So what's all this then? A dirty big hole in the middle of town, surely it must mean something. Well, the something is explained by the plaque below; this is where the English Civil War got uptight and personal. The King, having done a runner from London, was on the look out for some munitions to help his cause. Kingston-upon-Hull had an armoury; so he turned up at the gates thinking to take the guns and what have you. He was told to go away and the gates of the town were slammed in his face. So poor old Charley had to turn round and trot all the way back to Beverley for his supper. After that, I'm afraid he rather lost his head. (Here endeth the lesson).
The hole contains the excavated foundations of the old entrance to Hull and part of the city walls, that's the brickwork you can see at the bottom of the hole. As is usual in Hull, what should be an attraction, indeed a national monument, has become a litter filled midden and an utter disgrace; it's gradually falling apart. In my capacity as an outraged citizen I wrote to the Council inquiring what they were going to do about it; I have had no reply as yet and I'm not holding my breath.
Great history lesson. In those days the English had some guts and told the Royals where to go. What happened?
ReplyDeleteBill asks the simple question; what happened?
ReplyDeleteThe importance of the refusal of entrance to the king was that a civilian had the temerity to defy the annoited King of England. Kings had been defied before by nobles but never by a Civil servant.
After this annoited Kings were a never going to be accepted;which explains Cromwell's refusal of the crown. It leads inexorably to the American Revolution; French Revolution and so on down the years.
Hull is trouble ....still applies.
What really happened ... English rich knobs got right frit their money was going go somewhere they couldn't spend it. So after old Crommy babe died it was either have his dim witted son as a kind of king or have a real king as king. If you see what I mean.
It's like the present situation with the banks. Think of the banks as Royals; for a time they were despised and "untermenschen"; now we can't do without them. So it was with the "Royals". except they're still despised; pretty much like the banks.
Bill; you must know he old song "It's the same the whole world over; It's the poor what get the blame; It's the rich gets all the pleasure; ain't it all a bloomin' shame.
I think that's what happened.
All the uppity ones got shipped to Oz
ReplyDelete