Houses of Interest: West Yorkshire

For more Yorkshire 'related stuff' you can find North Yorkshire here, South Yorkshire here,  East Riding here.

See also the Rupert Travelogue entry for Yorkshire, and the entry for Adwalton Moor

Oakwell Hall  was the inspiration for Charlotte Brontë's Fieldhead in "Shirley". More recently it has been used a number of times as a film set, including "Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell".

Located close to the M62 and the Leeds branch of purgatory on Earth (aka Ikea), this Tudor manor house is beautifully maintained by Kirklees Borough Council.

The hall is presented as a seventeenth century home. I really like this approach, as so often historic houses have different rooms decorated for different eras, so it is really nice to see a house presented from one era in it's entirety.

Oakwell was in the ownership of the Batt family, who supported the King; John Batt was a captain and most probably fought at Adwalton Moor. The retreating Parliamentarian troops passed along Warren Lane (adjacent to the house) after the battle.

After the Royalist defeat at Marston Moor, John Batt surrendered the house to Black Tom in order to keep his family safe. John paid a fine of £364 to reclaim the estate in 1649.

What's there today?
As already mentioned, the whole house is presented as a seventeenth century residence.

One room documents the whole history of the house and has some cannon balls and musket shot from Adwalton Moor on display.

Another room, has a number of period costumes for you to try on; it also shows the construction of the building off nicely.

A fine portrait of Newcastle hangs in one of the rooms.

There is a beautifully maintained  walled garden, and the remainder of the estate is laid out as a nature reserve with a number of trails.

Of course there is a tea room (this is Yorkshire, it's a tea room not a café!) and gift shop.

The ECWS have assisted the Council with the Hall, and there are some Civil War themed gates into the shop and function room courtyard: resplendent with helmets, swords and breastplates.

Leeds was a small town in the seventeenth century, but an important wheel in the wool industry. Despite its wealth and importance the town was never fortified in medieval times with a town wall (which is a surprise to modern explorers considering the number of thoroughfares in the city with the word 'gate' in their name).  

Sir William Savile, deputy lieutenant of West Riding, was sent to secure the West Riding towns of Leeds, Wakefield and Bradford. His men threw up earthen ramparts and ditches around the western side of the town, we know the rough location of the ditch (a curved feature starting at the bridge at the bottom of Briggate then running up the approximate line Park Row to St John the Evangelist's church on New Briggate). A sconce was built to the south of the Aire protecting the approach to the bridge, in the region of Meadow Lane/Hunslet Lane.

On Monday 23rd January 1643, Sir Thomas Fairfax led a Parliamentarian force on Leeds, his army was in excess of 3500 men; including a sizeable contingent of Bradford clubmen, who numbered as many as 2000. Fairfax had a low opinion of the clubmen who had been raised a week or two prior to his assault on Leeds, so much so that he did not include their numbers in the size of his force when he reported the action.

The attack started at 2pm in a fierce snowstorm. Fairfax split his force into four: a small force of musketeers attacking the north end of the ditch  led by William Fairfax, and Sir Thomas Norcliffe; Sir Thomas led a larger force attacking from west of The Headrow; Captain Mildmay, took one company of dragoons, around 30 musketeers and half of the clubmen to attack the bridge along the northern bank of the Aire; Captain Forbes led dragoons on the sconce protecting the bridge, south of the Aire.

Forbes quickly overwhelmed the sconce and joined Mildmay on Briggate; this combined force fought their way north up  Briggate, in bloody house clearance fighting. A minister from a Halifax chapel, led twelve musketeers up the street towards a cannon, killing the crew and capturing the gun. 

Meanwhile the two pronged assault at The Headrow had breached the barricades, and the Parliamentarians fought their way into the town, meeting up in the market place at 4pm.

Savile, Captain Beaumont, and Reverend Thomas Crompton fled the town by trying to swim the Aire on horseback. The chaplain and Savile made it, but Beaumont drowned in the attempt, to much cheering from Parliament's men.

What's there now?

There used to be a plaque marking the rough location of the sconce on Meadow Lane but this was stolen about 10-12 years ago.

There was a sconce here once

St John the Evangelist's Church was built 1631-4 and marks the northerly extent of the defensive ditch. One of the stained glass windows commemorates an event said to have taken place at Red Hall (see below).

Briggate has no memorial to the fierce fighting that took place here (the engagement is often called the Battle of Briggate).

Looking northwards up Briggate 

Leeds Museum has a small display of artefacts from the battle. Also in the display case is some 'roundhead armour' incorrectly labelled (the helmet is late 1660s, not 1640s!).

On The Headrow, where T K Maxx stands was a red brick mansion built in 1628, Red Hall. Supposedly the first brick building built in Leeds. It was built by Thomas Metcalf, a wool merchant, who was Alderman of Leeds from 1630-31. on 9th February 1646, King Charles I was brought to Leeds as a prisoner. He was held in a room, afterwards known as the King’s Chamber, in Red Hall. The King’s stay in Leeds is remembered in the street names King Charles’ Street and King Charles’ Croft, the name given to the gardens on the south side of the house. Tradition has it that while the King was imprisoned at Leeds he was visited by John Harrison, who brought the King a tankard of brown ale; concealed in the tankard were gold coins. The story is commemorated in one of the stained glass windows in St. John the Evangelist.

Red Hall, then...

...and now

Mrs. Crosby, a servant of Thomas Metcalf, allegedly offered to provide women’s clothes as a disguise for the King to facilitate his escape. Charles declined her offer, but thanked her, and gave her his garter as a mark of his thanks. It is claimed that he said that if his son ever came to the throne she was to give the garter to him and tell him of how she came by it, and he would reward her. When Charles II became King, Mrs. Crosby gave him the garter, and told him her story. The King asked where she was from, and if she had a husband. She told him she was from Leeds in Yorkshire, and that her husband was a bailiff of the town. ‘Then he shall be High Bailiff of Yorkshire’.

Leeds Central Library has a number of Civil War Tracts in their collection. They produce a downloadable leaflet  which lists the manuscripts, and how to access them. 

Leeds University has a number of tracts, manuscripts and artefacts from the wars in its Brotherton Collection - the latest acquisition is an anthology of plays. A 1647 edition of Beaumont and Fletcher 'Comedies and Tragedies', that belonged to Charles II. The University plans to put the volume on display in their gallery at a future date.

Astronomer William Gascoigne's home in Leeds is commemorated with a blue plaque on the side of a corner shop. He was commissioned as an officer in the King's Army, falling in battle at Marston Moor. Gascoigne invented a micrometer, which allowed accurate astronomical measurement until recent times.

Temple Newsam was purchased in 1922 by the enlightened councillors of Leeds City Council, providing Leeds residents with an enormous green lung for the city. Temple Newsam was originally built sometime in the C11th, it is most famous for being the home of Lord Darnley (aka Mr Mary Queen of Scots). 

The current house owes its appearance to the significant remodelling started in 1622 by its new owner Sir Arthur Ingram. Prior to the immediate outbreak of the First Civil War King Charles and his family would reside briefly at Temple Newsam. It is believed that Sir Arthur died in York in 1642, his eldest son (also helpfully called Sir Arthur) would inherit the property and declare for the King. Interestingly Sir Arthur junior's second wife was Thomas Fairfax's second daughter Katherine. One of Sir Arthur junior's brothers would declare for Parliament - this really was a family by the sword divided. Sir Arthur junior would join the court in exile.

Lord Percy

In 1649, Sir Arthur junior was declared delinquent, he compounded his estates and would retire to Temple Newsam.

I approve

What's there now?

Much of the original contents of the house were sold off prior to 1920, but it has been refurnished and decorated from Leeds City Council's collection. There are a number of portraits of Charles I & II, Cromwell, Lord Percy, and a number of 30 Years Wars battle scenes by Antonio Marini. On the long corridor there is a beautiful Toft charger of Charles II hiding in the Boscobel oak. 

Temple Newsam can also claim to be the true home of tea in Yorkshire: a bill for several bottles of 'China drink' (i.e. tea) is included in the house accounts for the 1640s, and is one of the oldest British references to tea known.

Just up the road from Leeds is Otley. The Black Bull in the market place can trace its roots back to the sixteenth century; whilst modernised the pub retains a historic ambience, renovation work uncovered a rare period fireplace which was only retained due to public pressure on the brewery. 

'Reputedly' is doing a lot of heavy lifting there

The pub claims that it was drunk dry by Cromwell's men on the eve of Marston Moor. Which is problematical to say the least. Otley market place is about 26 miles from Tockwith (as the crow flies), so it would be a herculean feat for foot soldiers to drink a pub dry, sleep it off, then march all the way to Tockwith for a 2pm kick off. Cavalry would find the same feat all but impossible too. They might be able to get there, but their horses would be fit for nothing. Of course we'll gloss over Cromwell's horse being engaged in skirmishing at Bilton Bream at 9am prior to the battle, and the fact that the Eastern Association was camped over night at Hessay Moor.

Then of course there's the other tale that Cromwell slept there after Marston Moor. It is fairly well documented that various Parliamentarian officers went hunting Royalist escapees from the battle, Old Knoll went hunting Knaresborough way. 

The Newly Modelled Army are known to have visited Otley in 1648. Methinks a Victorian antiquarian has sexed up Otley's oral history a bit, and the story which had a tiny bit of fact have been distorted beyond recognition.

It is quite possible that Cromwell was in the vicinity of Otley in the week prior to Marston Moor. A council of War was held at Menston, near Ilkley. The meeting was held either at Menston Old Hall, now renamed Fairfax Hall (it was the home of Ferdinando's brother Charles) or at Low Hall in the village. Historians are leaning towards the Low Hall site. The council of war was anticipating Rupert's next move once he had relieved York, once he going to try and break out of the city into the territory of the Eastern Association?

The meeting is reputed to have taken place around a stone rectangular table in the orchard of Fairfax Hall. The table was removed to Farnley in 1814, where it formed part of a Civil War collection at Farnley Hall. 

Fairfax Hall is a private residence; Low Hall was levelled in the 1870s and rebuilt, renamed Menston Hall, and has recently been converted into flats; Farnley Hall is owned by Leeds City Council and was used as offices, until it was mothballed. What happened to the 'notable civil war collection' I have not been able to ascertain, but the table is believed to still be in the Hall.

12 Ivegate in Bradford was the site of a house that served as Fairfax's headquarters during the siege of Bradford.

Whilst in Bradford, take a visit to St Peter's Cathedral on Stott Hill where there is a plaque commemorating the sieges of Bradford.

Slightly closer to Chateau KeepYourPowderDry are Hebden Bridge and Heptonstall: which was the site of a battle in November 1643. Heptonstall was a Parliamentarian garrison, and nearby Halifax was for the King. 

Sir Francis Mackworth gathered his Royalist force in Hebden Bridge close to the medieval packhorse bridge (which is still in use), the River Hebden was in flood at the time. 

The Parliamentarian defenders, numbering about 800 men under the command of Colonel Bradshaw, knew the terrain well and used it to their advantage.  From the bridge in Hebden the Royalists approached Heptonstall via the lung busting steep road called The Buttress. Bradshaw's men had set a number of traps along the The Buttress, so when Mackworth's troops advanced rocks and boulders rained down on them. Needless to say they fled in terror, with the Parliamentarians in hot pursuit; many would perish in the swollen river. 

One of Parliament's men, Samuel Priestly, is recorded as spotting a wounded Royalist in the river, and went into the river to rescue the man. Sadly Samuel would die later in the month from the chill he got from the soaking.

There are a number of car parks in Hebden Bridge, the town can get very busy, so be prepared to visit a few. The packhorse bridge is still there, and The Buttress leads up to Heptonstall for the very adventurous. Sensible people will drive there, or catch the bus. 

The village is very small with narrow lanes, please follow the signs to visitor parking as there is no parking in the village. Heptonstall is 'very touristy', and rightly so: perched on top of the hill it boasts magnificent views. There is a small museum which has/had a display about the battle: unfortunately the museum fell victim to cuts, but a Friends Group has taken over and hopes to reopen it soon. 

The museum is located in the old grammar school building which dates from just before the Wars.

Carrying on down the footpath will bring you to the churches. The ruin of the old church is imposing, and witnessed the events of 1643. It was abandoned by the Victorians who built an equally imposing church next door. Take care when visiting the very uneven churchyard, which is said to be the last resting place for 100,000 souls. (If you want to find Sylvia Plath's grave, it is in the new graveyard. Find the central 'round garden bit' and it is to your left as you face up hill - quite easy to spot, it has become a bit of a shrine.)

Pontefract Castle was a Royalist stronghold, and would be besieged three times. The first siege (December 1644 – early March 1645) saw the castle undermined and bombarded: the Pier Tower collapsed as a result, but the siege would be lifted when Langdale arrived with the Northern Horse. The siege would resume a few days later, the garrison surrendering on hearing the news from Naseby in June.

This display board explains that the kitchens were possibly utilised as a mint for siege coins

A display of replica uniforms in the visitor centre

The Piper Tower: look carefully and you can see three cannonball impact craters in a line (a clue: find the one in the central recess first, there's one on either side)

Parliament’s men would garrison the Castle, until June 1648, when Royalists took over the Castle by stealth rather than a show of arms. November 1648 the Castle would be besieged by the New Modelled Army; which saw tales of intrigue and murder (see the Doncaster entries in Houses of Interest:South Yorkshire)

The Castle would eventually surrender in March 1649 (after the execution of Charles), and it would be ordered to be slighted not long after.

What’s there now?
The Castle is beautifully cared for by the local council. Free to enter, there is visitor centre and café. The visitor centre has a number of artefacts found in the Castle grounds. It is possible to visit the castle’s dungeons (for which there is a charge) but only at weekends and on bank holidays. There is some graffiti dating from the Civil War visible in the dungeon. There is a guided tour app which is free to download. Signage and interpretation boards uses a Civil War theme throughout.

All Saint's Church is situated below Pontefract Castle. There was fierce fighting in the church and churchyard during the first siege. The church suffered extensive damage with 60 18lb cannonballs being fired on it in just one day from a battery at Monkhill. When the siege was renewed, earthworks were constructed around the castle and the church to restrict the Royalist defenders. 

In June, the Parliamentarian forces took the church. The soldiers began stripping the church of resources, pillaging the church of lead, iron and wood. By 1649, the church was roofless and a ruin. The church has been partially repaired and is still in use today, but the ‘body’ of the battle scared church is still a ruin.

An engagement took place at Chequerfield on 1^st March 1645 involving Langdale’s relief force: the besiegers took their eye off the castle to confront Langdale, but were beaten when the castle’s garrison ventured out to attack them from the rear.

The Chequerfield battlefield has been lost under development. There is no visible evidence or memorial marking the events that took place here.

Pontefract Museum has a number of Civil War related items on display, most notably the Ackworth hoard.

Pontefract Castle by Alexander Keirincx, commissioned by Charles I in 1639/40

Part of the Ackworth Hoard

Colonel John Bright's armour...

...and sword

Not often you see a cabasset

Battle of Seacroft Moor, 30th March 1643. The Fairfaxes (both father and son) had been engaged in a war of manoeuvres with Newcastle’s Royalist forces in early 1643. Sir Thomas found himself returning to Leeds from Tadcaster when he was met by a cavalry heavy force led by Goring. Thomas’s men were predominantly clubmen, rather than conventionally equipped soldiers. Goring’s cavalry repeatedly attacked the tail of Fairfax’s column; the men were in some disarray when Goring’s men openly attacked at Seacroft. The Parliamentarian’s took a drumming, some 200 fell, and 800 were taken prisoner.

The view towards the A64 from Langbar Close (a sneaky bit of scrambling/trespassing across Cock Beck afford you this view)

What’s there now?
The name ‘Seacroft Moor’ causes us a few problems as there was/is no such place as ‘Seacroft Moor’; our knowledge of the battle relies heavily upon Sir Thomas Fairfax’s account, and he was no local. We do know that he was marching his men from Tadcaster towards Leeds, along a route that is more or less the route of the modern A64. We know that his army had passed through Bramham Moor, so the clues are pointing to Whinmoor Moor, which is/was close to Seacroft. Another contemporary report has Cock Beck being turned red with the blood of the fallen. It is more than likely that the farmland to the south of the A64, where it crosses Grimes Dyke, towards Scholes is the location of the battle. Until there is an archaeological survey of the area, sadly we shall not know for certain. There are no battlefield markers (not surprisingly), nor anything else to remind us of the slaughter that took place here. The road is phenomenally busy and fast, possibly one to view from satellite imagery on the internet. A footpath runs alongside Cock Beck, accessible from Langbar Close LS14 5EB.

Cock Beck

Howley Hall: the Parliamentarian command met at Howley Hall to plan an attack on Wakefield (in response to the debacle at Seacroft Moor) in May 1643.

In response to the Wakefield attack, Royalist forces would march to take Bradford a month later. On route, to prevent the Howley garrison launching a rearguard action, they laid siege to the Hall; the building somehow survived relatively unscathed.

The Royalists would eventually be met by Ferdinando Fairfax, who unsuccessfully attempted to head-off the Bradford assault, at Adwalton Moor (see here )

What’s there now?
The Hall fell into disrepair in the eighteenth century and is now a ruin, situated on the edge of Howley Hall Golf Club. The atmospheric (blink and you’ll miss them) ruins can be accessed by a footpath from Howley Mill Lane. Under no circumstances, believe the information on the Discover Leeds website that states that you can park close to the path on Howley Mill Lane. The locals have gone to very great lengths to ensure that you can’t park here. I can't stress this enough, trust me, there is no parking available on Howley Mill Lane (or turning space if you are foolish enough to think 'I wonder if it has changed, we'll just go and have a look'). The postcode I have given gets you to Howley Mill Lane, you’ll have to park on the road wherever you decide it is safe to do so. I parked on Batley Field Hill, not too far away.

Battle of Wakefield, 21^st May 1643. Wakefield was a Royalist garrison town; the commander of the garrison, was Lord George Goring. On the 20^th May Goring and his officers had been entertained by Dame Mary Bolles at Heath Hall, to the east of the town. While playing bowls and other games, the Royalists "drank so freely... as to be incapable of properly attending to the defence of the town". Goring, himself, had a reputation for being a heavy drinker. Some claim that the illness that confined Goring to his bed, on the day of battle, was a ‘fever’, which sounds like an excuse a younger me used to deny having a hangover. Whether it was ‘fever’ or ‘hangover’ is irrelevant, the garrison had no effective command or leadership at the time of the assault. 

Heath Hall, scene of 'the bowling'

Late on the 20th Thomas Fairfax led his force (1500 men) from Howley Hall towards Wakefield; he was unaware of the strength of the town’s garrison (nearly 3000 men). In the small hours of the 21st they engaged, and overcame a Royalist outpost at Stanley, arriving at Wakefield at about 4am. Wakefield’s defences were sufficient to concentrate fighting on the road ways into the town.

Fairfax would split his force and attack down Northgate and Warrengate. The attack on Warrengate would be the turning point: Fairfax’s men captured an artillery piece intact, turning it on the defenders. This opened up a large enough entry point for his cavalry. This cannon would be moved to All Saints Church (now Wakefield Cathedral) to fire upon the men defending the market place. They would be offered the chance to surrender, but initially refused. Heavy fire from the cannon and musket quickly helping them change their mind.

What’s there now?
Needless to say the battlefield has been lost to development. 

All Saints Church has been promoted to be Wakefield Cathedral, it would suffer considerable damage during the Commonwealth.

The Elizabethan Gallery is one of the few surviving buildings from the period.

The Elizabethan Gallery

Both Northgate and Warrengate have been redeveloped, they mostly follow the same routes that existed in C17th. The market place has been built over and has been rebranded as the ‘market quarter’.

Northgate

The view up Warrengate towards the Cathedral

Wakefield Museum has a small number of artefacts on display (and some really grumpy rude security people): a window from Heath Hall, and a few fragments from swords and armour recovered from Sandal Castle.

Old Heath Hall glass

stirrups

The remains of swords

Sandal Castle, on the outskirts of Wakefield was by passed by Fairfax’s men during the battle. The castle was a ruin, but had its defences bolstered by earthworks. It was garrisoned by about 90 men. The castle would be besieged twice during 1645, before it eventually surrendered in October of that year.

A bastion earthwork built to house cannon, which were never delivered

East Riddlesden Hall, on the outskirts of Keighley, is another Yorkshire Hall in the same vein as Bolling and Oakwell. 

The south front of East Riddleston

Cared for by the National Trust, the Hall is tucked away on the edge of a housing estate. The current Hall was built in 1642 by Royalist sympathiser, James Murgatroyd, a Halifax merchant. The Hall is mostly presented as it would have appeared in the C17th.

The Great Hall

Embroidery of the marriage of Charles and Henrietta Maria

In the great hall there are a number of pieces of military hardware on display above the fireplace; whilst initially piquing my interest, they are all of Victorian or Georgian origin. The helmet is a Victorian monstrosity made to look like a three bar English pot, and failing miserably.

Purists look away from the helmet - the stuff of nightmares!

Hidden throughout the house are a number of carvings which express Murgatroyd's loyalty to the crown.

Charles I?

Charles I and Henrietta Maria, Vive le Roi (on what is now the shop/cafe building)

Murgatroyd's estate was confiscated during the Commonwealth and the family had to pay a heavy fine for its return. This may well account why the Hall is unfinished.

 

Postcodes for SatNavs

Oakwell Hall WF17 9LG

(site of sconce) Meadow Lane LS10 1FT

St John the Evangelist's Church, New Briggate LS2 8JD

Briggate/Bridge End LS1 7HG

Leeds City Museum, Millennium Square LS2 8BH

(site of Red Hall) The Headrow LS1 8EQ

Leeds Central Library, Calverley Street LS1 3AB
Treasures of the Brotherton Gallery, University of Leeds LS2 9JT

(site of) Gascoigne's Home 10 Town St, Belle Isle LS10 3PN

Temple Newsam, Leeds LS15 0AE

The Black Bull, Market Place, Otley LS21 3AQ

Fairfax Hall, Main Street Menston LS29 6EY

Menston Hall, Farnley Road, Menston LS29 6GA

Farnley Hall, Hall Lane, Farnley LS12 5HA

12 Ivegate, Bradford BD1 1RJ

St Peter's Cathedral, Bradford BD1 4EH

Station Road Car Park, Hebden Bridge HX7 8AU

Visitor Parking (Bowling Green Car Park), Heptonstall HX7 7LT

Pontefract Castle WF8 1QH
All Saints Church, Pontefract WF8 2JL
Pontefract Museum, Pontefract WF8 1BA
Chequerfield, The Circle WF8 2AY

Seacroft Moor: A64 York Road LS14 2BL
Seacroft Moor: Langbar Close LS14 5EB

Howley Hall Ruins, access from Howley Mill Lane WF17 0BL

Wakefield Museum, Mulberry way WF1 2UP
Wakefield Cathedral, Northgate WF1 1PJ
Northgate WF1 3AY
Warrengate WF1 1SA
Elizabethan Gallery, Brooke Street WF1 1QW
Sandal Castle Manygates Lane, WF2 7DS

East Riddlesden Hall, Keighley BD20 5EL

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