THE BATTLE

The battle of Marston Moor took place on 2 July 1644 and was one of the key battles of the Civil War. It was fought between the Parlementarians led by Sir Thomas Fairfax & the Royalists led by Prince Rupert. It all started as a thunderstorm was coming to a close, Rupert was convinced that the enemy would not attack until morning, campfires were lit and troops began to have supper. At around 7pm in the evening, the Parlementarians suddenly decided to surprise their opponents and took charge at the Royalists. The fierce battle raged for hours and it was the Parliamentary army that successfully ousted the Royalists. Around 4000 royalist calvary were killed compared to only a few hundred of Fairfax's men. Prince Rupert's reputation declined whilst one man made a name for himself for his role in defeating Rupert's men, his name was Oliver Cromwell.

ALLEGED ACTIVITY

Many people have claimed to have seen solid figures limping along the ditches at the roadside, possibly those of the wounded soldiers. A horseman has been seen galloping through the field on the north side and one witness claims that they were chased by the horseman! Figures fighting have been seen down what is known as "Bloody Lane" and it is said the sounds of the battle can also be heard in the adjourning fields. There has been various activity reported around the supposed "burial pit" and the distant Elstrop Wood is known as the "haunted woods" where many soldiers were massacred.

VIGIL REPORT

After heavy rainfall the night before, the downpour continued into the early afternoon, we reached Marston Moor at 3:30pm when thankfully the sun decided to come out. Shortly after our arrival, we began to proceed to the top of the hill located on the north and when we eventually reached Cromwells Clump, it was decided it would be a great spot for our barbecue!  But unfortunately for us we had to trudge back through the soaked fields to the car to collect all the necessary’s, and then make another trip up the hill, back to the clump! Our first session at Cromwells Clump began at 4:30pm and we were briefly joined by a history teacher who was also visiting the site out of interest.

Left: The team - Right: Cromwell's Clump

At 6:45pm, we proceeded back down to the monument and were then joined by two members of North Wales Paranormal Research whom we had invited to join us on our investigation prior to the visit. After a team briefing at 7:45pm, we made our way towards the alleged burial pit whilst NWPR headed for the clump. We all returned to the monument at 9:10pm, and after a quick cuppa and refreshments, we headed off down Bloody Lane towards Elstrop Wood. Just before the wood, there are two ditches, the first with a stream, in which one of our members managed to walk through, the remainder of us weren't brave enough to wear wellies, so we decided to search along the stream in the hope we would find a way over, and we did!

Left: Bloody Lane - Middle: Burial Pit - Right: Field before Elstrop Wood

As dusk came upon us there was one last field to walk through, and we finally entered the woods at 10:00pm. The woods were very isolated so it was no surprise to find out that there was no clear path. Shortly after entering the woods, at 10:15pm we all stopped suddenly as gunshot-type sounds could be heard, this went on for approximately 8 minutes, it was agreed by all that a more plausible explanation for the sounds could have been fireworks being set off in the distance. After scrambling through more nettles and being attacked by thorned bushes, we eventually reached an opening with various paths and decided to do some filming and take photographs. Soon after, we started to make our way back and departed Elstrop Wood at 11:30pm. Because it was much darker than when we arrived, we could not find the path over the stream! Eventually the path appeared, and what seemed like an age (especially to the feet!) took only 47 minutes to arrive back at the monument. The shoes and socks had to come off and although there had been no rainfall since we arrived, the wetness of the fields had soaked right through.

Our final session of the night took place at the monument shortly after 12:15am. It was very quiet and still with only a few cars passing by. At 1:15am we all heard what sounded like "horses hooves" travelling slowly along the main road, as the sounds got closer it became apparent that the sounds heard were of a female walking home with her partner. They passed without even noticing us! The vigil came to a close at 2:10am and we all headed home for some much needed sleep!

SUMMARY

Unfortunately nothing paranormal to report but an interesting and enjoyable time was had by all. On a final note, NWPR have warned us that they will "get us back for this one!" 

EXTERNAL WEB LINKS

Map of the battle: http://www.livgenmi.com/gardiner73.htm

More info on the battle: http://easyweb.easynet.co.uk/~crossby/ECW/battles/marston.html 
Metal detecting - what to look for: http://www.longmarston.n-yorks.sch.uk/htdocs/battle.htm