'A Place of Great Importance': Scarborough in the Civil Wars
Dr Jack BinnsDr Binns has written a superb account of Tudor and Stuart Scarborough which really brings the history of the period to life.
By 1642 Scarborough was an old, incorporated borough of about 2,000 inhabitants which had begun to recover its former prosperity after centuries of decay and depopulation. During the next decade of civil wars and turmoil the town suffered exceptionally because of its strategic location, safe harbour and strong castle. Scarborough changed hands seven times in as many years. Twice its military governor deserted Parliament for the King's side and thereby subjected it to two prolonged and destructive sieges. The purpose of this book is to describe the town and its people as they were before, during and after these terrible experiences, and to assess the changes they brought about. Though several histories of Scarborough have been published, this is the first to draw deeply on the wealth of corporation records now deposited in the North Yorkshire County Record Office at Northallerton. It is also the first examination of Scarborough's civil-war tribulations as they were related by the propagandist presses at London and Oxford. That events at Scarborough were so often `front-page' news indicates how important both sides regarded the fate of the town, its port and its castle.
Dr Binns' original study is intended to appeal to a wide range of readers: scholars of the subject will find further evidence of corporate conservatism and resistance to outside interference, but at the same time another illustration of the truth that every borough has its own unique history; those interested in military matters of the Civil Wars, particularly siege operations, should find plenty of ammunition to fire their imaginations; and visitors to Scarborough will discover why it has a broken castle and only half of a parish church.
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