Castleford History "BC to 1535".
The Borough of Castleford lies in the county of Yorkshire, 190 miles north of London, England. I remember it as being part of the West Riding of Yorkshire but now it comes under the auspices of the Wakefield Metropolitan District Council.B.C. - The Original Dwellers.
Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages have seen life along the Limestone Edge, as is evident in the small pieces of ancient pottery found during the building of the Ferry Fryston Housing Estate.
Castleford lay at the centre of a large forest that spread from the Tyne as far south as Nottingham.
79 A.D. - Roman Era.The name Castleford came from the Romans. Castrum - a camp or fort and Ford - shallow part of a stream crossed by a road.
Castleford was the place where Watling Street crossed the River Aire. Watling Street ran from Danum (Doncaster) down the western boundary of Pontefract Park, across the end of Smawthorne Lane and Welbeck Street, crossed Carlton Street at the Junction Inn, passed the Parish Church, down Rectory Street and across the river near the present dam. Then onwards to Calcaria (Tadcaster) and Isurium (Aldborough) and the north. A second road from Sheffield and a third from Chester joined Watling Street around Pontefract Park thereby making Castleford a major junction.
Agricola was the Roman Governor of Britain and about this date after a great struggle he succeeded in conquering the Brigantes near to Isurium (Aldborough) - his way would lead from Danum (Doncaster) to Legioleum (Castleford), to Eboracum (York) and up to Isurium (Aldborough). A fine example of a Roman Milestone was placed in Beancroft Road in 249 A.D. the commencement of the reign of the Emperor Decius Trajanus, and is inscribed with his and his son's names and titles. After his death, it was inverted and reinscribed at the other end with the names and titles of the Emperors Vibius Gallus and Vibius Volusianus 251-253 A.D. This is now in the Castleford Museum Room. Legioleum was a considerable Roman town at this time as witness the coins, pottery and historical evidence found and was on the main Roman Road North - thus many a Roman Legion must have marched through under such Commanders as Suetonius Paulinus, Agricola, Hadrian, Severus and in particular The Emperor Constantine to be crowned at York. The Romans left around 410 A.D.
410 A.D. - The Saxons.
After the Romans left, and for the next fifty years, there was fighting around Castleford until the Celts were driven north.
Then for the next six hundred years the Saxon's ruled the area.
Initially it was named Chesterford, then Casterford until finally becoming Castleford.
A lot of places ending in 'ton' are Saxon as this means a place surrounded by a hedge. Fryston / Allerton / Glasshoughton etc.
577 A.D. - Pope Gregory and The Angles.About the year 577 A.D. a number of slaves were seen on the market place in Rome and one of the onlookers was one Gregory. The fair faces and golden hair of these slaves attracted him and he asked a trader from whence they came. He was told they were Angles from Deira (Castleford was included in the Province of Deira). When Gregory became Pope he sent Augustine to this country to convert the Angles.
627 A.D. - St. Augustine Introduces Christianity.
Augustine and his Monks had re-introduced the Christian faith by 597 A.D. and Ethelbert was converted. His daughter Ethelberga married Edwin, King of Northumbria, and brought with her to her new home her own Priest, Paulinus. Due to the preaching of Paulinus and at a meeting of the 'Witan' in 627 A.D., Edwin and his Court embraced Christianity.
948 A.D. - The Danish Invasion.
Roger De Hoveden, the 12th. Century Chronicler, states that King Edred's army suffered a defeat from the Danes from York, under Eric. Hoveden states that the Danes "attacked Elred on his retreat at Casterford, as they were about to cross the Aire." Again the venerable Bede states that "The Northumbrians burst out from York and committed great slaughter upon him (Elred) at Casterford."
1067 - William The Conqueror. The Great Saxon Earls Morcar and Edwin (to whom belonged the district North of Castleford at the time of the Conquest) were so exasperated by the severity of the Norman overlords that they rebelled and expelled the Norman Garrison from York. William the Conqueror returned from Normandy, marched his army along old Watling Street and was detained three weeks at Castleford by the inundation of the Aire. When the waters subsided he crossed the Ford and set up camp at Sherburn. From there he lay siege to York and left the whole territory desolate.
1080 - The Doomsday Book.
The Doomsday Book of William the Conqueror names and gives owners of places now within the borders of Castleford, Ligulf and Witewood (Whitwood), Lewin at Hoctun (Glasshoughton), Gamel and Gerbodo at Queldale (Wheldale), and Fristune (Fryston).
1080 - Hamelin Mill.Gillbert de Lacy was one of William the Conqueror's Barons, who commenced to build Pontefract Castle and which was completed in 1080. All the land within the vicinity was under his jurisdiction and the Doomsday Book gives details of the number of ploughs, cottars, villanes, bordars, churches, priests, fisheries, mills, carucates of lands. We learn that in this vicinity Ilbert allowed Hamelin to have ploughs, villanes, meadows and a mill that had previously belonged to one Suuan. Henry de Lacy allowed two mills to Castleford in 1140.
Cottars, villanes and bordars are peasants or serfs. Each of these designations were slightly different in that some could rent land, some could not, some could grow 'personal' food, others could not.
1086 - Glasshoughton.The earliest reference of Glasshoughton is recorded in the Doomsday Book survey of 1086 under the name 'Hoctun'. There it was referred to as being formally owned by a Saxon thane named Lewin who had 6 carucates of land, employing 4 ploughs and contributing 100 shillings to the royal revenue. At this time it was considered to be more important than Castleford.
The name of 'Hocton' derives from the word 'hough' or 'houe' which is Celtic for burying place on a hill. A good indication of this is the Roman coffins that were found in the nearby Holywell Wood. The word 'ton' is of Saxon origin indicating a collection of homesteads.
These words form the name 'Houghton'. However, in the late 1700's to distinguish it from the other Houghtons in Yorkshire the word 'Glass' was added after a small glass works that formally existed in the village.
Although it covers an area of 15000 acres by 1822 its recorded population was only 412.
1090 - The Saxon Church at Wheldale.
A Saxon church mentioned in the Doomsday Record was at Queldale (Wheldale), circumstances lead us to believe it was on or near to the site of Wheldale Farm. A Deed of Endowment by Sir Henry Vavasour to the Vicar's Choral of York in 1332 refers to it as a Chapel of Ease where an Anchorite lived.
Note: An Anchorite was a hermit belonging to an order of the Roman Catholic Church. His duty was to make prayer, to intercede.
1122 - Flour Milling. As early as 1122 reference is made to Castleford having two flour mills.
In Sagar's 1752 map of Castleford the 'Old Mill' is shown on the north side of the river standing by the side of a cutting which took water from upstream on the Aire and deposited it back just above the bridge. Water to the wheel being controlled by means of a lock in the cutting. In the 1770's a new mill and farm buildings, called the 'Castleford Old Mill', were built by John Smeaton for a Mr. Crowther on the site of the 'Old Mill'.
In 1822 when Thomas Heptinstall was the miller he moved the mill to its present location in Aire Street. Queen's Mill, as it was named, consisted of five pairs of mill stones driven by a twenty foot water wheel. At the peek of production the mill could turn out one and a half tonnes of flour every hour.
In 1921 the mill was taken over by the National Food Company which had been established earlier by Dr. Thomas Allinson (1858-1918). Allinson, a controversial man in his time, actually believed that a good diet including wholewheat flour, "with nowt taken out", could contribute to a healthy life. An idea we all take for granted today.
Between 1950 and 1970 one of Castleford's outstanding memories was its "snow". Scouring agents deposited into the river by the heavy woollen mills upstream were churned into soapsuds by the weir. The river around Allisons had a permanent cover of foam which at the slightest breeze would swirl up into the air and fall over the whole of the riverside area including the outdoor market and the Bank Street bus station. Complaints about the damage it did to clothing and car paintwork were often directed at Allisons who were mistakenly accused of being the cause.
As late as the 1950's grain and flour were being transport to and from the mill by barge.
The whole mill was modernised in 1978 and is still claimed to be the largest mill in the world producing genuine stone ground flour.
1321 - The Beheading of Thomas, Earl of Lancaster.Thomas was opposed to Edward II's favourites and headed a revolt of the Northern Lords in support of Henry. They were defeated and Henry taken prisoner. Edward II was at Pontefract and ordered the Earl to be beheaded in sight of his own castle, on St. Thomas Hill. A stone coffin was found on St. Thomas Hill, containing the decapitated skeleton of a man and there was every probability that this was Thomas. The coffin was taken into the care of the Milnes family of Fryston Hall and was seen as late as 1903.
1326 - The Writing of History by Thomas de Casterford.
Thomas de Casterford was born at Houghton and was a Monk at St. John's Priory, Pontefract. He came of the De Casterford family which from 1256 to 1611 was as Whitaker says "of considerable account." Thomas was a well-known historian and wrote a history of Castleford, which is referred to by Camden, the Historian - Just a few leaves of this manuscript are now left.
1346 - The Restoration of The Parish Church,
helped by John of Gaunt, Son of Edward II.
Evidence of John of Gaunt, son of Edward II "Time Honoured Lancaster" is very frequent in these parts. He married Blanche, the daughter of the Duke of Lancaster, and was the ancestor of Kings Henry IV, V and VI. He killed the last wild wolf in England near to where the John O'Gaunt Inn is. Some of the windows in the old Parish Church had his quarterings and he is said to have restored the Castleford Parish Church of pre-1866.
1461 - The War of the Roses. Though the wars lasted from 1455 to 1487, there were just 428 days of actual campaigning. One thing to remember about any version of the Battle of Towton is that very few records have survived and most of those which did were written by the Yorkists. Add to this the fact that the nature of these battles often meant that those taking part were not fully aware of who was where and when, means that some liberties may have been taken by this account.
The Battle of Towton
In mid-February 1461, the Lancastrians had defeated the Yorkists at St. Albans. For a number of reasons they were unable to consolidate this and take London. Instead King Henry tried to regroup his army at Dunstable. Many of Henry's men, who were unpaid and hungry, simply deserted and set off for home. Meanwhile King Edward was able to gather together a large force and was welcomed into London and crowned King by the people who feared, rightly, that the Lancastrian army simply wanted to plunder the city and rape their womenfolk.
After the Yorkists had entered London, Henry VI, Margaret of Anjou, Prince Edward and the remains of the Lancastrian army, marched to York pillaging as they went and leaving havoc and misery behind them. By retreating the Lancastrians effectively surrendered the military initiative to the Yorkists.
The Lancastrian army camped outside the walls of York and Henry tried to reassemble his army. Edward did the same in London. On the 11th. of March Edward's men left London on their way north. Edward himself left London on the 13th. and went to St Albans gathering new recruits as he went. By the 22nd. Edward had arrived in Nottingham, where he was informed that 30,000 Lancastrians were positioned to defend the river crossing at Ferrybridge in Yorkshire. By the 27th he had reached Pontefract with an army of 25,000. So that on the day of the battle the two armies had between 60,000 and over 100,000 men - possibly two per cent of the total population of England, which was even greater than the population of London.
The Lancastrian army was predominantly northern including at least nineteen peers - whilst the Yorkists had only eight. Somerset, commander of the Lancastrians, was aged twenty-four, while Edward, commander of the Yorkists, was eighteen.
On the 28th. of March Edward sent Lord FitzWalter and his men to secure the bridge over the River Aire, south of Ferrybridge, but they were attacked by Lord Clifford who lead a large contingent of cavalry. FitzWalter and most of his men were killed and Warwick, who was with him, was wounded in the leg. When the news of this disaster spread through the Yorkist ranks morale plummeted. Edward and his captains were worried that this would affect their army's performance, but Warwick saved the day in dramatic fashion when he killed his horse in full view of his men and vowed that he would rather fight on foot and die with them than yield another inch.
Meanwhile, Henry offered a truce as he was a religious man and did not want to fight on Palm Sunday but this was refused. Edward then sent in the Yorkist vanguard under the command of the Duke of Suffolk, which pushed the Lancastrians back to the end of the bridge. On hearing the bridge was almost taken, Edward marched the main body of his army to Ferrybridge to aid Suffolk, himself going on foot to fight with them.
In order to stop the Yorkists the Lancastrians destroyed the bridge. The Yorkists then tried to built a narrow raft but this was also destroyed. While this was going on Fauconberg had taken a force through Wheldale to cross the Aire at Castleford. Clifford was busy defending the bridge and met Fauconberg coming down the side of the Aire. There followed an intense struggle on the Brotherton marshes and although Clifford fought with heroic courage he and his men became surrounded and overwhelmed so they retreated towards the village of Saxton; unwisely at this point he loosened his gorget and was killed by an arrow in his throat.
That night the Yorkist army were able to set up camp on the northern side of the river while Edward lodged at Pontefract Castle. At dawn on the 29th. of March 1461 Palm Sunday both armies found themselves in the midst of a terrible snowstorm. The Yorkists began their march north, and at eleven o'clock in the morning Edward drew up his men in battle formation, their lines stretching for a mile along a ridge. At the same time the Lancastrians took up their position half a mile to the north of the Yorkists on high ground a hundred feet above the village of Towton, six miles north of Ferrybridge.
The armies were now facing each other across what would shortly be known as the 'Bloody Meadow' and a field which is still called North Acres. From an military point of view the Lancastrians were in a commanding position and seemingly had the advantage. Neither army was in a good position to retreat so now it was all or nothing for both of them.
Actually the Lancastrians were at a disadvantage because the wind was blowing the snow into their faces and they were unable to see the enemy properly or judge distances. Volley after volley of their arrows fell wide or short of the mark. All the Lancastrians could hear was the mocking laughter of Fauconberg's archers, which was accompanied by a deadly hail of arrows creating havoc in their ranks. What the Lancastrians did not know was that the Yorkists were advancing to gather up the enemy arrows, firing them back, and then retreating to avoid the next haphazard fall of yet more ineffectual arrows.
Before long the Lancastrians became aware of what was happening and the order was given to lay down bows and arrows and charge into battle across the meadow. The Yorkists were forced to do the same and as the Lancastrian vanguard advanced downhill they inflicted heavy casualties, routing Edward's cavalry flank, which was chased from the field.
For two hours the armies were locked in a vicious mêlée in driving sleet and bitter winds, with no quarter being given nor any prisoners taken; unusually even the common foot soldiers were not spared. Edward was busy commanding his army, aiding his men, or helping to carry the wounded from the field. When his soldiers appeared to be flagging he dismounted in the thick of the fighting and rallied them, crying that he intended to live or die with them that day.
Warwick and his men despite being in the thick of the mêlée, managed to hold their position. So many had fallen that the snow was red with blood and the field littered with bodies, yet reserve troops were continually being sent to replace those who had been killed or injured. Some were simply collapsing from exhaustion and were trampled to death by the men who came to take their places.
As the afternoon advanced the fighting showed no signs of coming to an end; thousands upon thousands perished, and the air was split by the screams of the wounded and the dying. As dust approached it looked as though there would be no winner though the Lancastrians had been driven back to the western side of the meadow. At this point Norfolk's men, who were late arriving, came up from Saxton into North Acres and attacked the Lancastrian left flank. The Lancastrians force finally broke and fled the field. As they did so, the Yorkist cavalrymen gave chase. It is claimed that Edward realising his victory, shouted, "Spare the commons! Kill the lords!" but his command was ignored.
Crossing the Cock Beck was now the only way the defeated army could escape. There was a makeshift bridge of boards at Cocksford around which there was heavy fighting as the Yorkists tried to prevent the Lancastrians from crossing it to freedom. The bridge had not been built to support a battling mass of men, and as it gave way hundreds from both armies plunged into the icy water below, where most of them drowned or suffocated in the press. Struggling wildly in the water many were trampled as more people used their bodies as a bridge to the farther shore. Before long the Cock Beck was running red with blood all the way to the River Wharfe. Those Lancastrians who came up to find the bridge gone, were slaughtered in droves.
The battle lasted for ten hours, from eleven in the morning until nine at night, although the rout went on into the next day. When it was over, men dropped down with exhaustion and slept among the dead and wounded. The Yorkists had scored a decisive and overwhelming victory.
Towton is claimed to be the bloodiest battle ever to take place on English soil. When dawn rose on the 30th. of March, the meadow and North Acres were thick with corpes. Edward's heralds estimated that 28,000 had been killed, however, this only applied to those bodies lying on the field, and did not include all those who perished during the rout, so the real figure is believed to be nearer 40,000. Of these, according to John Paston, 8ooo were Yorkists. Proportionately casualties were higher here than those for the Battle of the Somme.
Because of the masive task of burying so many thousands of bodies, Edward gave extra wages to the gravediggers. A huge pit was dug at Saxton, in which hundreds of bodies were buried. Others were interred in another large pit in the Bloody Meadow, beside the bank of the Cock Beck. The Burial mounds are still visible at Low Leads, beyond Castle Hill Wood.
Henry VI and Margaret of Anjou were in York when the battle was fought. When they were told of the terrible Lancastrian defeat, and that their army had been virtually annihilated, they fled from the city. Although Edward had scored a resounding victory, it was an incomplete one, for Henry, Margaret and their son were still at large and he would not be secure on the throne until they were either dead or he had them in his power.
This was in effect the end of the 'War of the Roses'. And so it came to pass that on Sunday, 28th. of June 1461 Edward was crowned King in Westminster Abbey and his rule was 'welcomed by all'. In reality the war was to continue until 1471 when Henry VI, by then a prisoner of King Edward, mysteriously died in the Tower of London.
1535 - Coal Mining. The inhabitants of Houghton (Hoctun of Doomsday Book) have long been connected with coal. A record of 1535 states that "Though here be plenti of wode, yet the people burne much yearth cole bycawse hit is plentifull and sold good chepe." While a record of 1570 refers to 'John Dee of Houghton a digger of cole'.
Deep mining as we know it only commenced in 1868 when the Wheldale Colliery was established. In 1869 the Merefield Colliery was sunk. Merefield later became the Glasshoughton Colliery. Fryston Colliery followed in the early 1870's and Fryston village was built to house the miners in 1890. Life was hard for the miners, coal strikes against cuts in wages, together with poor working conditions and pay took there toll, but the spirit of comradeship prevailed.
In 1893 troops were sent to the coalfield when a bitter strike led to unrest at Ackton Hall Colliery, Featherstone. The Riot Act was read there and two men - James Gibbs and James Duggan - were shot dead by soldiers. From October 1902 to January 1904, Fryston and Wheldale miners took part in a 68 week strike against a reduction in wages. Further major strikes occured in 1912 and 1921. The miners realised that coal was the life blood of the country and used this power whilst the mine owner, often with government backing, attempted to reduce their costs. The opening of pit head baths and clinics in the 1930's improved the lot of the coal miner, but the work was still dirty, dangerous and poorly paid. From 1850 to 1914 over 100,000 miners were reported as killed or injured and these figures did not cover every pit in the country.
The strikes of 1972 and 1974 saw a great improvement in coal miners wages. When the last great strike took place from 1984 to 1985 the, by now nationalised, coal board and the Thatcher government dismissed as rubbish claims that pits would be closed. When the strike ended the workforce stood at 138,500 and there were 169 pits in production. These figures have now shrunk to 8,125 and 18 respectively with more closures forecast for the future. Fryston closed in 1985, Glasshoughton closed in 1986 and Wheldale closed in 1987. Castleford now has no working coal mines.