PreludeThe civil war began in 1642, but there had been unrest and conflict with Scotland
since the re-establishment of Presbyterian government in 1638. The English government dispatched Sir Jacob Astley, a professional soldier, to review the state of Newcastle's defences in 1638 and 1639, Astley found that the medieval walls of the town were indefensible against modern siege warfare and recommended that new artillery positions should be added to or close to the towers on the walls. A Scottish army invaded the north of England in May 1640, defeated the force sent against it at the battle of Newburn in August and then occupied Newcastle for nearly a year. Recent archaeological excavations have found the remains of artillery fortifications in the form of stone built bastions at the Castle and the Plummer tower, on the eastern side of the town wall circuit. The stone walls of the bastions were reinforced with wooden beams and had a broad steep sided ditch outside. It is likely that such bastions were added all around the town walls in accordance with Astley's recommendations. |
The Siege
Leven's forces arrived at Gateshead on 12th August and within a few days siege operations were fully under way. A Parliamentarian correspondent gave a vivid picture of the struggle:- "The enemy from the castle doth mightily annoy us with their great artillery, but the Scots are casting up with incessant labour what works they can both by day and night to defend themselves. In the meanwhile, our pioneers are as busie at works underground as our canons are playing above it. The endeavors of both sides are indefatigable and in the thick clouds of smoke the thunder of the canon perpetually disputing" The royalist garrison rejected commands to surrender and at 5pm on the 19th October 1644, after a day of artillery bombardment and mine explosions had left huge gaps in the town walls, the town was finally stormed and captured. John Marley and some of the garrison retreated to the castle keep and resisted for a few more days before surrendering. The whole town had suffered damage in the course of the siege. It was reported that people in the lower part of the town were forced to flee to the upper parts to escape gunfire from Callender's batteries on the Gateshead riverbank. Large sections of the town wall were completely demolished, St Andrews church was badly ruined and many houses destroyed. Some physical scars of the siege can still be seen. The town wall between Hanover Street and Forth Street clearly shows where breaches made on the 19th October 1644 were later repaired. The larger of the two made by artillery, seems to be the breach referred to in Council minutes as 56 yards long, att the freers. It was rebuilt by the Corporation in 1647. A smaller breach was caused by the explosion of a mine near the White Friars Tower. The armies and their equipment
The 17th century saw vast changes in military methods and weaponry. Firearms became the main weapon of the infantry and cavalry, though both continued to use swords and pikes or lances. Thousands of cannonballs would have been fired during the siege by both sides. Many were found in the last century when the town walls were being demolished. The civil war armies were composed largely of civilians or part-time soldiers (the Trained Bands). The need to rapidly arm large numbers of such men came at a time when methods of mass production were evolving. In consequence the arms and dress of the opposing sides were very similar - the beginnings of military uniform. The Parliamentarians controlled the main English centres of armament production, so the Royalists bought great quantities of cheap arms from abroad - particularly from Germany and Holland. |
Life under siege
As in every war the civilian population suffered its own privations. At the beginning of the siege the suburbs were burnt by the defenders to prevent their use by the enemy, while within the walls the town houses were commandeered as billets for the garrison. After the capture of Newcastle the Scottish army stayed in occupation until 1647. Houses near the gates in the town wall were requisitioned to serve as guard-houses, an unpopular practice even though the occupants were compensated for the inconvenience. Evidence of the Scottish occupation of Newcastle comes from the large number of Scottish coins - usually Turners worth 2d - found on archaeological sites of the period. There are no reliable civilian casualty figures for the siege, but the town's parish registers record some of the fatalities:- Ather Herron bured....which was kild with a granad (grenade) George Fishburne bured....which was kild by ye skotes at the spitll Edward Mylburne bured....which was kild in pilg(rim street) by the Scotes at the skirmes (skirmish) After the garrison was withdrawn the town was governed by a Corporation sympathetic to the Parliamentarian cause until the restoration of the monarchy in 1660. The civil war was one of the first to be extensively covered by the press. The quality of printed material available in the 17th century reflects widespread public interest in contemporary events and an increase in literacy across all ranks of society. An example of this is the graffiti left by soldiers in the king's chamber of the castle keep, where the names of John Danby and Thomas Cuthbert and the date 1644, can still be traced. |
With thanks to the official castle keep visitors guide published by Newcastle City Council