Overtures of mercy ere it be too late otherwise the justice of God and the civility of men will I doubt not most evidently appeare in the obstinate and wilfull destruction of your selves. Sir, I wish this advice may prove effectuall to you, as it will be satisfactory to Your humble servant Sept. 30. R. Overton. To this summons a short but sharp reply was sent : Sir. To render our selves prisoners, we will not, but if you please that we may treat upon our march away, wee shall have done in two words, and this is the resolution of Your servants Geo. Bonivant. The articles of rendition were then agreed to by Majors Crooke and Hooper on behalf of Colonel Overton, and by Captain John Benson on behalf of Colonel Bonivant, and ran thus: First, it is agreed upon that the Governour of Sandall Castle himself in person with the rest of the Gentlemen Officers, and Souldiers shall have liberty to march to Welbeck and to have a sufficient convoy, and foure dayes time to march thither. 2. All Officers, Gentlemen and Souldiers to the number of 12 to carry one sute of cloathes and the cloathes which they weare, the rest of the common men to have only the sute they weare, no more. 3. That the Governour and another Gentleman may have two horses to ride on, to be lent, and returned. 4. That all Gentlemen Officers, Reformadoes and Souldiers have free quarters during their march. 5. That all sick and wounded men in the Garrison shall have the libertie of these articles, and all other in generall that please for staying at home, and of going abroad into what part of the Countrey they please, so they hold not intelligence with the king's party, or come into his garison without order, and for that shall have the Generall on Committee for warres protection for their residence there. 6. That two hostages of either party be given for the performance of these articles, and that no Officer or Souldier, under Col. Overton's command shall goe into the castle before tomorrow ten a clock, except the two who are appointed to view the provisions of war, that they be not imbezzled, and to search that no man carry money out with them, which if it be found about any man, he is to remaine prisoner, but no man is to be searched after he come out of the Castle. 7. And in consideration whereof it is agreed that all persons now in the Castle shall be forthwith upon the surrender, by eight of the clock tomorrow morning as Col. Overton pleaseth. 8. All Ammunition and provision of war, to be delivered, together with the Castle, which is to be surrendered by ten a clock tomorrow, being the first day of October. 9. That the Convoy have foure dayes to returne in and that they march no further of a day with their Convoy than the Governour of Sandall Castle pleaseth, so they exceed not their time."7 Signed. Will Crooke Thus fell Sandal Castle, after sustaining a final siege of three weeks' duration, and the officers and men within it, to the number of 100, marched away to Welbeck House in Lincolnshire. When the conquerors entered on Wednesday morning, October the 1st, they took possession of one hundred muskets, fifty pikes, twenty halberts, one hundred and fifty swords, two barrels of gunpowder, divers skeanes of match, a small quantity of bullets, and a good store of beer, corn, beef, and other provisions. Sandal Castle was the last but two (Skipton and Bolton) of the Yorkshire castles to hold out for the king, and great was the rejoicing of the Roundheads at its fall, for it was described in The Kingdomes Weekly Intelligencer, of Oct. 7, 1645, as "the most resolute of all the three Northern Garrisons which Col.-Generall Poyntz left to reduce." For a short time Colonel Overton's troops occupied the castle, but on Thursday, April 30, 1646, the House of Commons resolved that along with other inland castles, Sandal should be made untenable, and no garrison kept or maintained. in it. During the siege, the Cross in Cock and Bottle lane, that had been erected by Edward the Fourth in memory of his father, the Duke of York, on the spot where he fell at the battle of Wakefield, was destroyed by the Roundhead soldiery. Soon after the Restoration of Charles the Second to the throne, Major Beaumont disposed of this estate, for by an indenture dated Nov. 1, 1662, he sold his park at Sandal with all the rights, members and appurtenances thereof, late parcel of the annexed possessions of the Duchy of Lancaster, and sometime being parcel of the lands and possessions of the Duke of York, with all pales, stone walls, dytches and hedges thereto belonging, to John Pollard, servant to Francis 47 The Moderate Intelligencer; Mercurius Britannicus; a continuation of certaine speciall and Remarkable passages informed to the Parliament; the City Scout the Parliament's Post; the King domes Weekly Intelligencer; Mercurius Civicus; the Weekly Account; a Diary, or an Exact Journal, from Sept. 11 to Oct. 9, 1645. Nevile of Chevet, esquire, to the said Francis. And also a demolish'd or ruinous building called Sandall Castle, with all Quyres and Rooms in the church thereto belonging. The purchase money amounted to £1,110. The estate remained in the family of Nevile until 1765, when on the 4th of July in that year, Anne, the daughter and sole heiress of John Nevile of Chevet, who had married Harrison Pilkington, the fifth son of Sir Lyon Pilkington of Stanley Hall, Baronet, sold Chevet and Sandal to Sir Lionel Pilkington, the fifth baronet, and elder brother of her husband, from whom it has descended to its present owner, Sir Lionel Milborne Swinnerton Pilkington, Baronet, who succeeded his brother as eleventh baronet in 1855, and to whom our thanks are due for allowing Mr. H. S. Childe (treasurer of the Society) and myself to make what excavations were thought necessary to obtain a complete plan of the castle. The diggings, which occupied about three months, were undertaken jointly by Mr. Childe and myself, and the plans of the earthworks and castle were prepared under his superintendence by Mr. W. P. Walker, who is also responsible for the very careful measurements. Mr. Whilding made careful sketches of our "finds," three of which are reproduced. To these gentlemen I tender my sincere thanks for their help so readily and ungrudgingly given, and I must also acknowledge many suggestions and help from Mr. J. T. Micklethwaite, F.S.A., Mr. W. H. St. John Hope, Mr. J. J. Cartwright, F.S.A., and the Clerk of the Peace for the West Riding, who kindly permitted me to examine some early Sessions Rolls. Lotes. [The Council have decided to reserve a small space in each Number of the Journal for notices of Finds and other discoveries; it is hoped that Members will assist in making this a record of all the matters of archæological interest which may from time to time be brought to light in this large county.] LI. RUNIC DIAL. A portion of an inscribed dial was found in the churchyard of Skelton in Cleveland in the latter part of 1891, by Mr. T. M. Fallow, and afterwards figured and described by him in the Reliquary. It bears part of the circle and four rays of the dial, two of which are crossed, with part of an inscription in four lines in quasi-Roman letters, and of another in one line, in Danish runes. The former reads (omitting fragmentary letters) ES. LET, NA. GRERA C. HWA (the P-shaped W) A. COMA and the latter (transliterated) DIEBEL. OK. Mr. Fallow gives Professor Browne's account of the inscription, as follows: "I make the runes decidedly,' Danish.' The I take to be a 'stung rune' for 'e,' the only which occurs twice other example in England being the stone in the Guildhall Library, found in St. Paul's churchyard, of the time of Canute. "And the last rune but one is very un-English. In accordance with this view is Dr. Skeat's statement, that the one clear and complete word 'COMA' is not Anglo-Saxon, as also the letters which we read as GRERA. In fuller accordance is Mr. Magnusson's statement, that both of these are decidedly Old Norse,' or 'Danish,' of early twelfth century perhaps. How well this suits the circumstances of Cleveland you know well enough. i.e., 'diebel ok,' which Mr. Magnusson says is good Danish-of latish date for devil and.' He tells me that GRERA is part of the word 'to grow,' and COMA is 'to come,' or 'they come.' These words are evidently suitable for a sun dial. The words, devil and,' may well be a pious curse on creatures of that kind; perhaps a proverbial saying, that when the sun is up the evil spirits are down. 6 "I suppose this is the only 'Danish' inscription in Anglo-Saxon orthography in this island. The fact that the inscriptions do not seem to run in known formulæ makes one much wish to see the other half.” J. T. F. NOTE. The Council is indebted to Messrs. Bemrose & Sons, Ld., for the loan of these blocks. LII. WILL OF A FORMER VICAR OF DONCASTER, 1360. In a volume entitled "Testamenta Karleolensia" just issued by the "Cumberland and Westmoreland Antiquarian and Archæological Society," the following occurs, p. 28-30. It is the will of William Nelson, vicar of Doncaster, as he is there styled. His name appears in Jackson's "History of St. George's Church" as "William, son of Thomas, son of Ellen de Appelby, Chaplain. Instit. 17 June, 1355, on pres. of the Abbot and Convent of St. Mary of York, vacated by death." The will is dated the Thursday before S. Michael's day (Sep. 29); it was proved on Oct. 6 following, his successor, Robert Murray, chaplain, being instituted on Oct. 5. It will be acceptable to all who have a copy of Hunter's "South Yorkshire,' South Yorkshire," or Jackson's or Jackson's "History of St. George's Church," and to the members of the Yorkshire Society. Two or three corrections are made in the spelling of local names. The original is in Latin. WILL OF DN. WILLIAM NELSON, VICAR OF DONCASTER. In the name of God, Amen. I, William de Appilby, Vicar of the Church of Donecaster, on Thursday next before the feast of S. Michael |