The case had excited enormous public interest with its hints of sexual liaisons, the accusations of corruption against the deeply unpopular Nadin, and the continued refusal of the condemned to admit their guilt. [15] For many castles, the expenditure is unknown. A choice of 22 rooms was available, priced from 5s (25p) to 30s (1.50p). Why allow Martha Bleares to remain at liberty and with the potential to raise the alarmsomething she eventually was able to do? Joseph Hall, Keeper of the Castle at the time, had this to say in his guidebook, written over twenty-five years later: After this execution nothing could exceed the excitement which was kept alive upward of twelve months, everyone being quite satisfied of the innocence of the culpritsThe execution was certainly one of the most extraordinary on record on many points: the whole of the proceedings are too painful for comment. This role morphed into that ofJustices of the Peace who would work at the castlepresiding over the trying of minor crimes, in four sessions a year. Open every day from 9.30 am- 5.00 pm. It seems that at no time did any of them try to hide, or disguise who they were. The blow glanced over her throat, whereupon Michael threw her to the floor and struck her again, the second time driving his knife deep into her face before rushing out of the pub. The crowd pressed so close that the gentlemen escorting the brothers had to physically shield them. It was agreed that after Stephen died, he would be succeeded by Henry Plantagenet (later King HenryII), Matilda's son. The prison closed in 1916 as the number of prisoners detained nationally was diminishing. In a time of civilunrest, what we would now recognise as political prisoners were held at the castle. [10], The main entrance is through a 20-metre-high (66ft) gatehouse built at the start of the 15th century. This probably referred to what is now known as Adrian's Tower. Read more. They enjoyed considerably more freedom than the felons, being able to use the courtyard in good weather or stay in their rooms if they so chose. [34], The Crown Court continues to sit at the castle. This dual courts and prison function would continue right through the Medieval period up into the 21st century. On March 25th 1865 Stephen Burke was hanged for the murder of his wife, this was the last public execution at the Castle. Minus her cap and bleeding heavily, the knife still embedded in her face, she ran from the house and staggered the sixty yards to the home of Mary Andrews, her niece. A debtors market was held in the Castle Yard where meat, bread, butter, groceries, vegetables, fish and fruit could be purchased. Throughout its life as a prison, Lancaster Castle has often been viewed as an extremely well-run and humane establishment. The castle has a long judicial history. Ten tercet waymarkers, designed by Stephen Raw, each inscribed with a verse of a poem by Carol Ann Duffy have been installed along the route, with the tenth located here, to mark the end-point. And yet the perpetrators of the crime would certainly have been stained quite severely, given the very nature of the murders. Nowells investigation led him into a series of claims and counterclaims of witchcraft between three local families. The Branding Iron was last used in 1811. Amid sobbing and screaming from wives and family members all four men loudly protested their innocence, so much so that the judge reprimanded them and the bailiffs and to struggle to regain order. Limited tours, lasting 30 minutes, take place throughout the day but only cover the external courtyards and one of the prison buildings. On Monday 28th April the prisoners were taken to the scene of the crime and forced to look at the corpses. A famous moniker used for Lancaster Castle was 'the hanging town' as it was considered to sentence more prisoners to death than at any other court in England. Murder trials in particular excited enormous public interest, with newspapers always keen to highlight cases that involved brutality, or ones which had sexual undertones. The outer wall is 3 metres (9.8ft) thick; along the exterior are buttresses at each corner and in the middle of each wall. The standard minimum charge for transporting a prisoner to the colonies was 8.10s 2d but this could rise to as much as 12. [41][42] This phase created a new teaching centre, as well as more than 5,000 sq ft of space, in which the Duchy has leased a section of the old kitchen to local coffee roasters and tea merchants, J. Atkinson & Co. (established 1837) to run a caf. Unknown to them, however, she observed them from the kitchen whispering together, which she thought strange. He may have wished he had been able to though, as during his tenure the number of debtors increased tenfold. The high level of poverty prevalent at the time often meant that hard labour was the only option available even to children. [3] After the Norman Conquest in the second half of the 11thcentury, Lancaster was part of the Earldom of Northumbria; it was claimed by the kings of England and Scotland. He was known to all at the Jolly Carter simply as Alec. [1][2] Little is known about Lancaster between the end of the Roman occupation of England in the early 5thcentury and the Norman Conquest in the late 11th century. George and Elizabeth Youngson were Lancaster's youngest convict transportees to Australia, for the crime of theft. Also missing were items of clothing and some plate. It has been a place of justice and incarceration for centuries and still houses one of the oldest working crown courts in the country. The gaol was re-opened by the Home Office in 1955. Ordained a Roman Catholic priest at the age of 27, Father Edmund Arrowsmith ministered and said Mass in the Brindle area between Blackburn and Preston. By the time the defendants in the Pendleton case reached court the assize had been sitting for over a week. The second world war saw the armed forces taking over the castle, and the Royal Observer Corps used it as a local control room. The Lancaster Martyrs: During this period of history fifteen Catholics were executed in Lancaster for their faith. A new Crown Court and Shire Hall were also added in the same decade. Michael described how, a little later, Bleares had drunkenly attacked some other customers when they refused to pay for their ale, shouting that he could take on three such men and still beat then all. Hunted men now, their details posted for miles around and with a price on their heads, the McKeans were on the run. RM B860TG - Lancaster Castle John O Gaunt Gateway Lancaster England UK. 2 Is Lancaster Castle still a court? Some time later Alexander McKean arrived and he too ordered beer as well as bread and cheese. . The castle is now open to the public seven days a week and is undergoing a large-scale refurbishment. [27] In 1802 the castle received more funding and Joseph Gandy was commissioned to complete the interiors of the Shire Hall and Crown Court. Lancaster Castle is one of England's best-preserved castles. Convicted felons awaiting transportation were, in law, entitled to the Kings Allowance of 2s/6d a week, but few ever received it. Since the 12thcentury, the monarch appointed a sheriff to maintain the peace in Lancashire, a role usually filled by the duke and based at the castle. To see our page with details on the Medieval buildings and the life of Lancaster Castle as a fortress click here. Notwithstanding this, he again made it clear that it was the act itself they had to judge: a reason for it was not necessary for a verdict to be reached. They were found guilty of witchcraft and hung. For example, the late 12th-century stone keep[14] at Peveril Castle in Derbyshire cost around 200, although something on a much larger scale, such as the vast Chteau Gaillard cost an estimated 15,000 to 20,000 and took several years to complete. The men were walking slowly in the direction of Appleby and he noted that they looked very weary. Between 1583 and 1646 eleven priests and four catholic laymen were sentenced andkilled at Lancaster, perhaps the most famous amongst them being Edward Arrowsmith. They could buy newspapers, food and clothing, follow their trades or professions, and have visitors from 8 am to 8 pm. The pub was at Winton, a small village on the road to Manchester, just outside Patricroft Bridge. Limited tours, lasting 30 minutes, take place throughout the day but only cover the external courtyards and one of the prison buildings. The next witnesses all testified to having seen the accused after 4pm, and therefore after the murders must have taken place. Faraday was able to avoid the attack, and with help from one of the men was able to finally subdue Michael as well, but not before Michael had bitten him in the hand and fought and kicked like a maniac in his efforts to escape. Michael claimed that Bleares struck Alexander at the same time for no reason. In 1166 the first assizes court was recorded and in 1196 there was the first written reference to a gaol. There is a macabre postscript to this story. Before the introduction of the Borstal System, children were regularly imprisoned alongside adult offenders. His records show thatwomen slept in the day room while men slept in the now demolished dungeon tower. [16] Records show that between 1402 and 1422, the year Henry V died, over 2,500 was spent on building work. Michael would be considered as aiding, assisting, abetting and comforting the felony. That there was a murder was clear, and that the deed was not an act of self-defence also seemed certain in this case. These were a group ofprisoners that were not going to be flogged, branded, killed, transported or sent to a house of correction. This maximised the amount of surveillance that could be done by the prison staff, whose own numbers could be reduced from the norm. One of the four was allowed five minutes ofrecuperationwhile the others turned the wheel. A lot of the evidence hinged around the shutters on the kitchen window. This would have been significant, as there was a belief at the time that a corpse would bleed anew at the touch of its killer. Lancaster Castle has served as a prison since the 12th century. This, coupled withtheir refusal to swear loyalty to King Charles II, meant that they were seen as disturbers of the peace of the nation and gaoled. For over 50 years, the Prison Chaplain was Parson Rowley who is said to have attended 170 criminals to their execution. [17] Since then, the castle has remained in the ownership of the Crown. Our guided tours unlock the fascinating, and often macabre, heritage of this imposing and historically significant monument. She saw the shutters partially down, but through the window she could see Margaret Marsden slumped in her chair with her back to the window. They weredreadfully dejected, and hung down their heads in the deepest despondency, while their pale and haggard looks told a horrible tale of what passed within.. In the early 18th Century there were still a number of Quakers held for non-payment of tythes. They were allowed to rest for five minutes in every twenty. This is the story of a tradesman incarcerated for insolvency. He described Margaret Marsden as an ancient lady, long in the family and Hannah Partington as a beautiful young girl. He also pointed out that while no trace of blood had been found on any of the mens clothing, amounts of cash reportedly stolen from the house had been discovered in their possession. What if Elizabeth Bate had been the intended victim all along? 4 What is When Was The Last Execution At Lancaster Castle? Being not only an historic castle but also a functional Prison up until 2011 Lancaster Castle has lots to see.