The Best Guide for the South Sunderland Area

The Sealed Knot presents "The Battle at Hylton Castle"

See our photos from the battle here !!  

  ....................

Come along and see one of the UK's largest and most exciting English Civil War re-enactments at Hylton Castle, Sunderland this summer.

............

Background Historical Information

BATTLE OF HYLTON CASTLE 1644

On March 2^nd 1644, a Scots Parliamentary army camped at Harraton, after allowing the Royalist forces to quit Sunderland.

The importance of Sunderland was its harbour, which enabled coal to be cargoed to London, since the Scots army controlled the Lambton and Lumley mines, and also allowing supplies to be sent from London to the army in the North.

However, the Royalists soon returned in greater numbers. There was a military action around Penshaw Hill and Humbledon Hill called the Offerton Skirmish on 7^th March 1644, with accounts ranging up to 74 fatalities.

It was the first time the Parliamentary soldiers defending Sunderland were able to range their 60 cannons against the Royalists. But the battle was abandoned due to a heavy snow storm.

At  Hylton Castle on 23^rd - 24^th - 25^th March 1644, there was a much bigger battle, with contemporary accounts describing up to 2,500 fatalities, alleged and denied by both sides.

There are reports of Dragoons, Musketeers and Cannons firing from 4pm till midnight on the first day of the Battle, but as with Offerton the true extent of casualties will never be known.

The Town of Sunderland itself was attacked on 26^th May 1644 by the Royalists in an attempt to capture the port and re-take the many prisoners being held there. The people of Sunderland and merchant seamen playing a major role in helping the parliament soldiers repulse the attack from the town walls.

Naval battles also took place, sometimes with foreign ships caught up in the war, with the Dutch Government demanding the return of a Man of War taken by a certain Captain Haddock of Sunderland, 14^th July 1644.

All this had a devastating effect on the whole of our area, with the Parliament Army complaining to London that. ''County Durham was now a Country (sic) where there is nothing left to be sequestrated with only old men, women and children still there.''

As supporters of the King, being on the losing side finished the Barons of Hylton as a power in the Nation.

But Sunderland benefited from supporting Parliament, emerging as a Sea Port in its own right after originally being held back by Newcastle's powerful royal connections.

Denny Wilson 2010

Sourced from - Sunderland and it's Origins.

By Dr Maureen Meikle and Dr Christine Newman, Sunderland University

Report this article as inappropriate

Comments

You need to log in before you can do that! It's only a quick registration process to join the AMA network and completely free.