The king was pleased, in the 9th year of his reign, by A.D. his letters patent, to grant their petition, and to declare 1611. the inhabitants of the town to be a body corporate, by the name of "The burgesses of the town of Wisbech, "within the isle of Ely, in the county of Cambridge," and that they should have perpetual succession, and power to hold estates for terms of years or otherwise, as well as to grant, sell, or exchange estates, and adding a confirmation of the estates before by them enjoyed. After this grant, the burgesses, when elected, assumed the name of "capital," which continues to be their honorary distinction. An attempt was subsequently made in 1668 to obtain a renewal of the charter, with a power of appointment of the capital burgesses for life; but the town bailiff was directed to oppose such proceedings, and to renew it with the same privileges as the freeholders had before enjoyed. Accordingly a renewal was obtained, although a caveat was entered against it, and on the petition of the ten burgesses, his majesty Charles II. in the 21st year of his reign, confirmed and enlarged the former privileges of the town by a new charter.

By these letters patent, the inhabitants are to every intent a body corporate, of which the town bailiff, one of the body, is the president, annually elected from among themselves, for the better management of the affairs of the town, although not recognized by the charter. The signatures of the capital burgesses are now, for the first time, (1666) subscribed to the proceedings.

The provisions of this charter are so similar to those contained in that of the 21st year of the reign of Charles II., that it was not thought neces, sary to give a copy of it here.

A.D.

Defence of the Isle of Ely, &c.

The sword of civil war, when once unsheathed, is not 1643. easily returned into the scabbard. In the disastrous times of the unhappy Charles, the isle of Ely, having been gained to the interests of the parliament by the activity of Oliver Cromwell, he was soon afterwards appointed governor there, † when he caused fortifications to be raised near the Horseshoe, about a mile from Wisbech, to secure the pass out of Lincolnshire, which to that time remained in the king's interest, and soldiers were stationed there under the orders of colonel Sir John Palgrave and captain William Dodson. The capital burgesses

* Oliver Cromwell was born at Huntingdon, and resided for some time at St. Ives, and afterwards at Ely; he had been very active in the drainage of the isle, which made his interest very considerable in these parts.

+ The following anecdote (the truth of which there is no reason to doubt) shews that although Oliver Cromwell might not take up his quarters at the town of Wisbech, he appeared in the neighbourhood with his forces. At Needham Hall, the residence of Mr. William Dow, at Elm, three miles distant from Wisbech, is preserved an ancient table of oak, (entirely of one solid piece) which is rendered remarkable by the circumstance of Oliver Cromwell having reposed on it one night; and there is now living in the parish of Elm a person far advanced in years, who well remembers his grandfather saying “That when he was a boy, he saw Oliver Cromwell and "his troops pass by the avenue leading to this hall, and that the person "then inhabiting the mansion offered to Cromwell, his best bed, "which he declined, observing, that perhaps the next day he should "have to sleep in the open field, therefore, in preference, he chose to "pass the night on this very table. Such of his officers as could be accom“modated were supplied with beds, and the rest of his troops took shelter "in the outbuildings and premises." The term the old man used was, that this occurred during the time Cromwell "was ransacking the fens," and that he made a building called the Nine Chimney House, at Emneth, the adjoining village to Elm, his head quarters, which spot is now in thẹ occupation of Mr. John Graham Dow, whose house stands near the site of the old building.

advanced captain Dodson £150. for the service of the king and parliament, (as it is expressed in their proceedings) the command of the troops being entrusted to this officer, who had been sent down for the siege of Crowland, then a royal garrison.

The town of Wisbech appears to have been divided in its political sentiments, at least some degree of licentiousness took place, for a mutiny is said to have broken out, and eight hundred soldiers were sent down to quell the same, under the command of colonel Saxers, and 35s. 6d. was paid by the capital burgesses towards the quartering of such soldiers.

The parliamentary forces came to Peterborough in order to the besieging of Crowland, Cromwell himself at this time lying at Peterborough with a regiment of horse, to carry on the siege. The town of Crowland having been taken on 9th of May following, Cromwell and his forces marched on to Stamford. After this, £250. were ordered by parliament to be advanced for the defence of the isle, and furnished to major Ireton, to be paid out of the receipts of the excise, as " per ordinance of parliament," and a troop of horse was accordingly raised. Also £11. 12s. 6d. was ordered to be paid to Sir John Palgrave, for iron work employed for the drawbridge, at the time when Wisbech was garrisoned for the parlia

ment.

A commission was voted by parliament to raise ten A.D. regiments of horse, and ten of foot, and the earl of 1644. Manchester, as commander of the seven associated

The earl of Manchester (as commander in chief of the seven associated counties) was ordered to set out for the relief of the north. His first exploit was the taking of Lynn, on 16th September 1643, and he next bent his course for Lincolnshire.

counties undermentioned, was authorised to raise in them ten thousand men, and a rate was made by an ordinance of both houses of parliament, to provide a weekly sum by each county and district, according to the following proportions:

At this critical period, the earl of Manchester was invested with extraordinary power, and great preparations were made on both sides, as the parties anticipated that the ensuing summer would decide the pretensions of either.

On the 2d July, the disastrous engagement of Marston Moor, so unfortunate to the royal cause, took place. The armies consisted of about 25,000 men each. Manchester and Cromwell led the right of the parliamentary forces. The battle did not actually commence until seven in the evening, and all was closed by ten at night. Both parties fought with determined bravery, but the forces of the parliament were triumphant. It appears by the journals of the house of commons, that in 1648, £ 70. per week were ordered for the pay of a troop consisting of sixty horse, for the defence of the isle of Ely, whereof John Hobart, esq. of Outwell, was colonel.

The town of Wisbech, no doubt, felt the burthen of their proportion of the tax raised among the associated counties, in these harassing and distressful times,* for in the lords' journal will be found a petition signed by John Hobart and William Fisher, to parliament, from the in- A.D. habitants and landowners of the hundred of Wisbech, 1656. for that having, in all taxes on the eastern association, paid a moiety (in proportion) more than their neighbour counties, and having sent a troop of horse † for the service of the parliament; and also having with others expended £2,000. in last reducing Crowland, they prayed to be reimbursed that sum, and to be exempted from all arrears of taxes, the waters that winter having run over all their ancient defensive banks, and broken the banks of Wisbech, Elm, Upwell and Outwell, drowned 14,000 acres of rich ground, carried away divers houses, and drowned many cattle, besides the loss in corn and hay invaluable.

During this period many of the church lands were put up for sale, and it seems that the manor of Wisbech, with others in this neighbourhood, was sold to Thomas Allen,

* In these arduous times, one John Fisher, of Wisbech, was fined for delinquency. His offence was, that he was in arms against the parliament. He rendered before December 1645, his estate in reversion, which was about £80. per annum, for which his fine at a tenth is £80. Journals of the House of Commons.

Also there was an ordinance for granting pardons to Thomas Wragg, yeoman, and Edward Buckworth, both of Wisbech, for their delinquencies. Ibid.

A troop of horse continued to be kept up even after the revolution of 1688, as on 6th June 1690, four pounds were ordered to be paid towards the expense of a horse to serve "in the troop," and the town bailiff was directed to defray a moiety of the charge for arms and furniture. Hutchesson's MSS.