ofhim is at Hayes,inMiddlesex,
wherehe was again employed as a writing master. Four
years subsequently we find him engaged in transcribing
Acts of Parliament for registrationinChancery. Lastly,
he was appointed usher of the Free School, Lynn,
Norfolk. While officiating in this capacity, and also
during his previous wanderings,he had added the French
language to his acquisitions, and had projected an undertaking
for forminga comparative lexicon,and to this end
had preparedthe comparisonsof morethan three thousand
words in the Celtic, English,Latin, Greek, and Hebrew
tongues. Byron Webber, in writing on this subject,
says: " Whether or not this marvellous activity ofmind,
these extraordinarypowersofmental acquisitiveness, and
this insatiable thirst for knowledge, were provokedby a
desire to still the pangsof remorse,it is impossible to say.
It is clear, however,that Aram could not have derived
much pecuniary benefit from the murder and robbery
of Clarke, else why rush in this manner from one kindof
inadequately-paid labour to another?" Another question
which materiallyinfluences our opinion and judgment in
the matter is the fact of his sober and circumspect life
from the timeof his departurefromKnaresborough, for we

EUGENE ARAM. 157
may well suppose that, however dissipated he may have
been there with his boon companions, this must have all
been altered on his taking the various respectable and
responsible positionshe heldduring his voluntary banishment.
Ifhe was unable entirely to repress those habits of
intemperance,his shortcomings must have beenknown to
himself alone, and when we think of the many chances
he had of leaving the country, and thus placing his subsequent
capture beyond all probability,we are not a little
inclinedat first to believe inhis innocence.
We have said that nothingmore was heard of Clarke;
but, in 1759, a labourer digging for limestone near a
place known as St. Robert's Cave, by Thistle Hill,
near Knaresborough,found a human skeleton which had
apparently been buried bent double, and the disposition
of which led those who saw it to suspect that it came
there by foul play. Numerous were the conjectures
hazarded, and the suspicion arose that the skeleton
might be that of the Daniel Clarke who had been so
suddenly missing some years before, and was never
heard of again; and when the person who remembered
the time spoke of it others recollected that they had heard
a womanin Knaresboroughassert that if she would she
could hang her husband, who had deserted her several
years ago,and not only him but others of the district.
This woman, it was also brought to mind, was Eugene
Aram's wife, and remembering the ancient friendship
between him and some others, the suspicions were so
strong that the authorities apprehended Eugene Aram,
Richard Houseman, and Henry Terry, previously mentioned.
They were charged with the murder of Daniel
Clarke, as being the last seen in his company, and tried
at York, 3rd August, 1759. The case against the three
prisoners was anything but strong, and had it not been
for the pusillanimous demeanour of the prisoner Houseman
while on his trial in the dock, it is probable that
they would all have beenacquitted,but his agitationand
fear lead the counsel for the prosecution to examine him

158
EUGENE ARAM.
sharply, which had the effect of causinghim to inculpate
himself and Aram, and in accordance with the usage of
the criminal courts, he was permitted to turn " Queen's
evidence."
Inhis evidencehe gave a full description of the murder
of Clarke by Eugene Aram. He stated that on the day
of the foul deed they had all three passed frequently to
and fro between their respective residences for the disposal
of the goods they had obtained, when Aram
proposed to the other two that they should walkinto the
country. They left the town for the fields near St.
Robert's Cave. When they had arrived there Clarke and
Aram proceeded over the hedge towards the cave, when
Houseman " saw Aram strike Clarke several times over
the breast and head, and saw him fall as if he weredead,
upon which he came away and left them." He added
subsequentlythat the body was buried in the cave.
Aram, on being found at Lynn, had deniedeverbeing
at Knaresborough,as wellas all knowledge of the name
of Daniel Clarke, buton being identifiedbyJohn Barker,
a constable of Knaresborough,he was conveyed to York,
and triedas stated. Upon the evidenceof Houseman at
the trial beingconcluded, Aram put several questions to
him which point out the acute mind of the man. For
instance,he asked — Howcould Houseman sweartoseeing
blows struck on a dark night in the middle of winter ?
How far off was he when the actual deed took place ?
How was it that Houseman was not with them, as they
came out together, and their business concerned all
equally? To these searching questions Houseman
replied that, although it was night when the murder
was perpetrated, the moon was out, though slightly
hidden by clouds, so that he could see the movements
of Eugene's hand, though not the weapon whichit held.
That, so far as he remembered, he was about twelve
yards away. That with regard to the third question,he
besought the court to protect him, as, if he replied,his
answer might incriminate himself. Also, he was not

EUGENE ARAM. 159
able to swear positively to the fact that Aram had a
weapon in his hand, and his reason for not raising the
alarm, or acknowledging his witnessing of the murder
before this,-was becauseEugene Aram had threatened to
take his life.
Other, though less important, witnesses were next
heard on behalf of the prosecution, and Aram, though
totallyunprovided with evidence, was called upon to set
forth his defence. This extraordinaryeffort of mental
ingenuity was presented so ably, and with so much of
clever plausibility,that the judge, who from the first had
beenprejudiced against Aram, describedit as one of the
most ingenious pieces of reasoning that had ever fallen
under his notice. But, as observed by one writer, the
speechhadin it no ring of innocence, and seemed more
like a laborious and painstaking defence of another, than
the desperate pleading for a man's own self with the
gallows inhis sight. He commencedby alluding to his
studious habits and the unblemishedcharacter of his life.
" My days," he said, " were honestly laborious, my
nights intensely studious." He asked if it was possible
that any one would " plunge into the very depths of profligacy
precipitately and at once." It was " absolutely
inconsistent with the course of things." He is as
elaborate throughout. He spoke of having " suffered
under a very long and severedisorder, which left him so
macerated, so enfeebled, as to be reduced to crutches."
Furthermore he urged that the disappearanceof Clarke
was not absolute proof of his death, and suggested as an
illustrationthe case of William Thompson, who,in June,
two years previously, had made his escape from York
Castle, and was not again heard of. He alluded to the
fact that bones were being constantly found in retired
parts,more especially in such places as hermitages,of
whichSt. Robert'sCave was one. He asked — Was the
skeleton found really that of a man ? " It is possible,
indeed, it may be; but is there any known criterion
which incontestably distinguishes the sex in human

160
EUGENE ARAM.
bones ? "
In conclusion, he adduced many instances
where circumstantial evidence and king's evidence had
been found to be false after beingaccepted in important
trials.
The summing up of the judge,it has been said, rather
resembled the utterance of a blood-thirsty prosecutor
than that of an impartial judge,and could have but one
interpretation — the gallows. Accordingly, Aram was
found guilty and condemnedto be hung. It is remarked
that he must have been an inordinately vain man;
otherwise, that when death would be the sure result of
failure,he would not have worked out a defence so devoid
of passion and so full of logic and learning. After his
convictionhe wrote to a friend a letter in which he confessed
the justice of his sentence, and he also confessed
to the clergyman who attended him that he was really
guilty of the murder of Clarke. He says in this letter
that his onlyprovocation for the deed was that offered by
the prospectof " filthy lucre;" but he excused himself to
the clergymanin a totally different manner, namely, that
he imagined Clarke had intrigued with Mrs. Aram.
Bulwer Lytton, in his novel entitled " Eugene Aram,"
which affords a lustre to Aram's character which the
reality did not substantiate, gives a third reason for the
murder, namely,the obtaining of money to carry out a
gigantic scientific discovery. While Aram lay in confinement
in York Castle, previous to the last expiation of his
crime, he wrote a somewhat lengthy poekn, which,
although not of sustained excellence,is rich in indications
of a refined culture. Other shorter pieces also
engaged his attention, and among others six lines of
poetry, composed the evening before his execution,and
which concluded a fanciful apology for his attempted
suicide;for on the morning appointedfor the execution,
when awakened for the removal of his fetters, he was
found tobe toomuchenfeebled toarisewithoutassistance.
Uponhis condition being investigated,the wardersfound
that a vein in his arm had been opened with a razor he

EUGENE ARAM. 161
had managed to concealin his cell. By immediate attention,however,
being paid to the wound,he was restored
sufficiently to endurethe journey to Knavesmire and was
there executed at the Tyburn. The verse we have mentionedis
as follows: —
Come,pleasing rest! Eternal slumber fall,
Sealmine, that once must seal the eyesofall;
Calm and composed,my soul her journey takes,
No guilt that troubles, and noheart that aches!
Adieu, thou sun! all bright,like her, arise.
Adieu, fair friends! and all that's good and wise.
After execution his body was hungin chains,and exposed
in KnaresboroughForest.
In spite of all that has been written concerning the
crime of Eugene Aram, and the many attempts which
have beenmade to palliate,or do entirely away with his
offence, we cannot find that there is anythingin his life
or character which entitles him to more sympathy or
considerationthan the ordinarycriminal, unless it be his
learningand literary acquirements. Bulwer Lytton may
insist that the crime of Aram was capable of palliation,
and that his guilt was not "vulgar," but crime cannot be
so dividedinto the vulgar and genteel. However, even
granting this distinction, he who would join in low dissipations
with such men as Houseman, Terry,and Clarke,
whowould,as he confesses,benotinfrequentlyintoxicated,
and who deliberately deserts his wife, cannot come under
any other heading than that of vulgar. It has been
frequently thought that Eugene Aram was a martyr to
the imperfection of the system of Englishcriminallaw,
but a due consideration of the case in all its bearings will
show that such a belief is entirely without foundation in
the actualoccurrences.
ii

Chapter XXIV.
HISTORY OF THE YORKSHIRE RESURRECTION
MEN.
W7]|p^HAT interesting biography, " The Life of Sir
k^QbMA Astley Cooper," rendered familiar the most
A^JIA.)\ minute and horrible details of the processes
of the " resurrectionmen," otherwise known
Ckfe*. as " body-snatchers," who, during the early
As£»
part of the nineteenth century, were the cause
»_? of so much agitation and anxiety. Previously
the doctors and anatomical schools were granted the
bodies of executed malefactors for their subjects, but
upon the cessation of this supply, the medical men
employed persons to obtain for them bodies from newmade
graves to work upon, sometimes specifying the
place and exact subject; at otherstakingwithoutquestion
whateverbody was brought to them. Mr. B.B. Cooper,
in the work above mentioned, tells us that the bodysnatcherswouldalso
sometimesbesentinto ruraldistricts
to secure the corpses of persons who had undergone
important surgical operations,the result of which it was
ofvital interest to know, and to obtain these, no distance,
trouble, or expense was allowedto be an insurmountable
obstacle in the way. Mr. Cooper, in speaking of Sir

YORKSHIRE RESURRECTION MEN. 163
Astley, says he has known him to send more than a
hundred miles to obtain a desirable subject which might
afford some new insight into the nature of a disease, or
the recuperative and compensatingforcesof nature. He
quotes a bill paid,after an expeditionof this description,
to obtain the possession of a subject upon whom Sir
Astley had performed an operation 24 years previously,
amounting to £13 12s., of which £7 7s. was for the
subject, the remainder being actual expenses incurred.
In addition to the expense of obtaining the bodies, the
surgeons also paidregularamounts to persons imprisoned
for carrying out their illegaland odiousinstructions. In
the work above mentioned are the copies of accounts in
which are items for such disbursements, for instance: —
"January 29th, 1828, paid Mr. to pay Mr. half
the expenses for bailing Vaughan from Yarmouth, and
going down, £14 7s. May6th, paidVaughan's wife, 6s.
May 29th, paid Vaughan for 26 weeks' confinement, at
10s. per week, £13 ;" and the next entry is in payment
for " four subjects,two male and two female (Murphy),at
twelve guineas each, £50 8s." Upon another occasion
it cost £160 to liberate the Murphy alluded to in the
account. Sir AstleyCooper gave evidence on this subject
before a committeeof the House of Commons, at the time
previous to the alteration of the law in 1832, and his
statements had great weight in the consideration and
forming of the enactments. The gist of his assertions
amounted to the following: — The previous state of the
law,though providingheavypunishments,didnot prevent
the surgeons from obtaining the body of any person they
desiredto have for purposes of dissection, from its peculiarity
of structure or other reason. The law didnot in the
slightest degree prevent the commission of the crime of
body-stealing, and protected not the highest personages,
its restrictions and penalties merely enhancing the prices
paid.
Having seen the importance of the subject from the
point of view ofthe surgeons, wewill consider the actual

164
YORKSHIRE RESURRECTION MEN.
operations and processes of the resurrection men themselves,
and thence pass to the notice of specific
instances of their nefarious trade in Yorkshire. In
one of Samuel Warren's works an account is given of the
manner in which the graves were opened and the dead
abstracted, but the description of the process as there
given is not accurate, thoughit coincidedwith the popular
belief. This was that the " body-snatchers " removed
the whole of the earth from the grave, and, having
arrived at the coffin, forced off the lid, then takingout the
body. The true account of the process really used is
given in the great authorityon the subject generally,the
work we have quoted;in which it states that the above
method was not used, as it would have occupied too
lengthya period, and exposedthe workers to greatchance
of detection. Usually, therefore, to avoid this they only
cleared away the earth above the head of the coffin,
taking care to leave that which covered the other portions
as far as possible undisturbed. As soon as about onethird
of the coffin was thus exposed,they forced a very
strong crowbar,made of a peculiar form for the purpose,
into the crevice between the extreme body of the coffin
and the lid, which latter, by using the lever as one of
the first order, they generally pressed up without much
difficulty. It usually happened at this stage of the proceedings
that the superincumbent weight of the earth on
the other portion of the coffin lid caused it to be snapped
across at a distanceof about one-third of its length from
the fulcrum of the lever. As soon as this hadtakenplace,
the body was drawn out, the death-gear removed fromit,
and replaced in the coffin, and finally the body tied up
and placedin its receptacle to be conveyed to its destination.
There was seldom any difficulty in extricating a
body by these means, unless the lid happened to be
sufficiently strong to resist the force of the lever; this,
however, scarcely ever occurred in the coffins of the
poorer classes, and to these the resurrection men principally
directed their attention.

YORKSHIRE RESURRECTION MEN. 165
Leeds was thrown into a state of consternationin the
month of January, 1826, by the unfolding of a case of
body-stealing. A personnamed ThomasDaniel had been
buried in the Church of St. John, inLeeds, but the body
was discovered to be missing. A box had been booked
to Edinburgh by a young boxmaker namedCox,and for
some reason it came to be opened at Newcastle. The
son of Mr. Daniel went immediately to Newcastle, and
identified the body by the marks of gunpowder upon it.
The boxmaker was taken into custody, and though he
pleaded not guilty, saying that he had made and booked
the box for a Jew who had lodged with his parents, and
was ignorant of whatwas inside, he was found guilty at
the sessions, and sent to York Castle for six months.
In the same year,three months later, another bodywas
stolen from its grave at Armley. It was that of Martha
Oddy, the daughter of a clothier,and aged fifteen. As in
the other case, the subject was for Edinburgh, and there
it had been forwarded, but was traced, and brought back
to be re-buried. Three men were charged with the
offence, but oneonly convicted, whowas sentencedto six
months' imprisonment.
Hull was frequently visited by the wandering minions
of the surgeon, and there are numerous instances of
body-stealingon record. The burial ground of Drypool
Church, Hull,was the oftenestresortedto by the iniquitous
fraternity, probably on account of its being at that time a
solitary and not much frequented place. There is an
account of theft of the bodyof a child, whichis extremely
painful. A child died, and was buried, and the father,
upon losing a second child, was desirous of havingthem
together in the same grave. Upon mentioning this to
the sexton, he was pointed to a different part of the
churchyard as the burial place of his first little one,but,
knowing the exact locality,his suspicions werearoused,
and upon causing the true grave to be laid open, it was
found that the bodyhad been abstracted. This led to a
resolve being taken at a parishioners'meeting to enclose

166
YORKSHIRE RESURRECTION MEN.
the spot by a wall,which was done, the wall being low
and surmountedby palisading, in order that it might not
afford future resurrection men any protection from the
view of passers-by.
The intense indignation and alarm which was felt
throughout the country upon the operations of the bodysnatchers
coming to light,ledto the formation of societies
to prevent the atrocious thefts being carried into effect.
These societies werecalled " Grave Clubs," andthey were
formed inmost towns and villages. Some of these clubs
assumed the regulationof the graves, insisting on them
beingof a depth of twelve feet, as at Rothwell. In order
to render the stealing of bodies still more difficult, the
graves had iron bars placed at intervals transversely.
In many places no regular club was organised, but the
relatives and friends of deceased persons watched the
graves for a period of about five weeks,by which time a
body would in the ordinary course have become decomposed.
Manypeoplehiredwatchmento remainbycertain
graves during that period. At Hull and thedistrictmany
cases have been brought before us, in which a fortnight
only was deemed necessary for watching. The statements
to us of people who have watchedin the churchyards
of Hessle, Cottingham,Beverley, etc., show how
widespread was the terror inspired by the grave-robbers,
and how determined the public were to defeat their
measures. A pitiful story is related by a medical man,
who in his youth had played the part of body-snatcher.
Upon one occasion,on the partyof resurrectionistsentering
a churchyard for the purpose of openinga particular
grave, they were astonishedto see wavingin the hazy air
a shroud-like cloud from the identicalgrave. Havingno
fear of friends watching after midnight, for (so says the
doctor) through terror, cold, and whisky "their watches
were generally terminated early," two of the party drew
near to investigate, when it was found that the white
object was the skirt of a woman's dress. She was the
widow of a harvester who had died on his wayhome to

YORKSHIRE RESURRECTION MEN. 167
Ireland, and the poor woman had remained to watchby
his remains and prevent them from being stolen by the
ruthless grave-robbers. The resurrectionists, so goes the
narration, withdrew, after making a small collection for
the poor woman, and promising to leave the husband's
grave inviolate. Returning to the more usual cases, we
find that inJune, 1831, the body of a dyer named Thomas
Rothery,who was killed by accidental immersion into a
heateddye-pan,was stolen from the gravein the Episcopal
Chapel burial-ground of Wortley on the thirdday after its
interment. The bodywas found at the office of a solicitor
named Gaunt, and his clerk, John Hodgson,was charged
with stealing it. He was tried at the Leeds Borough
Sessions in July of the same year,and found guilty, after
four hours' trial. After the finding of the verdict, he
admitted that he had been inleague with a medicalman
for the obtaining of the subject, and the object was its
dissection by the two jointly. He declined to give the
nameofhis accomplice on the ground that such a revelation
would beutter ruin to the man. He was sentenced
to six weeks' imprisonment in York Castle, and had to
find two sureties for his good behaviour during two years
of £50 each, in addition to £100
on his own recognis-
ances. These particulars are in Mayhall's Annals of
Yorkshire,who also states thatin November,1831, a box
arrived at the Bull and Mouth Hotel, Leeds,by theDuke
of Leeds coach, from Manchester, addressed to " The
Rev. Mr. Geneste, Hull; per Selby packet. To be left
until calledfor. Glass, andkeepthis side up. Nov. 1ith,"
and thatit contained two corpses — a woman and a child.
Another case was that of the suicide Robert Hudson,
who hanged himself at East Ardsley,at about the above
date,and was buried in the churchyardof that place. The
body was discoveredin a box on the Courier coach at the
Rose and Crown Inn,Leeds, on its way to the North,
probably Edinburgh. An inquest was held, and at the
Assizes of the following spring four men were charged
with exhumingthe bodyin anunlawful manner,and upon

168
YORKSHIRE RESURRECTION MEN.
one of the quartet turning King's evidence, two of the
others were sentenced to three months, and one to a year's
imprisonment.
A body was found in a conveyance in Charles Street,
Hull,in 1832, but no clue was discovered as to the means
by which it came there, though it was evidentlya theft
from a grave.
Researchmight multiply such cases into hundreds, but
we think sufficient has been said to present a vivid picture
of a state of affairs that is nowhappilya thingof the past,
but which,nevertheless, supplies a startling and deplorable
item of our national and local history.

CHAPTER xxv.
THE LUDDITE RIOTS.
T was during the time the lengthy and expensive
contest with the seemingly invincible
Napoleon was being carried on. Trade was
at a standstill, and great distress prevailed
throughout the country, for the humbler class
of people, taxed to the utmost,and starved by the
** dearth of food and want of work, complained
of their unhappy condition in a lamentable manner.
Certainly at intervals there would come the news of
another and yet another victory by Wellington in Spain,
and at these times hope would rise and morepatiencebe
shewn in the bearing of the privation which was almost
universal, but the sway of discontent again and again
influenced the popular mind, and frequently ebullitions of
feelin**- would lead to serious riots. About this period the
price of wheat in the Leeds market was £9
a quarter.
The mob, headed by a woman called by them LadyLud,
attacked the dealers, seizing the corn and scattering it
broadcast in the streets. The feeling against the war
was sostrong thatthe MilitiaStoreRoom wasbrokeninto,
and 800 guns and bayonets destroyed, but the greatest
popularindignation was directed against the manufacture
and use of machinery, which, it was believed, though
most ignorantly and unreasonably,was detrimentalto the
welfare of the labouringclasses. Thefeeling was not long

170
THE LUDDITE RIOTS.
in spreading throughout the country. The first indications
of it wereat Nottingham. Among the numberless
mechanical improvements of that inventive period, the
stocking-loom was a principal object of hatred of the
weavers. Mobs assembled, and with most uncontrollable
violence and ferocity attacked the manufactories where
the frames were used, one thousand framesbeingwrecked
inNottingham alone. The mobhere again acted under
the nominal command of a person whom they called
General Ned Lud. FromNottingham the rioters spread
over the county as far north as Mansfield, and thence
gradually carried the agitation into the West Riding of
Yorkshire, the great seat of fabric manufactures. The
Luddites first attacked the mill of Messrs. J. J. and R.
Thompson, at Rawdon. On the morning of the 24th
March, 1812, the Luddites, armed with guns, sticks,
etc., stole silently towards the mills, first capturing the
watchman, and placing a guard over the cottages near,
then entering the factory they completely wrecked the
wholeof the machinery, and cut to pieces the manufactured
webslying there.
On the gth of the following April a party of 300 Luddites
marched upon Wakefield, having a van and rearguard
of horsemen, with drawn swords. They inspired
so much terror that no resistance was made, and they
destroyed numerous mills and other property in the
neighbourhoodof Wakefield. The burning of mills also
at Oaklands, near Leeds, and at Hawksworth, was attributed
to them, and other depredations of a like nature
werecommitted at Huddersfield,Dewsbury, Cleckheaton,
Holmfirth, and Liversedge. The machinery of Messrs.
Dickenson, Carr, and Shann,in Water Lane,Leeds, was
destroyed, and a large quantity of finished cloth. The
Ludditeorganisationnow began to extendits operations,
the first intention of destroying machinery only being
enlarged to a resolution to deprive the masters of their
lives. The Luddites met on commons and moors in the
middleof the night, and there they arranged whatmills

THE LUDDITE RIOTS. 171
were to be wrecked and what masters were to be
murdered. The societies of different parts were under
the control of a general committee, and the various
brancheshad their own committees, whohad the arrangement
of allmatters relating to measures to be carriedout
in concert. The midnight assemblies were conducted
with awe-inspiring solemnity, and each new memberwas
bound by an oath as follows: — ■"I,
, of my own
voluntary will, do declare and solemnly swear thatI
never will reveal to any person or persons under the
canopy of heaven the namesof the persons who compose
this committee, their proceedings, meetings, places of
abode, dress, features, connections, or anything else that
might lead to a discovery of the same, either by wordor
deedor sign, under the penalty of being sent out of the
world by the first brother who shall meet me, and my
name and characterblotted out of existence,and never to
be rememberedbut with contempt and abhorrence; and
Ifurther now do swear thatIwill use mybest endeavours
to punish by death any traitor 01 traitors, should any rise
up amongst us, whereverIcan find him or them; and
though he should fly to the verge of nature,Iwillpursue
him with unceasing vengeance. So help me God, and
bless me to keep this my oathinviolable."
From every part ofthe country subscriptions poured in,
and the movement began to assume alarming proportions.
The local magistracy found that the riots were
almostimpossible to be checked by the ordinary course of
the law. Joseph Radcliffe, of Milnsbridge, was extremly
energeticin promoting a counter organisation, by which
the leaders were surprised and detected, and for this he
was afterwards rewarded with a baronetcy. In many
counties, too, the police made extraordinary efforts, and
largenumbers of rioters were apprehended, the leniency
with which the first offenders had been treated by the
magistrates, being changed for a severity due to the
importance of the threatening aspect of affairs. The
Luddites became more and more embittered against

172
THE LUDDITE RIOTS.
the mastersand those who upheld their authority, and in
the monthof April began to excelin violence any of their
previous deeds. During this and the succeedingmonths
crime came after crime in increasing numbers. On the
night of Saturday,the nth of April, the secret society of
the Luddites met to attack Mr. Wm. Cartwright's mill at
Rawtolds, near Liversedge. Mr. Cartwright had been
one of those who, in spite of oft repeated threats, had
continued to use new machinery; he was accordingly
hatedbythe Luddites,whodenouncedhim anddetermined
to destroy the machinery. Hearing of the threatened
attack, for six weeks Mr. Cartwrightslept in the mill, and
with himfour workmenand fivesoldiers. On the evening
abovementioned the occupants of the mill retiredabout
twelve o'clock, Mr. Cartwright among the number, first
seeing that his watchmen outside were at their posts.
At about, it is said, twenty-five minutes before one a loud
barking was heard from a dog which was kept on the
ground floor. Mr. Cartwright quickly rising and opening
the door of his bedroom, heard the windows on the
ground floor break, and immediatelyafter a volley of firearms.
The arms had been piled the night before, and
upon rushing in their direction Mr. Cartwright met the
workmenand soldiers, who like himself had nothingon
buttheir shirts,and preparingtooffer a staunch resistance.
An alarm bell had been placed on the top of the building,
and this waskept in play by two men who took turn« at
ringing the bell and firing upon the mob below. Meanwhile
the little bandof defenders kept up a continual fire
through the loopholes, whilst from the mob outside came
as unremitting a discharge of guns and small arms.
Mingled with the most horrible curses were heard the
shouts of " Keep close;" " In withyou;" " Bangaway,
my lads;" " Killthem every one." It was reckoned that
nearly 150 persons took part in the attack, but so alert
were the defenders that in about twenty-minutes the
Luddites, probablyfinding their ammunition gone, ceased
to fire, and finally they scattered and departed towards

THE LUDDITERIOTS. 173
Huddersfield. Upon the doorbeing openedtwo wounded
men were found outside, whohad beenleft behind. These
mendied, and a jury returned a verdict of "justifiable
homicide." Twice after this occurrence Mr. Cartwright
was shotat on the high road, but happily withouteffect.
After the failure of the attack against Mr. Cartwright
the infatuated Luddites determinedon the murder of a
manufacturernamedMr. William Horsfall. He was proceeding
along the Huddersfield and Marsden road when
he was shot at from behind a plantation wall. A Mr.
Parr,riding behind,saw himfall and gave what assistance
he could, but the unfortunate gentleman expired at the
Warrener House, a tavernnear,withinthirty-eight hours.
Throughout the year such crimes as these becamemore
numerous as the year advanced. Special enactments
were formed, and so greata number of arrests weremade
that in the latter part of 1812, special commissions were
opened at Lancaster, Chester, and York, for the trial of
prisoners, while rewards were promised and " King's
pardons, " to such accomplices as would inculpate their
fellows. The specialcommissionofYork wasopenedonthe
2nd ofJanuary,1813, andlastedten days, thecharge to the
grand jury beingmadeonthe 4th byMr. Baron Thomson,
who, with Mr. Justice Le Blanc, was the judge. The first
case tried was one in which four men had assumed the
character of Ludditesin orderto plunderthehouse of Mr.
William Moxon at Kirkheaton. They were sentenced to
death. Anotherprincipal case was that of GeorgeMellor,
William Thorpe, and Thomas Smith, who werecharged
with the murder of Mr. Horsfall on the evidence of Benjamin
Walker, the fourth of the party, who were seen in
the plantation. Thesethree were also sentencedto death.
They declined to replyto the questions which were put to
them, and Mellor, the oldest of the party, and notmore
than twenty-three years of age, the General Lud of his
locality, declared that he would not willingly be in the
placeof Walker for his libertyand the reward. The three
were executed on the 6th of January, under the guard of

174
THE LUDDITE RIOTS.
two troops of cavalry and largebodiesof infantry. John
Schofield was charged with shootingat John Hinchcliffe.
The latterwas a parish clerk and singingmaster, and was
called out of bed on the night of the 22nd of July, 1812,
and taken into the road, where, after a futile attempt to
escape, he was shot in the eye, the use of whichhe entirely
lost. The counsel for the defence included Mr.
Brougham (afterwards the famous LordBrougham), and
the plea set up was an alibi. The prisoner was pronounced
" Not guilty." The 8th ofJanuarywas givento
investigating cases where persons had administered the
Ludditeoath, andthose foundguilty of this weresentenced
to transportationfor seven years.
The next day nine persons were charged with being
concerned in the attack on Mr. Cartwright's mill. Six
were found guilty and three acquitted. Other prisoners
were then tried for minor offences, and those found guilty
sentencedto sevenyears' transportation.
The prisoners condemned to die werefifteen innumber,
and as the dock was too small to hold them, they were
ranged on a form in the sight of the judges. The Clerk
of the Arraigns asked the usual question why the judgment
of death should not be awarded them, and each in
his turn prayed for his life. Baron Thomson and Mr.
Justice Le Blanc assuming their black caps, the former
addressed the condemned, pointing out the enormity of
their crimes, the importance of an example, the little
chance of mercy for them, and their impending death.
One of them swooned early during the address, and the
groans that burst now and againfrom these young men
as it proceeded, were heartrending in the extreme. But
a short time was allowed to elapse between sentence
and execution, and during this period the prisoners
behaved in a very penitentmanner, but did not make any
importantrevelations. At eleven o'clockon the Saturday
morning,the 16th of January,the Under-Sheriffdemanded
the bodiesof the condemned. They were then singing a
hymn which one of them dictated. On arriving at the

THE LUDDITE RIOTS. 175
scaffold they joined in the prayerswith fervour, and made
short warning observations to the crowd, which was very
numerous. During the awful scene whichensued, as one
after another of the condemned struggled into eternity,
shrieks burst involuntarily from the immense concourse.
A largenumber of troops and foot soldiers wereon guard,
but their presencewas scarcelynecessary,for the popular
excitementhadnearly diedout, and this was the last and
final scene of one of the saddest acts that a people's
mistakes and a people's crimes have ever rendered
necessary.

Chapter XXVI.
ECHOES OF OLD LEEDS.— LEEDS IN THE
LAST CENTURY.
AKING a comprehensivereview of Leeds and
its events during the last century we find
that at that periodthe aspect of the town was
wonderfullydifferent from its present appearance.
Where now arenarrow, smoky streets,
were then tree-shadowed lanes, orchards, and
" garths " at nearlyevery step. We go back to
the timewhen the " Calls " was a favourite rural retreat,
leading through meadows and gardens, and we are told
that Alderman Cookson had his country seat here,
pleasantly laid out with terraces, lawns, and avenues.
Here, too, was a little laterin the century, built by John
Atkinson, Mayorin 1711, the house (afterwards the postoffice),
considered for artistic detail to be the best in
Leeds of its time. It stood on part of the site of the
Central Market.
We might deallargelywith numerous interesting incidents
and remarks on the observances, etc., of the
Corporation,but space forbids more than a few scattered
extracts. The followingis copied from a memorandum
book of ThomasBarstow,TownClerk in 1765, and seems
to be a record, or reminder, of formalbusiness to be done,
andit mayalso be, judging fromthe style,a sort of diary
after the occurrences mentioned: — " 27th Sept., To give
notice of a court of mayor, aldermen, and assistants, to
choose a new mayor (and assistants if wanted),on the

ECHOES OF OLD LEEDS. 177
29th, at three o'clock in the afternoon; afterwards the old
mayor, mayor-elect, and the rest of the court go and
drink a glass. The old mayorpays a guinea, the mayorelect
ios. 6d., thealdermen 2s. apiece,and the assistants
is. each. What is spent above is paid by the treasurer
out of the CorporationStock.
" Sunday after the last-mentionedday, the new mayor
goes to church withthe old mayor, the formerin a black
and the latter in a scarlet gown, and dinetogether at the
old mayor's. The first Sunday after the new mayor is
sworn-in is a gown day."
The Earlof Sherburn wrote the then Mayors of Leeds
recommending the formation of an association of young
men to learn military exercise, and from this time dates
the volunteer force.
Leeds had not any great share in the events which
followed the invasion of the country by the Young
Pretender. It will be rememberedthat after bringing his
forces in 1745 to Manchester, he marched southas far as
Derby, but withdrewagain to Scotland. This was in the
autumn, but inDecember we learn that some 13,000 of
the Royal force of foot (with twenty pieces of brass
ordnance) were encamped in the "closes" on the west
side of SheepscarLane, being composed of three nationalities
— English, Dutch, and Swiss. The record (the old
parish register) remarks on the subject, " Rebellion is a
plague; when broke out it has no bounds; fury triumphs,
and the devil is the postilion, and knows how and when
to throw his charioteer into asnare." Manyof the unfortunate
victimswhohad been entrappedinto the supportof
Prince Charles were imprisoned in York Castle for a
lengthyperiod. Some, after being there for a year, were
forwarded to Liverpool to be transported, and sixty-one
menand seven women, describedas " Jacobite captives,"
on passing through Leeds, were lodgedfor the night of
April the 23rd, 1747, in the Moot Hall.
The rebellion, however, threw the inhabitants into a
state of great alarm, many of them concealing their
12

178
ECHOES OF OLD LEEDS.
property,and fleeinginto the country. The army spoken
of wasthat ofMarshall Wade, andtheplace where it was
encamped afterwards adopted names for the different
localities having reference to the incident. Such are
Wade Lane and Camp Road. Opposite the end of
Merrion Street was Wade Hall, an Elizabethan stone
building,and here it is said Marshall Wade took up his
quarters during the encampment. This encampment is
worthy of notice as being the last pitchedupon English
ground for purposes of actualwarfare. Another fact connected
with the '45 Rebellionwas that the commander of
the Royal troops at Edinburgh was General Guest, a
native of Leeds, and in earlylife a cloth-dresser, which
was also theprofessionofhis father. The Jacobite cause
was in a great measure lost through Guest's defence of
Edinburgh Castle. In1748 Henry Ibbetson, of the Red
Hall,Leeds, was createda baronetfor his loyalty,and was
permitted to add to his family arms the bearing of the
Golden Fleece, that of Leeds,his native town.
The cruel " sport " of bull-baiting was not yet extinct.
We find the Leedsnewspapersin 1792 inveighingagainst
the continuance of such " inhumanamusements."
Leeds on various occasions provedits loyalty. At the
time when the invasion by the French was feared, the
volunteers of Leeds speedily enrolled themselves for
the country's defence. The next year (1795) the quota of
27 men for the Navy was raised without any difficulty,
and in 1798 a regiment was raised of persons who found
all their accoutrements and served withoutpay.
In 1742 the Rev. John Wesley came into the county,
the first place he preached at being Birstal. He also
preached at Beeston, Mirfield, and Leeds. The journal
kept by Wesley has the following entry: —" Not a year
before(May 29th, 1743),Ihad come to Leeds and found
no man caredfor the things ofGod; but a spark has now
fallenin this place also, and it will kindle a great flame.
Imet the infant society, about fifty in number, most of
them justified,and exhorted them to walk circumspectly.

ECHOES OF OLD LEEDS. 179
* * * Iwent to thegreat church,and was shown to the
minister's pew. Five clergymen were there, who a little
confounded me bymaking me take placeof my elders and
betters. They obliged me to help in administering the
Sacrament. Iassisted with eight more ministers, for
whom my soul was much drawn out in prayer, butI
dreadedtheir favour more than the stones at Sheffield."
Thechurch he founded at Leeds he experiencedconsiderabledifficultyinmanaging.
Inalettertohis brother, 1758,
he says: — " From time to timeIhave had more trouble
with the town of Leeds than with all the societies in
Yorkshire." The first Wesleyan Methodist Chapel was
erected in Leeds in 1750. In 1754 Count Zinzendorf, a
German gentleman,visited Pudseyon business connected
with the Moravian settlement sounded here about that
time, and which was completed about 1758.
Besides these,Leeds was visitedduring the last century
bythe philanthropist, Howard,in 1788, who,after visiting
the Infirmary, the Workhouse, and the Prison, expressed
himself pleased with the " two former."
In the year 17 14 the Parish Church first had the advantagesof
an organ.
In 1715 Thoresby'sgreat work, " Ducatus Leodiensis,"
was published. He was a great antiquarian collector,
and the volume has anappendixdevotedto the description
of his various collections. Three years later local literature
took a great stride in the establishment of the Leeds
Mercury, with its "freshest advices, Foreign and Domestick,"etc.
TheLeedsIntelligencercommencedin 1754.
In 1739 a remarkable frost took place at Leeds, the
Aire being so frozen that a sheep was roasted wholeupon
it on February the 22nd. At the timeof the breaking-up
ofthe iceit was yet 15 inches in thickness. The following
year was also remarkable for a great snowfall in May.
This year proved oneof greatscarcity, but the next (1741)
is mentioned as having " the most plentiful corn harvest
ever known." Exactly the same was said of 1743. In
June, 1772, hailstones the size of nutmegs descended in

180
ECHOES OF OLD LEEDS.
greatquantities,and did much damage. In 1777,an earthquake
shook the town.
The eighteenth century included for Leeds strange
stories of crime and death, butnone are noticeable except
that which occurred in 1748, and which savoursmore of
mediæval feudalismthan moderncivilisation. One Josiah
Fearne, a " domineering, villainous lord of the manor,"
entered the house of Thomas Grave, his tenant, and
inflicted four woundsupon him, of whichhe died. Fearne
was committed to York Castle for the murder, and condemned
to be hanged. After his sentence he sent his
lawyer to the widowof his victim offering her £20
a year
for life if she would sign a petitioninhis favour addressed
to the judge, and stating that that was quite sufficient
recompense for rendering her a widow, and her eight
children fatherless, but she declined the offer. A manuscript
written at the time says — " This, probably,is the
first Lord of the Manor of Leeds that made his exit on
the gallows, andGod grant thatit may be the last."
Throughoutthecountry theage was one of coin deterioration,
theclippingand sweatingofthe goldpieces, which
were 36s., 18s., and 6s. gd. A Yorkshire gang had its
chief members designated by the namesof distinguished
individuals. " King David " was the leader; he was
executed at York; and the "Duke of Edinburgh " was
one of his accomplices. A Leeds man was indicted for
issuinga bad " six-and-thirty," but was not, so far as is
known, convicted. In 1777 a press-gang visited York,
and the inhabitants were so enraged that they were with-
drawn;again,in 1780, they visited Leeds. Seizing one
Baldwin, a cropper, he was so depressed that he
John
took an earlyopportunityofhanginghimself.
The improvementsof the period include, in additionto
the widening of streets and the taking down of old
buildings,the wideningof Leeds Bridge,so as to admit
the passing of carriages. During the alteration an accident
took place, and two men were killed. In 1753 the
Corporation took steps towards great improvements,

ECHOES OF OLD LEEDS. 181
seeking to obtain aBillfor " erecting a courtof conscience
for the recoveryofsmalldebtswithinthe boroughofLeeds,
and for making a commonsewer, and for paving, cleansing,
and enlightening the said town ofLeeds." In 1755
the Act of Parliament was passed " for enlightening the
streets and lanes, and regulating the pavement of the
town of Leeds." This "enlightening " was by oil-lamps,
which were retained until 1783, when a gas company had
its inauguration by Act of Parliament. The first street
to be " enlightened " by the oil-lamps was New Street,
and it was the first thoroughfare in Leeds to which the
name of street was given. The Mixed Cloth Hall was
erected in 1758 by subscriptions. It had, after a few
alterations, 1,780 freehold stalls, each with the name of
the occupying clothier affixed. Up to a comparatively
recent period the market was opened for an hour and a
quarter only, and its close was heralded by the ringingof
a bell,after which, on being sounded a second time, any
merchant who remainedwas fined five shillings.
In 1760 the improvement of Leeds Bridge was again
under discussion, an Act that year being obtained for
finishing the repairs begun about thirty years before.
This Act was to enable the Corporation to raise money
for the purchasingand takingdownof the buildings which
obstructed " the passage to and over the said bridge."
In 1768 the foundation stone of the old Leeds General
Infirmary was laid. The building was originally of two
storeys. It speedily assumed the position it has at the
present day, as one of the best surgical schools in the
United Kingdom. About the same time also was commenced
the splendid LeedsLibrary.
The trade communication of the district was largely
increased by the Leeds andLiverpoolCanal, which, begun
in 1770, was not complete until 1816. Joining theAire at
Leeds,and the Aire and Calder Canal, a direct route was
thus opened up to Hull,and thence to numerous other
places ofimportanceto the trade of Leeds. In 1771 were
opened both the Infirmary, and the theatre in Hunslet

182
ECHOES OF OLD LEEDS.
Lane. In1776 the ancient Market Cross gave place to
the moremodern erection.
In 1788 numerous meetings were held and many
measures taken for the protection of the cloth and wool
trades;also for theabolitionofslaveryand generalreform.
The '90 Act for the better lighting of the town also
made provisionfor the supplying of water.
This century saw the birth and deathof many notabilities
of Leeds and the vicinity. In 1724 was born John
Smeaton, the engineer,best known for the erection ofthe
Eddystone Lighthouse. Among the more local works
which testify to his ability, the making navigableof the
Calder is one.
In 1733 James Scott,D.D.,was born at Leeds; he was
a descendant of the benefactor Harrison, and by his
eloquence became so famous that wherever he preached
every grade of society flocked to hear him. He was for a
short time lecturer of St. John's, Leeds, and of Trinity
Church.
The Kitchingham family, of Allerton Hall, had connected
with their burials several curious observances,
which can be bestimagined from a briefdescription of the
ceremonies at the obsequiesof RobertKitchingham, who
died in 1716, aged 100 years. He ordereda custom to be
observed that had been carriedout for four hundred years,
namely,the bearing of the body from the hall by torchlight.
His ancestors had their vaultinSt.Peter's,Leeds,
but he ordered his body to be borne by torchlight to
Chapel-Allerton. This was done on the 16th May, 100
torches being carried. The room where the bodylay in
statewas draped with black; the neighbouringgentry as
pall-bearers wore black scarves, and fifty pounds was distributed
amongst the poor in the chapel yard at the
interment. His wife,Mary,received burial in the same
manner. She was the sister of the Henry Robinson,
Vicar of Leeds, who swam the Aire to escape the Parliamentary
besiegers of Leeds, and here (Allerton Hall) he
lay concealedfor some time.

ECHOES OF OLD LEEDS.
Late in the century (about 1760) flourished the wellknown
painter,Benjamin Wilson, a native of Leeds. A
celebratedpaintingofhis, the raisingofJairus's daughter,
is nowin the GeneralInfirmary, and was a gift from the
accomplished artist. He is alsoknown for his marvellous
imitations of Rembrandt'setchings, which were so perfect
that they are stated to have perplexed and deceived the
authorities of his day on the subject. Another notable
native of Leeds who died during the period was Thomas
Hudson,who,from being a Governmentclerk, became by
a bequest the possessor of a large fortune, which he
invested in South Sea Shares, and upon the bursting of
that bubble became a maniac, and leaving his pleasant
seat in Staffordshire, where just before the final catastrophe
he had buried his wife, roamed as a homeless
beggar, calling himself "Tom of Ten Thousand," and
limping about on a crutch in wretchedness and misery.
This is merely one instance among many of the evil
wrought by that infamous swindle.
A humorous incident of the timewas the advertising by
Major Bradley,in 1769, that his wifehad left him for the
fourteenth time.
Among other remarkableindividualsmay be mentioned
Isabella Cryer, a person who is said to have weighed 40
stones. She measured three yards round, and at her
death, in 1774, was borne to the grave by ten men.
Another character whichaffords speculationto thecurious,
was an old huntsman, Amos Street, who died in 1774,
and was buried inBirstalChurchyard,where thefollowing
epitaphis to be seen: —
This is to the memory of old Amos
Who was whenalive for hunting famous;
But now his chases are all o'er,
And here he's earthed,ofyears four score.
Upon this tomb he's oftensat
And tried to read his epitaph;
And thou who dost so at this moment
Shall ere long,like him, be dormant.
183

CHAPTER xxvii.
THE BISHOP BLAIZE FESTIVAL.
Then followeth good sir Blaize, whodoth a waxen Candel give,
Andholy water to his men, whereby they safelylive.
I,divers Barrels ofthave seene, drawn out of water cleare,
Through one small blessed bone ofthis same holy Martyr heare,
And carried thence to other townes and cities farre away,
Each superstition dothrequire such earnest kinde ofplay.
PV^fJi?%HE Armenia. Amongst other qualifications he was
name of St. Blaize, or Blase, or Blasins, is
Bpv-i chiefly known in the woollenmanufacturing
l|#A\ districts from the fact of his having been the
%3m inventor of the old methodof wool-combing.
He lived during the earlypart of the fourth
century, and was the Bishop of Sebaste, in
celebrated for the power he exhibited in relieving those
who were suffering from sickness or disease. The medicine
he resorted to was prayer, and it is said that his
supplications to the Almighty were always answeredby
favourable results. Tradition relates that he was once
taken from his solitudeand putin prison,andwhilst there
relieved,through the medium of prayer,a youth who had
a fish-bone stuck inhis throat. He appears to have been
especially successful in curing complaints of the throat.
The Greeks were in the habit of imploring the aid of St.
Blaize for the purposeofrelieving stoppagesin the throat.
So efficacious was his power supposed to be for affections
of this part that, it is related, no less a personage than
Ætius, an Ancient Greek physician, used to give to his

THE BISHOP BLAIZE FESTIVAL. 185
patients,whohad anything in their throats, the following
recipe: — " Hold the diseased party by the throat and
pronounce these words, — Blase, the martyr, and servant
ofJesus Christ,commands thee to pass up or down."
At the heading of this chapter will be found some
curious lines bearing on the power the martyr's relic
was supposed to possess.
According to Brand, a certain cure for toothache,and
for diseased cattle, was the offering of candles to this
saint. The " Golden Legend " has it that the aid of
St. Blaize was once sought by a woman whoseswinehad
been carried off by a wolf. Through the influence of the
saint the wolf brought the swineback to its owner,whereupon
the woman greatlyrejoiced, and killing the swine
offered its head and feet, togetherwith bread and a candle
to her helper. "And he thanked God, and ate thereof;
and he sayd to her, that every yere she sholde offre inhis
chirche a chandell. And she dyd all herlyf, and she had
moche grete prosperyte. And knowe thou thatto thee,
andto all them thatso shaldo,shal wellhappento them."
Traditionsays thatthe Bishop lived the life of a hermit
and took up his abode in a cave, his only companions
being wild beasts, which daily visited him and which so
muchrespected his sanctity that " if it happened that they
came while he was at prayer they did not interrupt him,
but waitedtill he had ended, and never departedwithout
his benediction." He treated the animals with great
kindness, and relieved theirphysical suffering.
It was formerly the custom to commemorate the name
of St. Blaize in many parts of England, on certain days
set apart for that purpose, by lighting fires in elevated
situations, and making merry in other ways. But it is
with the festivities of our own county that wehave here
to deal.
All the principal towns in the West Riding have at
different times taken part in celebrating his memory,
Bradford, Leeds, Wakefield, and Halifax in particular.
Bradford, being the great woollenmanufacturingcentre,

186
THE BISHOP BLAIZE FESTIVAL.
has always taken the leadin the rejoicings, whichusually
occurred every seven years. In this town a statue is
erected to his memoryat the entrance to the Exchange.
Few demonstrations have been more jubilant, more
imposing, and more unique than the celebration which
occurred on the 3rd February, 1825. On this day every
inhabitantofthe townindulgedin a holiday,and thestreets
presented a thronged and brilliant appearance. The
chief promoter of the demonstration was Mr. Matthew
Thompson. The place of meeting of those who were to
take part in the ceremony was in Westgate. The procession
started from the noted hostelry called the Bull's
Head. So great was the interest taken in the movement
that it is said that for twenty miles round the town all the
vehicles had been taken beforehand, and every one, both
employer and employe, were alike full of enthusiasm.
The number who took part in the proceedings was as
follows: — 24 woolstaplers,38 spinnersand manufacturers,
6 merchants, 56 apprenticesandmasters' sons, 160 woolsorters,
30 combmakers, 470 woolcombers,and 40 dyers.
These moved in the under-mentionedorder: —
Herald bearing a flag.
Woolstaplers on horseback, each horse caparisoned with a fleece.
Worsted Spinners and Manufacturers on horseback, in
white stuff waistcoats, with each a sliver over the
shoulder, and a white stuffsash;the horses' necks
covered with nets made of thick yarn.
Merchants on horseback, with coloured sashes.
Three Guards. Masters' Colours. Three Guards.
Apprentices and Masters' Sons on horseback, with
ornamented caps, scarlet stuff coats, white stuff
waistcoats, and blue pantaloons.
Bradford and Keighley Bands. ,
Macebearer on foot.
Six Guards. King. Queen. Six Guards.
Guards. Jason. Princess Medea. Guards.
Bishop's Chaplain.
BISHOP BLAIZE
Shepherd and Shepherdess,
Shepherd Swains.

THE BISHOP BLAIZE FESTIVAL. 187
Woolsorters on horseback, with ornamented caps, and
various coloured slivers.
Combmakers.
Charcoal Burners.
Band.
Woolcombers, with wool wigs, &c.
Band.
Dyers, with red cockades, blue aprons, and crossed
slivers of red and blue.
At ten o'clock everything was in readiness for the
pageantry to commence. At these celebrations it was
always the custom to repeat a number of lines, which
run as follows: —
Hail to the day whose kind auspiciousrays
Deign'd first to smile on famous Bishop Blaize!
To the great author of our combing trade
This day's devoted,and due honors paid;
To him whose fame thro' Britain's isle resounds,
To him whose goodness to the poor abounds;
Long shall his name inBritish annals shine,
And grateful ages offer at his shrine!
By this, our trade, are thousands daily fed,
By it supplied with means to earn their bread,
In various forms our tradeits work imparts,
In different methods and by different arts,
Preserves from starving indigents distress'd,
As combers, spinners,weavers, and therest.
We boast no gems, or costly garments vain,
Borrowed from India or the coast of Spain;
Our native soil with woolour trade supplies,
While foreign broil our common good annoys,
Our country's product all our art employs:
Our fleecy flocks abound in everyvale,
Our bleatinglambs proclaim the joyful tale.
Solet not Spain with us attempt to vie,
Nor India's wealth pretendto soar sohigh;
Nor Jason pridehim in his Colchian spoil;
By hardships gain'd andenterprising toil :
Since Britons all with easeattain theprize,
And everyhill resounds withgolden cries,
To celebrate our founder's great renown
Our shepherd andour shepherdess we crown;
For England's commerce, and for George'ssway
Eachloyalsubject gave aloud " Huzza! Huzza ! '

188
THE BISHOP BLAIZE FESTIVAL.
Mr. Richard Fawcett, who rode at the head of the
Spinners, had the duty given to him of delivering the
above previous to the procession moving.
It is impossible to form anything like an adequate idea
of the excitement and admiration which this grand
pageantry would cause as it moved along the principal
streets of the town, but it was greeted wherever it went
by the utmost enthusiasm from the immense number of
spectators. The pageantry has been described in the
local papersin the following words: — "The ornaments of
the spinners and manufacturers had a neat and even
elegant appearance, from the delicate and glossy whiteness
of the finely-combed wool which they wore. The
apprentices and masters' sons,however, formed the most
showy part of the procession, their caps being richly
adorned with ostrich feathers, flowers, and knots of
various colouredyarn, and their stuff garments being of
the gayest colours; some of these dresses were very
costly, from the profusion of their decorations. The
shepherd, shepherdess, and swains were attired in light
green. The woolsorters, from their number and the
height of their plumes of feathers, which were for the
most part of different colours and formed in the shape of
fleur-de-lis ,had a dashingappearance. The combmakers
carried before them the instruments here so much celebrated,
raised on standards, together with goldenfleeces,
rams' heads with gildedhorns, and other emblems. The
combers lookedbothneat andcomfortable intheir flowing
wigs of well-combedwool; and the garb of the dyers was
quite professional. Several well-painted flags were displayed,one
ofwhich representedon one side the venerable
Bishop in full robes, and on the other a shepherd and
shepherdess under a tree. Another had a painting of
Medea giving up the golden fleece to Jason ; a third had
a portraitof theKing; and a fourth appearedto belongto
some association in the trade." We maymention that
BishopBlaize was represented by one John Smith, who
had on previous occasions taken this character. He is

THE BISHOP BLAIZE FESTIVAL. 189
said to have been " a personageof verybecoming gravity."
At several places along the route the verses we have
given above were repeated by AldermanThompson, who
was then but a boy of five years, and who eventually
became M.P. for Bradford; and it is said that the spectators
were greatly pleased at the manner in which he
recited the lines. At one o'clock the processionpartook
of refreshment, which consisted of sandwiches and ale, in
a field near to Mr. Fawcett's factory. At three o'clock
the pageantry againmoved off, and did not disperse until
five o'clock in the afternoon. The rejoicings were continued
in the evening by a sumptuous dinner being
provided at the Court House, which was attended by the
spinners, manufacturers,and merchants. The apprentices
and masters' sons also dined togetherat the Sun Inn. At
the former dinner were present a number of very influential
gentlemen, and lengthy speeches were made
suitable to the occasion. Nor did the festivities end on
this day,for a " StuffBall" was given at theCourt House
on the followingevening, which was attended by a large
number ofladiesand gentlemenof the higher class.
Other attempts have been made to organise festivals
similar to the above, especially in 1833, Dut without
success. With the advance of time improvements were
made in woolcombing; and machinery eventuallyperformed
the work which had been done by hand, and the
employment of the handcombers was to a great extent at
an end.
According to Ribadencia, St. Blaize met with a strange
end. He says: — " St. Blaize was scourged, and seven
holy women anointed themselves with his blood; whereupon
their flesh was combed with iron combs, and their
wounds ran nothingbut milk; their flesh was whiter than
snow;angels came visibly and healed their wounds as
fast as they weremade; and they wereput into the fire,
which would not consume them, wherefore they were
ordered to be beheaded,and were beheaded accordingly.
Then St. Blaize was ordered to be drowned in the lake,

190
THE BISHOP BLAIZE FESTIVAL.
but he walkedon the water,sat downon it in the middle,
and invited the infidelsto asitting; whereuponthreescore
and eight who tried the experiment were drowned, and
St. Blaize walked back to be beheaded."
The generally-accepted accounts of the martyr's end
state that, by the order of Licinius, in the year 316,he
was cruelly tortured with iron combsuntil he expired.

?S^_icH_J
AwM
Chapter XXVIII.
THE PRESS-GANG IN YORKSHIRE.
than half a century has rolled away
"; ISmjpI since the cruelties of the press-gang were in
I(tW*I operation; but there are some yet livingwho
\s^3g&^ can testify to the inhuman practices of those
i^^^
t
who wereemployed for the purpose of com-
pellingmen to leave their peaceful homes to fight
for what was calledthe " glory " of their country.
The volunteer movement has now excluded the probability
of similar occurrences as we are about to relate
everhappeningagain;but it is well to remember that
there was a time when the mere mention of the pressgang
was sufficient to cast gloom in many an otherwise
happy household. It was well known that those who
were the strongest, and those to whom the family had to
lookfor their daily bread, were liable at any moment to
be seized by the unmerciful ruffians who were engagedto
keep up a supply of able-bodied men for the army and
navy. It was chiefly in the time of GeorgeIII.,when
our brave countrymen'sblood was being spilt asifit were
valuelessin the terrible French wars, that these human
bloodhounds were engagedin their desperateoccupation.

192
THE PRESS-GANG IN YORKSHIRE.
The districtswhich suffered most were, of course,those
lying near the sea coast, but inroads were often made
right into the heart of the country, and the men who
were fit for active service were wrenched from all that
was near and dear to them. Sons that would gladlyhave
remained at the plough and worked to create the wealth
of the land, against their will had to leave their homes
and those who were dependent upon them for support, to
find apainful deathon a battle-field. The motherhad to
bid adieu for ever to her onlychild, to whom she looked
for aid in her old age. The young husband had to tear
himself away from his home and those he loved, to go to
fight,andif he everdidreturn at all it would probablybe
as a cripple for life,andthus he wouldbecome a burdento
thosehehad hoped to work for and make happy. Almost
everyhouseholdin ourboastedlandoflibertywas rendered
unhappy at the cost of the English victories. Various
other means were employedfor obtaining men to fill the
ranks of the army, but none were so unnatural as the
proceedings of the press-gang. So awe-inspiring were
these men that we read of a town on the east coast
becoming nearly deserted when it was rumoured that a
press-gang was to be quartered there. The magistrates,
however, afterconsiderablepersuasion,enticed the townspeople
back by obtaining a hundred volunteers who
promised to go to the seat of war if the rest of the
inhabitants wereleft unmolested, and to this proposal the
Admiralty agreed.
Hull, being the chief Yorkshire port on the coast, was
infestedwiththe press-gangtoanalmostunendurablestate,
and riots wereconstantly takingplaceinthe streets, which
sometimes resulted in loss of life. In the river Humber
two warships weregenerallystationedduringthe wars with
the French; one was laidoff the Garrison and called the
Inner Guardship,and the other,named the Outer Guardship,
was moored in the channel a few miles down the
river at Whitebooth Roads. As ships entered the port
most of themwereboarded and everypressable man taken

THE PRESS GANG IN YORKSHIRE. 193
away. In the town a dozen men, under the charge of a
couple of officers, were active, day and night, entrapping
any sailors they chanced to meet in the streets or publichouses.
Of course the tars objected to their operations,
and sharp fights often took place.
A ship called the Sarah and Elizabeth, of Hull,bound
from Davis Straits to this port, was attackedoff St. Abb's
Head, on the igth July, I7g6, by a frigate named the
Aurora, with the intention of impressing the men. The
poor fellows, whohad braved the cold of the stern north,
and doubtless hoped ere long to join their families and
enjoy the pleasure of rest after hard and honest labour,
greatly to their dismay saw the well-armed men of the
Aurora makingfor their ship. Not feeling equal to an
engagementthe sailorssought refugebeneath the hatches,
which they fastened down. This afforded only slight
protection, for the inhuman marines forced open the
hatches and fired amongst the men, wounding three and
killing a carpenter named Edward Bogg. The greater
partofthe crew were impressed and sent to the Nore, and
the Sarah and Elizabethwas brought to this port by the
men belonging to the Aurora. It is satisfactory to find
that although the captain of the royal ship failed in a
most inhumanmanner inhis duty, the people ofHull did
not shrink from doing theirs. At an inquest it was
declared that Captain Essington and part of the crew of
the Aurora were guilty of the wilful murder of Edward
Bogg. Mr. Pease, banker, went to London, to obtain a
properinvestigation of the case, but before steps could be
taken for conviction the Admiraltyhad promoted Captain
Essingtonto a seventy-four gun ship,and despatchedhim
to the East Indies. He did not return to England for
many years,and we believe no further action was taken
in the matter. Very frequently the inhabitants of the
town took the part of those whowere impressed to such
an extent that those who wereengagedin the press-gang
weregladto make their escape. A fearful riot took place
in Hull, in July, 1815. From particulars furnished by
13

194
THE PRESS-GANG IN YORKSHIRE.
Mr. Thompson we learn that on this occasion a young
sailor was impressed whohad onlyjust come ashore after
a voyage up the Baltic. He contrived to release himself
from them, and sought refuge by flight, the press-men
following him. This occurred about six o'clock in the
evening, at the time a large body of excavators were
employed in repairing the basin of one of the docks.
Through this body the sailor passed, presently followed
by the gang. The navvies,however,intercepted the progress
of the harpies,and a regular fight ensued, during
which one of the gang had his head laid open by a blow
from a spade, fiercely levelled at him by one of the
navvies. This was a signal for a generalriot, and being
the hour when the workmen were leaving off toil for the
day, the gatheringsoon became numerous, and arming
themselves with bludgeons, or any other weapons that
offered themselves, the whole body bent their wayto the
rendezvous, determined to liberate the poor souls that
were confined within until they couldbe drafted on board
the tender then lying in the Humber, and with which to
convey them to the respectivewar ships. The impressed
men wereliberated from the house,and it was wreckedby
the mob. One manclimbed the flagstaff and tore down
the ensign, which he waved triumphantlyas he clung to
the top of the staff from which it had been flying. The
Mayor was sent for, and came and made an attempt to
read the Riot Act. But when he mounted the chair to
perform his task he was pulled down by the gold chain
that hung round his neck. The mob continued their work
of destruction. A naval officer next menaced the crowd,
and took a position on a heap of ruined furniture to
read the Act. He drew a brace of pistols from his
pocket, andintimated that if anyone threw a stone at him
he would fire at the individual. He had no sooner said
the words than a well-aimed stone laid him senseless on
the floor. Until a late hour the mobremained mastersof
the ground,but eventuallythey weredispersed.
The head-quarters of the press-gang was the public-

THE PRESS-GANG IN YORKSHIRE.
195
house called the Ship of Glory, situate inChurch Lane.
On several occasions this house was stormed by the
justly-infuriated townspeople, and in the year 1803 the
building was nearly destroyed.
Women were often prominent figures at these riots.
In 1811, a man named Jem White, of Hull, had to
defend himself at his lodgings in West Street with his
cutlass. He stationedhimself at the top of the stairs and
kept at bay all comers until a number of soldiers came
and took him away to the war-ship. White was attacked
chiefly by women on account of giving information that
led to sailorsbeing impressed. We learn thatonanother
occasion a coach was stopped and a sailor draggedfrom
it by the press-gang near the Bull's Head, on the
BeverleyRoad, and that a numberof womenmaking hay
in a field, hearingthe fellow'scries, rushed to the rescue,
and by the aid of their forks made the gangbeata hasty
retreat withouttheir victim.
In I7g8 the man-of-war ships Nonsuch and Redoubt,
which were stationed in the Humber, suffered a defeat
when attackinga Greenlandwhaler called the Blenheim.
The men belonging to the war-ships, noticing the whaler
comingup the river, sent two or three well-armedboats'
crews to impress the sailors, but the Blenheim's crew
provedmore than a match for the men of the navy, and
with large knives and spears prevented them from reachingthe
deck. A sloopof war namedthe Nautilus was in
the roads at the same time, and the officer in charge
seeing the King's men were suffering a defeat, sent a
number of his men to their assistance, and shots were
fired at the Blenheim to bring her to, but withoutavail.
The crew of the whaler moved their ship to the harbour
entrance, and unfortunately went aground,to the advantage
of the men-of-war. A severe struggle ensued, but
the men from the warships suffered the most. We learn
that two of their crew were wounded so severely that they
died. One of the men calledBelllost three of his fingers
in trying to board the whaler. He settled down to live

196
THE PRESS-GANG IN YORKSHIRE.
in the town, and was known as " Three-fingeredJack."
None of the Blenheim's crew were wounded.
Such are a few of the incidents of the press-gang, and
in perusing the annals of our country, which contain
such graphic pictures of great and glorious victories
achieved by patriotic sons on blood-stained battle-fields,
we should not forget the means that were resortedto in
obtainingthem, and the misery which was suffered by the
impressed and those who were dependentupon them for
their dailybread.

PAGE.
Agricola 83
Ainsworth, W. Harrison 94
Aire,river ... 20,26, 56. 108,109
Aire and Calder Canal ... ... 181
Alchfrid, see "Alfred"
AlexanderIII.,of Scotland ... 63
Alfred, King of Northumbria ... I
Viceroy of Deira 2
Leaves for Ireland ... ... 3
His return,and election to the
throne of Northumbria ... 3
Marries Kyneburga, daughter
of Penda ... ... ... 4
His son Osred ... ... ... 4
Death of Alfred 5
INDEX.
Inscription in Little Drifneld
" Church to the memory " of ... 5
Als free makIthee 13
Alured's " LifeofSt.John ofBeverley" 16
Amias, Tohn
128
At Douay 128
Leaves for England 128
Taken prisoner andcondemned
to death at York
128
Execution of 128
Dr.Champneyon
128
Angles,The 19
Anlaff, the Dane 85
Aram, Eugene 154
Birth of 154
Schoolmaster of Gowthwaite
Hall 155
His Poem on "The surpassing
beauties of StudleyPark"... 154
Leaves Knaresborough and appointed
Usher of the Free
School. Lynn 156
Tried atYork for the murder of
Daniel Clarke 157
Hungat York 161
His body exposed in KnaresboroughForest
161
Ardsley,East
167
Armlev,Giant's Hill at 21
Arran,Lord,see " Hamilton,Dukeof "
Arundel, Earl of 77."G
Ashburn, Major 134
Aske,Robert,andthe "Pilgrimage
of Grace"
28, 133
Asketal's " Life ofSt. TohnofBeverley" 16
Aspall,Sir Robert 53
*3A
PAGE.
Athelstane, King 85,86
At Beverley 10
Levels York Castle
Atkinson,John
85
Austwick,
176
Lieutenant 134. 135, 137
Auty, Daniel, imprisonment of, in
York Castle ... ... ... 94
Baldwin, John ... 180
Baring-Gould's,Rev. S.T " Yorkshire
Oddities," quoted ... 126, 127, 129
Barnaby's, Drunken, Doggerel on
John Bartendale ... ... 92
Barstow, Thomas ... ... ... Bartendale,
176
John, hungnearKnavesmire
92
Doggerelon,byDrunkenBarnaby 92
Barten-on-Humber 143
Battle Abbey, right of sanctuary
invested on the Abbot of, by
William the Conqueror ... 140
Beaulay, Hugo 69
Murder of Lord Elland by ... 70
MarriesLady Elland ... ... 70
Death of
Beaumont,
70
Adam 73, 74, 75
SirArthur 134
Sir Robert 71, 72
Lady
Bede,
73
Venerable ... 8, 13, 19, 20, 85
His " Lifeof S.JohnofBeverley" 16
Benedict, the Jew ... ... ... 31
Murderof hiswidow and children 31
Beeston 178
Bernica ... ... ... ... 2
Beverley 95, 166
Minster 13, 122, 123
Burialof HenryPercy,fourth
Earlof Northumberland, in 122
ThePercy Chapelin ... 122
PercyShrine 123
Themisereres in 123
Sanctuaryat ... ... ... r3g
Rightof,grantedbyAthelstane 141
Abstract from the Register
on 142, 143
Birstal 178
EpitaphonAmos Street in the
churchyard 183
Blackburn, Cornet
Blackett,
94
Sir Edward 154

198
PAGE.
Black-faced Clifford, see " De Clifford,
John "
Blaize Festival, The Bishop ... 184
Thecelebration at Bradford ,.. 186
Ribadencia on St.Blaize 189, 190
Bogg, Edward -*93
Bolingbroke,Henry, see " Dukeof
Lancaster "
Bolton 45'47. 48,49
Abbey:itshistoryand traditions 45
Canons of,celebrated tor their
studies in alchemy, astronomy,&c
5*16l
Burial ofHenry,LordClifford, at 62
Bondgate 154
Bordeaux, Richardof 76
Bardington,Eliza 91
Borwick,William 92
Bosa, Archbishop of York 9
Bower's "Chronicle," quoted ... 81
Bowes, William, Mayor of York,
orders the Mystery Plays to
be actedin thestreets of York 37
Bradford 185
TheBull's Head at 186
Westgate ... 186
BraytonBurgh 131
INDEX.
Breretons, of Lancashire 73
Bretagne, War of
118
Bridgwater,Dr., on " Catholic Persecution
in Yorkshire" ... 127
Brighouse 74
Cromwel-bottom Wood ... 74
Brigantes,The
18, 83
Brunanburgh,battle of n
Burdswald ... ... ... ... 84
Burnsall 154
Rev.Mr. Alcock,of 154
Burton, North 9iI42
South 9
Butler's, Alban, " Lives of the
Saints," quoted ... ... 16
Byron, Lord 134
Calais 76
Camden, quoted 130, 143
Carlisle 84
Cateret, Sir Hugh 134
Major 134
Catholic Persecution ... ... 124
William Hart 127,128
John Amias 128,129
RobertDalby ... _ ... ... 128
Catholics, Roman, sufferingsof, in
thereign of QueenElizabeth 124
Cawthorn 75
Camel, Sir John Lockwood
overtaken at 75
CanonHall 75
Challoner's, Bishop, " Missionary
Priests," quoted 129
Champney,Dr., on the sufferings
of John Amias 128
Charles II 95
Chester, MysteryPlays at 44
Clarke,Daniel ... 93, 155, 156, 157
Disappearance of ... ... 156
His body found in St. Robert
Cave 157
PAGE.
Eugene Aram, hung for the
murder of
16i
Clavering,Captain *34
Clifford, Black-faced 52
Henry(ShepherdLord) ... 58
Lord 105, 106,107
Cliffords, The 51
Conisbrough,Hengist,slain at ... 19
Cookson, Alderman,of Leeds ... 176
Cooper's,B.B., " Life of Sir Astley
Cooper," quoted ... 162,163
Cottingham 166
Cottrell, Colonel 133
Coventry 7&
Craven
46,58
CrosslandHall, seat of Sir Robert
Beaumont 7*. 72
Cromwell, Oliver 114
115,116, 134, 135. I36.137
Cryer,Isabella it>3
Cumberland, Henry,first Earl of... 62
Dalby,Robert,sent from Donay to
Englandto joinArmas ... 128
Execution ofat York ... 128,129
Darcy, Lord 94
DavidI.of Scotland 9***
His Army 9^
Crosses the Tweed 99
Marches to York and Northallerton
99
At the Battle of the Standard.. 99
De Clifford,John .Blackfaced Clifford
_ ... 52,59
Commands the Lancastrians'
Army at Towton 56
LadyClifford leavesSkiptonfor
Londesborough 60
Valorously sights at Flodden
Field 62
Death of 62
Thomas 52
Deira 2
Deira-field,see " Driffield "
Del Brig,A., Mystery Plays performed
at his doorin York... 37
Derby 177
Derby, Lord 114
Charlotte, Countess of
Dernfield,
114
see " Driffield "
De Vesci,Broomfletes, Barons ... 59
De Viponts,Ancestors of the Cliffords
of Skipton 58
Devon,Earl of 94
Devonshire,Earl of 105, 112
Dewsbury,Saxonremains at ... 21
Diconson, Roger, condemned to
death for celebratingmass in
his house 129
Digby, Sir John
134. *35
Dittondale or Dittingdale 56
Doncaster 135
" Doomsday Book," quoted 12,19, 21, 27
Douay 127, 128
Driffield, anciently Deira-sield and
Derrisield ... ... ... 5
King Alfred buried in the
Church of 7

INDEX. 199
PAGE.
Flamborough,landing of KingIda
at i
Flanders " 60
Flint Castle, Richard II.,conveyed
to 78
Flodden Field, Battle of 62
Folcard's " Life of St. John of *
Beverley "
PAGE.
Drake's "Life of St. John of
Beverley
16
"
16
Durham 118,119
PlagueofJolly Raut in ... 29
Robert, Earl of Northumberland,
at 86
Eadwine,King 1
Eadwingsburgh,see " Edinburgh "
Ealfride, see " Alfred, King of
Northumbria "
Eata,Bishopof Hexham 8
Ebberston 6
Eboracum, see " York "
Ecgfrid, Kingof Northumbria ... 2
Eden, River 2
Edinburgh(Eadwinsburg)... 2,165, 178
Castle 178
Edward theConfessor
69, 70
Edward 111 69,70,88
With 50,000menat York ... 88
His excursion to Scotland ... 88
Marries Philippaof Hainhault. 88
Queen Philippa'sArmyat York 89
Defeats the Scotch at Neville's
Cross 89
Edward IV 10S
At the Battle of Towton ... 108
Edward VI 125
Egbert's, Archbishop, Library at
St. Peter's, York, destroyed
by fire ... ... ... ... 87
Elfer-tau, now Northallerton ... 99
Elfred, see "Alfred, King of
Northumbria"
Elland, town of ... ... ■"- 75
Elland Hall 73
"Elland Miln" 74
Elland Family 69
SirJohn 7°
Ballad on
70, 71
His marriages 71
Death of 74
His son, Sir John 74
Ellands, Tragic Story of 69
Embsay, early home of Bolton
Abbey 46
Removalfrom, to Bolton ... 49
Ethelfrith, " Kingof Northumbria... 2
EugeneAram:" byBulwer,Lord
Lytton,quoted
160,161
Exeter,Duke of 105,106,111
At the Battle of Wakesield ... 105
Fabyan's " Chronicle,"quoted ... 80
Fairfax Charles "7
Major "7
Lord H4. "6
Lord, of Gilling 151
Sir Thomas "7
Falconberg, Lord 109. no
Neville.Lord 5°
Fall and Death of Richard II. ... 7°
Fawcett,Richard
188,189
Fearne, Josiah
180
Committal to York Castle for
the Murder of Thomas Grave 180
Ferrybridge
Io8
Filey
6
Forth,river ... 2
Foss,river ... ... 86
Fountains Abbey 45
Francis, Thomas,of Pullan, Norfolk 143
Freed Stool,see " Fridstol"
Fridstol 141. 142, H5
Fulford 87
Fuller 13
Life ofSt. John of Beverley ... 16
Furness Abbey 45
Flight of Adam Beaumont,
Lockwood, and Quarmby, to 74
Gaunt, John of,Duke ofLancaster 76, 77
Gent's, Thomas, "Life of St. John
of Beverley" ... ... ... 16
Ghent, Robert Fitz-RichardGilbert
of 86,87
Gilling 151
Gipton, Saxonremains at 21
Gloucester, Dukeof 76
Sent to Calais 76
Godwin, quoted 13
Gowthwaite Hall,Ramsgill ... 155
Grange's " Battles and Battle-fields
of Yorkshire" m
Grenville,Randel de 32
Grey,Richard Lord 133
Grimston 109
Guest, General ... 178
Commands the Troopsat Edinburgin
the Rebellion of '45--- 178
Gyseburn. John, Mystery Plays
performed at his door in York 37
Hagulstadt,see " Hexham "
Halifax 185
Visited with the Plague of
Jolly Raut 29
Hall, Sir David 105
Hall's " Chronicle," quoted ... 53, 54
Hallam's "Constitutional History
ofEngland," quoted 126
Hamilton,Duke of(Lord Arran)... 148
Hambleton Haugh 131
Hardynge's " Chronicle" quoted... 22
Harpham, birth of St. John of
Beverley at 8
John of succeeds Bosa as Arch-
bishopof York 9
Harpham, Robert, Mystery Plays
performedathisdoor inYork 37
Harsthead - cum - Clifton, Saxon
remains at ... 21
Hartlepool, St. Hilda, Abbess of
Whitby and
20
Hart, William 127
Sufferings of, during the
Catholic Persecution 127
Taken prisoner and sent to
■■■ York Castle 127

200
PAGE.
Laid on a hurdle and dragged
to the scaffold 127
Appeal to Revs. Bunny and
Pace 128
Death of 128
Hastings, Battle of 85
Hawse, Sir Richard 133
Hayes, Middlesex 156
Helmsley 148
Castle 151
Hengist 9
Slain at Conisbrough 19
Henry HI 63,68
Margaret, daughterof ... ... 63
How he kept Christmas at
York in 1252 63
Henry IV 78,79
Seealso " Bolingbroke "
Henry, Duke of Lancaster
HenryVI 102, 103, 109
Henry VII 61,118,123
At York 89
HenryVIII
133,140
Hereford, Henry Bolingbroke,
Duke of 76, 77
Hertfordshire— King'sLangley ... 80
Hessle 166
HesseyMoor 114, 115
Hewison,Edward, hungat York... 90
Hexham,ancientlyHagulstadt ... 8
Eata, Bishop of ... 8
SanctuaryChair at ... ... 143
Hilarius, supposed tohave been the
first to introduce Mystery
PlaysinEngland 36
Hilda, Abbess of Hartlepool and
Whitby Abbeys 8
Oswy places his daughter,
Elfleda, under herguardianship
... ... 20
Holbeck, gift of the chapel of, to
York Priory ... ... ... 22
Holderness, Thomas ... ... 5
Holinshed's " Chronicle," quoted... 55
Horsfall, William, murder of, by
the Luddite rioters ... ... 173
Houseman,Robert 155, 156, 157, 158, 161
Tried at York for the murder
ofD.Clarke 157
His evidence against Eugene
Aram 158
How King Henry III.kept Christmasat
York in 1252 63
Howden... r3i
HowleyHall ... 73
Huddersfield, Luddite riots... 170, 173
Murder of Mr.Horsfall at ... 173
Hudson, Thomas 183
Hull 165, 166,168, 181
Bull's Head,BeverleyRoad ... 195
Charles Street 168
Drypool Church, body-snatch-
ingat 165
Mystery Plays at 42
" Noah," curious entries in
Hull Trinity House books
respecting ... 43
PloughDay in 42
Press-gangin 192, 193
INDEX.
PAGE.
TheRiot of 1815 ... 193. *94
Shipof Glory,Church Lane ... 195
Visit of the Jolly Raut to ... 29
Humber,River 2,n,77, 86,192, 194, 195
Hume,quoted 17
Hungary 75
Hussey 91
Hutton on the Battle of Wakefield 106
Ida, the Viking I.85
His descent from the god
Woden ... ... ... ■■■ 85
Sails for Englandwith a fleet
of forty war galleys 85
Lands at Flamborough ... 85
Death of 85
Succeeded byhis sonEthelfrith 85
Ina, King 139
Inderawood, Oratory of St.Martin
at 9
Jarrow, birthplaceofVen. Bede ... 20
Jewish Massacre atYork 30
Jews introduced into the country
by William 1
88
Sufferings ofBenedict ... ... 31
And ofJocenus
32, 34
Jocenus ... ... ... ... ... 32
Takes refugeinYork Castle ... 32
Death of 34
Jutes, invade England 1
Kent, Leeds Castle ... 79
King'sLanglev,Hertford,Burial of
RichardlL,at 80
Kinwalgraves... ... ... ... 142
Kirkby-Moorside 146,148,153
Manor of 148
Death of the Duke of Buckingham
at 146
Kirkstall 19
Abbey ... ... ... ... 45
Monks of, assiduous in cultivatingthe
land 27
Seleth builds a hermitageat... 21
Bridge 26
Kitchingham,Robert 182
His wife 182
Knaresborough ... 155, 156, 157, 158
Forest at ... ... ... ... 161
Body of EugeneAram exposed
in 161
St. Robert'sCave at ... 157, 158,159
Knottinglev ... 131
Kyme,Earl of 94, 112
Lacy, Ilbertde ... ... ... 130
Gift by William the Conqueror
of Leeds,Holbeck andWoodhouse
to 21
Gives Leeds to RalphPaganell 23
Lacy family ... ... ... ... 132
Countess ofLancaster 132
Ilbert de ... ... 130
Lambert, General 136
Lancashire ... ... ... ... 114
Brereton'sof 73
Townley'sof ... ... ... 73
Lathom House 114

PAGE.
Lancaster, Henry Bolingbroke,
Duke of 26, 76, 77, 78
Banished by RichardII. ... 77
Lands at Ravensburg ... ... 77
Elected King at death of
Richard II 78
John ofGaunt, Dukeof .,. 76, 77
Thomas,Earl of..." ... 26, 132
Langdale,General ... ... 134, 135
LangstafTs, Peter, " Chronicle,"
quoted -.. ... 87
Lathom, Alice, daughter of Sir
Robert 71
Marries SirJohn Elland ... 71
Sir Robert 71
Lathom House, Lancashire, besieged
bythe Parliamentarians ... 114
DefendedbyCharlotte, Countess
of Derby ... 114
Lawson, Amos, notorioushighwayman
... ... ... ... 94
Capture of, by W. Taylor,
sheriff of York 94
Leckonfield Park 141
Leeds ... 17, ig,116, 176, 177, 178,180,181
BeforetheConquest,and Notes
on Leeds Castle 17
INDEX. 201
PAGE.
Kills Sir John Elland 75
Death of 72
Lofthouse ... ... 155
Loides, see " Leeds"
London 88, 103
Richard II.conveyed to ... 78
His body exhibitedatSt.Paul's 79
St. Paul's Church ... 79, 103
Westminster Abbey, burial of
the Duke of Buckinghamin
Henry VIII.'s Chapel ... 153
Westminster Hall 31
Londesborough 59, 60
Lovel,Philip 68
Lucias, King ... ... ... ... 139
Introduction of the Sanctuary
into Britain by ... ... 139
Lynn Norfolk 88,156,158
Malet, William, Sheriffof York 86,87
Malton 131
Manchester ... 18,177
Earl of 116
Margaret, Queen 103,104,105,106, 111
At the battleof Wakefield ... 103
Raises an army of 20,000 men 103
Marches to Sandal Castle ... 104
At the battle of Towton ... 108
March, Earlof 104
Market Weighton 59
Marston Field ... 115
Marston Moor,battle of ... 113, 115
PrinceRupert defeatsthe Parliamentarians
at Stockport
Bridge 114
Siegeof Lathom 114
Relieves York 114
Enters the city ... 115
Capture of theRoyalists ... Mauleverers,
117
The ... ... ...
Maurice,Col. ... 51
133, 134, 135, 136, 137, 138
Mayhall's "Annals of Yorkshire,"
quoted 167
Mellor,George " MercuriusBritannicus,"
173
The,quoted
Meredith,
136
Sir Rees ap, first political
prisoner in York Castle ...
Meshines,
93
The 51
Miall's "Yorkshire Illustrations of
EnglishHistory," quoted ... 32
Milnsbridge 171
Mirfield 178
Molescroft Cross, Beverley ...
Moor, Ebenezer,
141
highwayman ...
Morcar, Earl,
94
joins the Northumbrian
forces at York 86
Morris, Colonel, captures Pontefract
Castle 94
Mortimer's Cross,St. Alban's 59, 108
Mystery Playsin Yorkshire ... 36
Corpus Christi Guild,York ... 37
The " Creation," "Doomsday,"
and "Noah's Flood" 37
Body-snatchingat ... 165,167
Echoes of Old T
eeds 176
Leedsin the laL century ... 176
Castle 21
Takenby Stephenin1139 ... 22
Grantof a charter by Maurice
Paganell 23
Manor of 26
Plaguesof1596,1597, and 1644.. 28
JollyRaut 29
Under the Normans 23
Briggate
18,19,23
Boar Lane 21
BullandMouth Hotel 167
CampRoad 178
Charles Street
18
Churchgate
19, 23
HighStreet
18
Hunslet Lane 181
Infirmary 181
Library ... ... ... ■■■ 181
Merrion Street 178
Mill Hill,Bishopgate 21
Park Row 21
Park Square 21
Rose andCrown Inn 167
St.John's Church 165
St. Peter's Church 21
Sheepscar Lane 177
Swinegate
I9p 23
Tower Hill, Woodhouse Lane 21
Wade Lane 178
Water Lane 170
Leeds Castle,Kent 179
"Leeds " Intelligencer" "
179
Leeds Mercury 179
Leland, quoted 143
Leslie,General 114, "6
Lincoln,Lacies,Earls of 26
Lingard's, Dr., " Nantes
Nennius,
77
quoted 17
- History of Eng- Neville, Lord io5
land," quoted 129 Neville's Cross, Queen Philippa's
Lockwood,SirJohn
71, 74 defeat of the Scotch at ... 89

202
INDEX.
PAGE.
Nevison, highwayman
Newcastle,Marquis of
94
114, U5iII6- Il7
Nidderdale
i_4
Norfolk,Lynn 88,156,158
Pullan 143
Duke of 176
Banished byRichard II. ... 77
Northallerton, anciently called
Elfer-tau 99
Battleof the Standard,foughtat 99
Northumbria, foundation of the
kingdomof, by Ida 85
Robert, Earlof
86
Siward, Earlof
86
Northumberland, Story of a Tax;
or,The Death of the Fourth
Earl of n8
Norton,Lady Emily,andthe " White
Doe of Rylstone" 49
Francis ... ... ... ... 49
Richard, execution of,at York 49
William 155
Norwich ... 88
Nottingham,dedicationof Whitton
Church to St.John ofBeverley 13
Castle 135
Luddite riots 170
Oliver's " History of Beverley,"
quoted 141
Osborn, the Dane ... 86
Ossethorpe, see " Osmundthorpe "
Ossenthorpe, see "Osmundthorpe"
Osmundthorpe, anciently called
Ossenthorpe and Ossethorpe. 19
Oswy's Palace at 19
Saxonremains at 21
Ouse, river 65, 85, 86
Oxford, Lincoln College 127
Paganell,Maurice,grants a charter
tothe burgessesof Leeds ... 23
Reversion of the Manor of
Leeds to the Lacies 26
Ralph,gives Leeds Church and
Chapel of Holbeck to York
Priory 23
Parsons, quoted 25
Pembroke,Lord ... ... ... 120
Percy,Henry,Earlof Northumberland,
Lord Lieutenant of
Yorkshire ... 118,119,120,121
Murder of 121
Burial of, in Beverley Minster 122
Lady, Countess of Northumberland
... 120
Philippa,Queen, defeats theScotch
at Neville's Cross 89
Picts, The
I,iS,84
Incursion ofat York ... ... 85
Piers,Sir,of Exton... ... ... 80
Pilgrimageof Grace S9, 91, 133
Leeds,and the ... ... ... 27
Surrenderof Pontefract Castle
to the Pilgrims 133
Pontefract 70, 108
Execution ofEarl Salisburyat 58
Castle 79, 80, 81, 94, 130
Story of 130
PAGE.
Held by Colonel Cottrell for
the Parliament ... ... 133
Col. Maurice made Governor... 135
Death of Colonel Maurice ... 138
Elland hungat ... ... ... 70
Constable's Tower ... 131, 132
King's Tower 131
Pype'soj Red Tower 131
Queen's Tower ... ... ... 131
St. Conduit's Chapel 131
St. Clement's Church ... 131,132
St. Clement's College 132
Swillington'sTower 131
Treasurer's Tower 131
Pontius, M.,at York 83
Pope, Benedict IX 9
Pope, John VII 4
Porter, General 116
Puch, Earl, of South Burton ... 9
His wife restored to life by St.
John of Beverley ... ... 9
Pudsey,Henry, ofBolton 62
Florence,daughter of, married
to Henry,Lord Clifford ... 62
Quarmby ... ... 73
Sir Hughof 71, 75
Death of ... ... ... ... 72
Quarmby Hall 72
Radcliffe, Joseph, and the Luddite
riots ... ... 171
Rainsborough, General ... 134,135,137
Ramsgill ... ... 154
Rawdon, Ludditeriot at 170
Attack on Messrs.Thompson's
millat 170
Ravensburg ... ... 77
Henry Bolingbrokelands at ... 77
Ravenspurne 60
Resurrection Men, History of the
Yorkshire ... ... ... 165
Rheims ... ... ... 127
Rhodes, Knightsof 75
Richard I.,Coronation of,at Westminster
Hall 31
Jews notadmitted to 31
Richard II 89,132
Fall and death of 76
Lands at Milford Haven with
20,000warriors from Ireland. 77
Hidesin the Isle of Anglesea... 78
Conveyed to Flint Castle ... 78
To London, Prisoner in the
Tower of ... ... ... 78
Imprisonmentin Leeds Castle. 22, 27
Death of,at Pontefract Castle. 79
His body exhibited at St.
Paul's, London 79
Buried at King'sLangley ... 80
Reburied at Westminster Abbey 80
RichardIII.- g^ 133
Rivers,Lord 120
Robinson, Rev. Henry, Vicar of
Leeds T82
Roger's lines on the drowningof
Egremond 46
Roman Catholics, Sufferings of,in
Yorkshire 124,129

PAGE.
Romellis, The
Ross,Frederick,F.R.H.S
51
4,14
His " Celebrities of the Yorkshire
Wolds "
13
Rosse,Lord 105
Rothwell 166
Rupert,Prince 114, 115, 116
" Rylstone, The White Doe of,"
originof 49
Rutland, Earl of 107
St. Albans 59, 103, 108
Mortimer's Cross ... ...
Roses,First
59
battle of, fought at 102
St. Blaize,see "Blaize Festival"
St. John of Beverley, Story of ... 8
Birth of,at Harpham 8
Education at Whitby and
Oxford 8
Made Bishop of Hagulstadt
(Hexham) 8
Succeeds Bosa as Archbishop
of York g
Erection of St. Martin's
Oratory, and dedication of
the Church of St. John the
Baptist... 9
Death of 9
Miracles worked by ... ... 9
Canonization by Benedict IX... 9
His writings ... ... ... 14
St. John, SirJohn ... ... ... 62
His daughter Anne marries
Henry,Lord Clifford ... 62
St.Martin's Oratory,at Inderawood 9
Brithune installed first prior,
by St. John of Beverley ... 9
Salisbury,Earl of 58, 105, 112
Sanctuary,at Beverley ... 139, 140
Law of, inthe reign of William
the Conqueror and Henry
VIII 140
Fridstol at Beverley 145
At Hexham 145
Sandal Castle, Wakefield 53, 104, 105, 106
Saxton 109
SaxtonChurchj in
Savile Gate - 74
Saviles, of HowleyHall 73
Scatcherd, Norrison,on the Battle
of Wakefield 106
Scott,James,D.D
INDEX. 203
182
Sir Walter,quoted 113
Selby 131
Seleth, the Shepherd, 'builds a
hermitageat Kirkstall ... 21
Severus, Septimus ... ... ... 84
Shakespeare, quoted 52,
54,56, 80 102, 109, no
ShepherdLord, The 58
Shrewsbury,Earl of 147, 177
Countessof, Duke of Buckingham's
intrigues with 147
Siward, Earl ofNorthumbria ... 86
His son Waltheof 86
Skelton 19
Skelton's lines on the death of the
Earl of Northumberland ... 123
Skibdeen 48
PAGE.
Skipton 58,60
Smeaton, John
182
Smith, Thomas ... ... ... 173
Somerset,Duke of 105,106,111
At theBattle of Wakefield ... 105
Speed on the Battle of Wakefield... 105
Speetbek 48
Spence, Ann, wife of EugeneAram
Spofforth 155
Castle ... ... ... 120
Spratt,Dr., Bishopof Rochester ... 148
Spret,John, of Barton-on-Humber 143
Standard, Battle of the 97.98
Foughtat Northallerton ... 99
Archbishop Thurstan gg
AppointsBishop Ranulf his
representative at 100
Stede
StirlingCastle
48
8i
Stockport Bridge
Story 114
of York Castle, see "York"
Street, Amos,the huntsman ... Strid,
183
River 46
Sykes, Edward 126
Alderman Richardand Thoresby
purchase the Manorof Leeds 26
Tadcaster iS,111, 115
Tax,The Story ofa;or, Thedeath
of the FourthEarl of Northumberland
118
Taylor, WilUam, Sheriff of York... 94
Tees,River 2
Terry, Henry 155,157,161
Tried at York for the murder
of Daniel Clarke ... ... 157
Thirsk 120, 122
Market Cross at ... 120, 121
St. Columb's Church 120
Destruction of the stainedglass
windows of ... ... 120
TaxRiots at 120
Thompson, Matthew,and the " St.
Blaize Festival " at Brad-
ford iS6, 189
Thoresby, Ralph 28,29
" Ducatus Leodiensis," quoted 179
Thorpe, William 173
Thurston, Archbishop
Tintern Abbey ... 99
... ... 45
Topcliffe 118,119
Townley Hall... ... ... ... 73
Visit of Haigh and Dawson to 73
Towton Iu8, 109
Battle of 56, sg, 108, log,no
Capture of the Aire at Ferrybridge,byLord
Clifford ... 108
Edward IV.crosses the Aire... 108
Falconberg's archers advance
on the enemy... ... ... no
Duke ofNorfolk raises 5,000 men in
Termination of 112
Tragic story of the Ellands ... 69
" Transactions of the Royal Historical
Society," quoted ... 129
Tweed,River 2, 11
KingDavid's army crosses ... 99
Twyford, quoted 87
Tytler's " History of Scotland,"
quoted 82

204
PAGE.
Vaughan, Sir Thomas 133
Vavasour of Hesslewood ... ... 92
Villiers,George,Duke ofBuckingham 146
Birthof 146
Lord Lieutenant of York ... 146
Deathof 148
BurialinHenry VIII.sChapel,
Westminster Abbey 153
Wade,Marshall 178
Wakefield ... 102,104,105, 106,108,185
Battle of 102
Queen Margaretat 103
Raises 20,000 men against the
Dukeof York 103
Duke of York raises 5,000 men
and goesto Sandal Castle... 104
Deathof 106
His son, the Earl of Rutland,
slainat 107
Cock and Bottle Lane 106
Ludditeriots at ... ... ... 170
Mystery Plays, " Abrahamand
the Shepherd,"actedat ... 40, 41
Walbran, M., quoted 47, 48
Wales,Prince of, see " Edward IV."
Walkesburn,River 48
Waltheof,son of the EarlofNorthumberland
... ... 86, 87
Warren, Samuel 164
Warwick,Earlof
IOS, 109
Waterton family 81
SirRobert,guardianofRichard
II.,atPontefract Castle ... 82
Wesley, Rev.John 178
His "Journal," quoted ... 178
Westmoreland 60
Plagueof JollyRautin ... 29
INDEX.
Duke of ... 147
Wharfe,River
46,48,111
Whitaker, Dr.T.D.,quoted 23,.±5, 48, 61
Whitby Abbey, education of St.
John ofBeverley at 8
White, Jem, and the Press-gang ... 195
Whitton, Nottingham,Church, dedicated
to St. John ofBeverley 13
Wilkinson, Oswald, first gaoler of
York Castle, and afterwards
hung for treason and conspiracy
... ... go
William the Conqueror ... 86, 140
Wilson, Benjamin 183
Thomas, alias Mountain ... 92
Wiltshire, Earl of ... 105
Winmoor (Winwaedfeld) 20
Winwaedfeld, see "Winmoor" ...
Winton's, Andrew, " Chronicle,"
quoted ... 81
Wise Menof York, Councilof ... 5
Woodville, Anthony 133
Wordsworth, W.,quoted ... ... 58
Lines by, on the "White Doe
of Rylstone" 49
Wortley 167
Wyman, Henry,Mystery Playsperformedat
his door in York... 27
PAGE.
York 5,6,7,82,109,116
117, 119, 146, 148, 149, 157, 158, 172
Anglo-Saxons in ... 85
Assize Courts at 91
Castle 85,86,87,127, 128
Levelled to the ground by
Athelstane 85
Erection ofanother 86
Used as a place of detention 89
Abbotof St. Mary'sincharge
of a gallows at 89
Story of 84
Clifford's Tower... ... ... 30,86
Corpus Christi Guild at ... 37
Council of Wise Men,of ... 5
Danes at
85, 86
Fortifications of 84
Henry VII.at 89
Holy TrinityPriory ... ... 37
How King Henry III. Kept
Christmas at 63
Incursion of the Picts 85
Ofthe Romans 83
Jewish Massacre at ... ... 30
Knavesmire 92
Micklegate ... ... ... 37
MicklegateBar 94, 106, 112
Minster 131
Autyimprisoned for stealing
plate from 94
MultangularTower ... ... 84
Petergate 37
Plagueof JollyRaut 29
Roman Wall 84
St.Mary Abbey 89
St. Peter's burnt byW. Malet 87
Tyburnat ... ... 90, 92, 94
York, Richard, Duke of 94
103, 104,105, 106, 112
Raises an army against Queen
Margaret 103
Goes to Sandal Castle 104
Deathof 106
Yorkshire 118
Ardsley, East 167
Armley ... 21
Beeston 178
Birstal 178,183
Bolton ... 45.47,48,49,51,61,62
Bradford 185,186
Burnsall ... ... 154
Cawthorn... ... ... ... 75
Conisbrough ... ... ... 19
Craven 46, 58
KirkbyMoorside ... 146, 148, 153
Knaresborough ... 155, 156, 157, 158
Ludditeriots in 172
At Cleckheaton, Dewsbury,
Hawksworth,Holmsworth,
Liversedge, Nottingham,
Wakefield 170
Mystery Playsin 36
Press-gangin igi
Resurrection Men, History of
the 165
Seacroft ... ... ... ... 20
FRED. R. SPARK, " EXPRESS^- PRINTING WORKS, LEEDS.

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