The latest podcast from The World Turned Upside Down (pasted)

 

Living through civil war sieges in Newark – the civilian experience

In the seventeenth century the market town of Newark sat at the lowest bridging point across the River Trent astride the Great North Road which linked London with the north and Scotland. Unsurprisingly, control of this town became a strategic objective for both sides during First Civil War.

Besieged not once but three times, by parliamentarian and Scots armies, Newark was fought over for years and in the words of the diarist, John Evelyn writing in 1654, it earned the reputation for being a “brave towne and garrison”.

But the cost for its people was high because behind its medieval walls and more modem earthwork siege defenses, Newark was more than a military strongpoint. It was also home to more than 2,000 citizens – men, women and children – who struggled to survive the dangers and hardship that came with siege warfare.

For more than 20 years historian and author, Dr. Stuart Jennings has worked to uncover the stark realities of ordinary people’s lives as they struggled to raise their families and survive bombardment, hunger and disease. He tells publisher, Mike Gibbs, what he has uncovered.

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