Royal Penrith

by Joseph Jackson.

Penrith and Eden are no strangers to royal visits, many of which were welcome while some others not so much! With the Coronation of King Charles III, we will take the opportunity to look back at royal persons who visited Penrith and the area.

The first fleeting visit in recorded history was that of the Emperor Hadrian, as he travelled to and from the Roman frontier in AD 120. Obviously, Penrith as we understand it did not exist at that time with the population being centred around Brocavum. But as the Roman road passes through the area now occupied by the town, we will add him to the list. The same can be applied to the Emperor Marcus Aurelius who toured the frontier some 40 years after Hadrian.

The Roman Road established over the slopes of Penrith is one of the main contributing factors to the establishment of the town sometime between AD 815 – 830.

In AD 634 King Oswald of Northumbria arrived in Eden the few early Anglo-Saxon place names in the region can be dated to his annexation of Cumbria. Oswald had taken the city of Luguvallium (Carlisle) and renamed it Luel. He then travelled south arriving at Brocavum and the site was renamed Brougham, Northumbrian Anglish, meaning Fort with a Village.

The first official royal visit came in AD 927 with the great gathering at Brougham to sign the Treaty of Eamont. Present were King Athelstan of Wessex & Mercia, King Constantine of Scotland, Owien King of Cumbria-Strathclyde, Uhtred of Bebbanburh, as well as several lesser sub-kings and nobles. The Treaty was signed at Maybrough Henge, creating the new Kingdom of England after which they gathered at the early church of St Andrews to give thanks.

It is possible that Athelstan returned to Penrith and Brougham on his way back from Scotland after the outbreak of war with Constantine, Strathclyde and the Norse of Dublin and Westmorland as they all allied with Scotland against Athelstan. This led to the Battle of Brunnanburh in 937; one of the greatest battles ever fought in Britain. Its location has been debated but new evidence is now placing Brougham as the likely location.

The next notable royal visit to the area was in 1091 and the arrival of the Normans under King William II. From 1018 to 1091 the River Eamont had been the border between England and Scotland making Penrith the first town in Scotland. William II pushed the border north to its current location and sparked off 500 years of border wars in doing so.

Whether any of these royal personages other than the gathering of kings in 927 actually stayed in area is not recorded but considering the travel distances on horse during those times it is very likely long they at least rested here before moving on.

The first royal known to have stayed in the area was Edward I who on his invasions of Scotland marched his armies past Penrith. He stayed at Brougham Castle in July 1300 which considering the size of the king’s retinue would have cost Lord Robert Clifford a fortune in both money and resources.

The next on the list was not a king at the time but should still be mentioned as after his time in Penrith, he would become one of England’s most notorious monarchs. Penrith Castle had belonged to the Neville family but after the defeat of the Earl of Warwick at the Battle of Barnet, the Nevilles Northern estates were given to King Edward IV younger brother Richard Duke of Gloucester. In 1471 Richard was made sheriff of Penrith, Hutton, and Middleham and commander of the northern army on the border. Richard based himself in Penrith at what is now the Gloucester Arms he was well thought of by the local people and an able commander. Later as King Richard III would fight his last battle at Bosworth where he had enlisted the help of the soldiers and archers he had commanded in Cumbria.

During the 15th and 16th centuries the borderlands of Cumbria became increasingly lawless. Penrith was situated on the far southern reaches of this reiver activity and thus escaped the worst of it. During this time Penrith became the major market in the area due to its safer distance from the border compared to that of Carlisle. This importance as the centre for trade especially that of livestock continued well into the 20th century.

During this time monarchs had little to do with the area that is at least in a positive way.

When Mary Queen of Scots fled from Scotland and landed at Workington, she was taken to Carlisle in May 1568 before she was moved to Bolton Castle, she was then hosted at Lowther Hall by Sir Richard Lowther. A letter from Queen Mary still exists thanking Sir Richard for his kindness and hospitality which did not do him any favours in the eyes of Elizabeth I.

When Elizabeth I died in 1603, Queen Mary’s son James Stuart

VI of Scotland became James I of England. On his way south to London for his coronation he passed through Penrith and stayed at Brougham Castle. England and Scotland were still separate hostile kingdoms so for the people of Penrith having the new Scottish king pass through as their liege lord must have been a strange experience. The Stuarts were perhaps one of the most disastrous royal dynasties of English history. James II was deposed from the throne by his daughter Mary and her husband William of Orange and they were succeeded by Queen Anne who died without any surviving children and was the last of the Stuart monarchs. James II remained in exile with his son James (the Old Pretender). The English throne had passed by act of parliament to George of Hanover who was also a descendant of James I.

At first the Hanoverians were not overly popular with the English but at least more popular than the Stuarts had been. The Jacobites (supporters of James II), raised in rebellion under James’ son (the Old pretender) in 1715 and under his grandson Charles (Bonnie Prince Charlie) both of their armies stayed in Penrith trying to raise local support which was not forthcoming the town remaining steadfastly loyalty to the English crown but treated Charles Stuart with courtesy. In 1746 after the 45’ rebellion for their loyalty William Duke of Cumberland gifted ornate chandeliers to St Andrews Church and can still be seen in the church. From that time the town’s main hotel was the George Hotel named after King George II.

Up to this point Penrith’s royal connections have not been particularly peaceful ones but with the end of the Jacobite era caused England and Scotland to enter a time of relative stability. With the arrival of the railway in the 1840’s royal visits became something of a fleeting affair as they now sped past the town towards Carlisle. Since the end of the border conflicts in the 17th century, Carlisle had superseded Penrith as the main centre for trade and commerce although Penrith remained a healthy market town.

The Monarchs and family of the House of Windsor are no strangers to Penrith and Eden with King Charles III during his time as Prince of Wales visiting the town and area on many occasions. During sad civil war in the time of Charles I, Penrith remained steadfastly loyal to the king. Today during the visits by Charles Prince of Wales, Queen Elizabeth II and other members of the family that loyalty is still very evident.