Newcastle upon Tyne’s Mayors

Posted on 27 June, 2023 by nspeccoll

In 1865-66, Joseph Crawhall II (1821-1896) set about creating a manuscript catalogue of all the Mayors and Sheriffs of Newcastle upon Tyne, as afternoon and evening recreation. He took his information from manuscripts and published records, such as Henry Bourne’s The History of Newcastle upon Tyne (1736). Crawhall’s manuscript comprises an index of names and dates, followed by chronological illustrations of the crests of those who served as Mayor and Sheriff. Some of the shields are left blank but Crawhall tells us “This M.S. is complete excepting finishing the colouring of the various shields which I reserve for my leisure”. The manuscript has been partially digitised and available on CollectionsCaptured.

Although Crawhall’s catalogue begins in 1401, with Roger Thornton (d.1430), Newcastle has had an elected mayor since 1216. In 1906, the city was awarded lord mayoralty in recognition of it being the principal town and seaport in the north of England. It wasn’t until 1956 that Newcastle had its first female Lord Mayor, Violet Hardisty Grantham (1893-1983) and it was only in 2021 that the first non-white Lord Mayor, Habib Rahman, was elected.

The title page of Crawhall’s manuscript is followed by a splendid hand-coloured coat of arms for the city. Three castles are supported by two seahorses. The castle motif has its origins in the new castle, built by order of Robert Curthose in 1080, from whence the town took its name. The seahorses serve to remind us that Newcastle is a seaport. At the top, is a lion holding the staff (flagpole) of the St. George’s pennant (flag); at the bottom, is the Latin motto which translates into ‘Triumphing by Brave Defence’. The motto was adopted during the English Civil War, after the town defended itself against the Scots in 1644.

Coat of arms for Newcastle upon Tyne. — **Coat of arms, Newcastle upon Tyne: Crawhall, J. The Mayors & Sheriffs of Newcastle upon Tyne, from MCCCC to this Present Year, with their Coats of Arms (1866) (Crawhall 63)**

As one would expect, those who have served as Mayor have been distinguished people. Thomas Horsley (1462-c.1545) was an agricultural merchant, magistrate, and Sheriff who defended Newcastle’s mercantile interests ensuring Newcastle remained an important centre of trade in the North East and who served as Mayor in 1514, 1519, 1524-25 and 1533. Today, he is remembered as the founder of Newcastle’s oldest educational institution, the Royal Grammar School (RGS), in 1525.

Crawhall has completed Horsley’s coat of arms under his term as Sheriff in 1512. It is a red shield with three horse’s heads (bottom right shield in below image). Next to it, Crawhall has sketched a bridled horse, with the annotation “horses reined or in w”.

A series of 6 hand drawn shields, each representing a different family. — **Coat of arms of Thomas Horsley (1462-c.1545)**

John Marlay (1590-1673) would later fall from grace and wealth but was Mayor 1642-44 and was appointed as military Governor for Newcastle by Charles I. A merchant, military commander, and politician, he held the town for seven months while it was besieged by the Scots army and fought in the streets when they stormed the town in 1644. He is also alleged to have saved the distinctive Lantern Tower of St. Nicholas’ Cathedral from destruction by ordering Scots prisoners into the tower.

Crawhall depicts the coat of arms of Sir John Marlay, knight, as a white shield with a black chevron and three black birds (top left shield in below image). He has based this on information contained in a manuscript by Ralph Waters.

Sir Walter Calverley Blackett (1707-1777) was Mayor five times, in 1735, 1748, 1756, 1764 and 1771. He was born in Otley (Yorkshire) to Sir Walter Calverley and Julia Blackett but inherited estates from his uncle under certain conditions, which included his adoption of the Blackett coat of arms. He would later sell several of the estates and move to Cambo (Northumberland) where he improved Wallington Hall. (Upon his death, Wallington Hall passed to the Trevelyan family into which his sister had married, and Special Collections holds the papers of several generations of the Trevelyan family.)

Sir Walter was a philanthropist: he built a library; supported relief for people that found themselves unemployed by the harbour freezing; and regularly supported the Newcastle Infirmary.

It is the Blackett coat of arms that Crawhall has painted under the entry for Mayor in 1735: a white shield with a black chevron on which are arranged three shells. Three black stars are arranged above and below the chevron (top left shield in below image). Under the shield, Crawhall has written in red “Bourne ceases”, in reference to the publication of one of his aforementioned historical sources.

Crawhall has included his own family’s coat of arms as his father, Joseph Crawhall I (1793-1853) was Mayor in 1849-50. Crawhall I was also a magistrate, rope-maker, friend to the naturalist and wood engraver Thomas Bewick, and an artist. Unsurprisingly, Crawhall has rendered his family’s coat of arms with great care (second row, left shield in below image). The lower two thirds of the shield are red, with a stook of golden grain; the upper third is white with three crows. Above the shield, another crow is painted standing on another stook of corn. The family motto, below the shield, translates as ‘I have neither want nor care’.

Joseph Crawhall I was succeeded as Mayor by the industrialist, engineer, and philanthropist William Armstrong (1810-1900), after whom Armstrong College (now the Armstrong Building, Newcastle University) was named.

Crawhall and the Big Birdwatch – January 2022

Posted on 21 January, 2022 by nspeccoll

Each year the last weekend of January is time for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds’ (RSPB) annual Big Garden Birdwatch. It’s a time when we’re all encouraged to go and count the birds we see – maybe in your garden, from a balcony or window, or in a local park, and submit the results online. The initiative helps monitor the bird population in the UK.

There’s lots of opportunities to spot birds and other wildlife in the North East of England, and our archives and rare books reflect people’s interest with the natural world across history. One example of these is this fabulous bird illustrations from our Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive.

Watercolour illustration of a trio of goldfinches. — Watercolour design, likely for a decorative plate, featuring goldfinches, c.1875, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive JCII/6/1/64, Newcastle University Special Collections, GB 186

Joseph Crawhall II (1821-1896) was a businessman, artist and patron of the arts. His artistic achievements including wood engraving, watercolours and contributions to Punch magazine. The pursuits of himself and his family contributed to the thriving cultural environment of 19th Century Newcastle.

However, the illustrations we’re highlighting here were not created by Joseph. They are pages from illustrated diaries and sketchbooks attributed to his brother, George Edward Crawhall (1821-1896). This generation of Crawhall siblings were all artists – George and Joseph but also brother Thomas and their sister Jane. George’s legacy is not as celebrated as his brother Joseph’s, but he also contributed to some of Joseph’s most famous works, including the Compleatest Angling Booke, for which George contributed the trout tail which features at the end.

Watercolour illustration of a magpie sitting in a branch. — Watercolour design for a decorative plate featuring a magpie, 17 December 1873, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive JCII/6/1/59, Newcastle University Special Collections, GB 186.

These diaries/sketchbooks reveal George’s travel in England and Scotland between 1867 and the 1890s. Many of the images depict scenes from the North East, such as the image below of a coot and moorhen fighting in Brandling Park – just around the corner from the Philip Robinson Library, home to Newcastle University’s Special Collections and Archives.

Page from a diary containing three watercolour illustrations of a coot and moorhen on a pond. — Watercolour illustration showing a coot and a moorhen fighting in Brandling Park, 25th April 1888, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive JCII/6/2/10, Newcastle University Special Collections, GB 186

The diaries record many of scenes of hunting and fishing, alongside natural history studies. Birds feature heavily, although frequently under the gaze of armed hunters.

The beautiful circular designs featured in this blog post each showcase a different bird native to the UK, and were likely intended to appear on decorative plates.

Watercolour illustration of a trio of bullfinches sitting in a bush. — Watercolour design, likely for a decorative plate, featuring bullfinches, c.1880, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive JCII/6/2/3, Newcastle University Special Collections, GB 186

Will you see any of these birds in this year’s Birdwatch?

You can read more about the Big Garden Birdwatch and sign up to participate on the RSPB’s website.

You can read more about the fascinating Crawhall family history and their relationship with the North East in this blog.

Crawhall: Family History

Posted on 29 June, 2021 by nspeccoll

*Joseph Crawhall, Morpeth, 1865* , JCII-8, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive, Newcastle University Special Collections & Archives, GB 186.

‘The accompanying letter from the late John Hodgson, the Historian of Northumberland, to Mr. Thomas Sopwith having only been partially answered, induced me to prosecute further enquiry into our family history, & the result of such enquiry, with the authorities will be found in this volume’.

Joseph Crawhall II is perhaps best-known as a wood engraver of idiosyncratic illustrations which adorned books published by, among other, local printer Andrew Reid and London-based Andrew Tuer at his Leadenhall Press in London.

With a great interest in local history, folklore, and traditions, Crawhall seized upon the opportunity to research his own family after reading clergyman and antiquary John Hodgson’s queries to local mining engineer Thomas Sopwith, for whom he was carrying out family history. Crawhall, with both the time and resources to do so, began gathering together a large selection of family historical material. This is now referred to as the Crawhall Genealogical Scrapbook (JCII-8).

The Crawhall Geneaological Scrapbook open at a page about Joseph Crawhall II’s brother Thomas, JCII-8, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive, Newcastle University Special Collections & Archives, GB 186.

The c.150-page volume is a treasure trove of family history collected by Crawhall. Its contents include notes and family trees transcribed by Crawhall, sketches and paintings of family members, family photographs, newspaper cuttings, sale catalogues, letters. The historical material is drawn from a range of sources including Hodgson’s extensively-researched History of Northumberland, where the Crawhall family is traced back to the Twelfth Century (where the name is spelled ‘Crauden’, ‘Craweden’, or ‘Crawenden’). The 16^th Century Crawhaws lived at Crawhall near Thorngrafton in Northumberland and were responsible for governorship of the Middle Marches “From Hexhamshire to the Water of Irdin (Irthing) on both sides of the Tyne”, near Hawteswell (Haltwhistle).

Page from the Genealogical Scrapbook with transcriptions by Crawhall from Hodgson’s History of Northumberland, JCII-8, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive, Newcastle University Special Collections & Archives, GB 186.

Heugh Crawhaughe, Commissioner for Enclosures upon the Middle Marches, JCII-8, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive , Newcastle University Special Collections & Archives, GB 186

The majority of the material traces the history of the Crawhalls after the family was established in Allendale, Northumberland. Joseph II’s grandfather, Thomas was a lead mining agent, and married Ann Bownas in 1771. Their son, Joseph Crawhall I, (born in 1791) was apprenticed at a Newcastle ropery to learn the trade and eventually bought the St. Anne’s Ropery near the Newcastle Quayside. The company earned a commendation at the 1852 Great Exhibition for ‘Improved Patent Rope Machinery’.

Commendation awarded to St. Anne’s Ropery at the Great Exhibition 1851, JCII-8,Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive , Newcastle University Special Collections & Archives, GB 186.

A shrewd business man, Joseph I held shares in the family’s lead mine at Rotherhope, near Allendale and, in his spare time, was a keen amateur artist. He eventually became mayor and sheriff of Newcastle. Joseph I lived (and died) at Stagshaw House, near Corbridge, with his wife Margaret.

Sketch of Thomas Crawhall by Joseph II, JCII-8, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive, Newcastle University Special Collections & Archives, GB 186.

Sketch of Stagshaw Close House by Joseph II, 1852, JCII-8, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive, Newcastle University Special Collections & Archives, GB 186.

A watercolour painting by Joseph II(?) of his birthplace, JCII-8, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive, Newcastle University Special Collections & Archives, GB 186.

Joseph II was born at West House, St. Anthony’s, Newcastle, on 16th May 1821 and quite early on exhibited a talent for art which he was able to pursue throughout his life. An adept, skilful draughtsman and watercolourist with a distinctly Northumbrian sense of humour, he is now best-known for his wood engravings in the chapbook style.

Watercolour and engraved cards by Joseph Crawhall II, JCII-8, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive, Newcastle University Special Collections & Archives, GB 186.

His work was not restricted to paper – a certificate in the scrapbook was awarded to Crawhall for commended work in an 1873 exhibition of paintings on china for the Art-Pottery Galleries in London.

Certificate awarded to Joseph Crawhall II for painting on china, JCII-8, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive, Newcastle University Special Collections & Archives, GB 186.

A china plate painted by Joseph Crawhall II, Crawhall (Joseph II) Archive, Newcastle University Special Collections & Archives, GB 186.

More information about the Genealogical Scrapbook and other Crawhall items can be found in our collections.

Richard III (from Several Sovereigns for a Shilling by Joseph Crawhall) – February 2013

Posted on 27 February, 2013 by nspeccoll

Print of Edward V and Richard III, by Joseph Crawhall II, from *Several Sovereigns for a Shilling! Adorned by Joseph Crawhall* (London: Hamilton, Adams; Newcastle upon Tyne: Mawson, Swan & Morgan, 1886) **(Crawhall (Joseph II) Collection, Crawhall 45)**

Joseph Crawhall II (1821-1896) revived the chapbook tradition. *Several Sovereigns for a Shilling* (1886) is a collection of lithographed portraits of monarchs, alongside irreverent rhymes – quite typical of Crawhall’s humour.

On 4th February 2013 archaeological experts from the University of Leicester announced to the world that “beyond reasonable doubt” they had uncovered the bones of Richard III. Richard was 32 years old when he was killed at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485 by the forces of Henry VII. As this verse from Joseph Crawhall describes, Richard was “knock’t on the head” and the skeleton bears evidence of eight injuries to the skull. He was the last English king to die in battle and with his death came the end of the Plantagenet dynasty, giving rise to the House of Tudor.

The skeleton also provides evidence of scoliosis – a curvature of the spine – but no hunched back or withered arm as William Shakespeare and Tudor historians like Thomas More would have you believe.

Richard was born at Fotheringhay Castle in Northamptonshire but spent many of his formative years at Middleham Castle in Wensleydale and it was in the North of England, as President of the Council of the North, that he earned respect as a protector against the Scottish raids and as a just keeper of the peace.
On the death of their father in 1461, Richard’s brother became Edward IV and created Richard Duke of Gloucester. When Richard’s brother, Edward IV died, Richard was made protector of his two young nephews: Edward and Richard. Accusations of illegitimacy mounted against the boys and Richard III was crowned King in July 1483 whilst the boys, who had been lodged in the Tower of London, mysteriously vanished. Rumour would have us believe that Richard murdered the princes: “Poor Edward the fifth was, young, kill’d in bed, By his Uncle, Third Richard”, as Crawhall puts it.

Richard was said to have been buried under the choir of Greyfriar’s Church in Leicester but the building had been demolished in the 16th Century. It was by analysing maps that the location of the church was identified, where a car park stands today. Descendants of Richard, who provided DNA samples for comparison, were traced using historic records and documents. This demonstrates the continued relevance of primary sources and other historic materials.

Whether you admire Richard as a brave military leader (he remained on the battlefield while several of his men defected) and the person who introduced an early form of legal aid (the Court of Requests), or whether you believe the Tudor propaganda, it must be remembered that the period of the Wars of the Roses was particularly brutal and that people were governed by a different moral code. Richard’s Council of the North improved economic conditions in the North and he also banned restrictions on the printing and sale of books.

Richard will be reinterred in Leicester Cathedral.

If you are interested in reading contemporary accounts of Richard and this period, you might refer to the Paston Letters (White (Robert) Collection, W942.04 PAS) and to the account by Robert Fabyan, both of which are held in Newcastle University Library’s Special Collections.