Alice Thornton on the Coronation of Charles II: The North Remembers (sort of)

Blog article published by Cordelia Beattie on 23 April 2023  illnessmonarchyyorkshire

Charles II’s coronation was held at Westminster Abbey on 23 April 1661. The diarist Samuel Pepys was present and wrote about it.

Alice Thornton also wrote about the coronation in two of her books, but she dated it as 29 May 1660, which was actually the date of the Restoration, when Charles II entered London.[1] For Thornton, then living in Richmond, North Yorkshire, this was the more memorable occasion and the 1661 event does not appear in her books.

Thornton tells us about a big show in Richmond held on 29 May 1660 to celebrate the new king:

An old house of grey stone sits in the background of a verdant lawn, with trees and long grass.
St Nicholas, Richmond. Suzanne Trill, June 2022.

...they had a show at Richmond of all kinds of sports and country expressions of joy and amongst the rest they shot off muskets and had soldiers of the townsmen of Richmond appeared in armour.[2]

Thornton was then staying at her Aunt Norton’s house, St. Nicholas, in Richmond. All the servants were keen to go to the show:

The maids at St. Nicholas did beg leave to go and see the show and would not be pleased until I let my dear Nally go with them. But I refused and thought it would fright her and do her hurt. But they got Mr. Thornton persuaded, and my aunt, to let her go and they would take great care of her.[3]

The day was particularly memorable to Thornton as she was proven correct and her oldest daughter, Nally, was taken ill at this show - or had a ‘deliverance from death’,[4] as Thornton put it:

A stained glass panel showing royalist soldiers with drums and pipes
The Civil War Window, St Chad's, Farndon. CC-BY-SA-4.0

But before two hours, they returned with my child home in a very sad and changed condition; for, alas, she never having had seen any such things as soldiers, or guns, or drums, or noises and shoutings, she was so extremely scared at these things and when the muskets went off so fast did so affright her and terrify my poor child that she was ready to fly out of Jane Flowers’ arms, her maid.[5]

Nally had three or four ‘fits of convulsions’ while sheltering in a local shop before being brought home. Thornton treated her with various medicines such as ‘oil of amber and peony,’ and Nally made a full recovery.[6]

In Yorkshire, the date of the Restoration – 29 May – continued to be celebrated as Oak Apple Day until the 1940s, a reference to the oak tree the king was said to have hidden in to escape Cromwell’s army in 1651.

Pepys also recorded celebratory gunfire in London on 29 May 1660 for the king’s birthday, as well as on the later date of the coronation.

  1. E.g. Alice Thornton, Book 1: The First Book of My Life, British Library MS Add 88897/1, 182 (180 in our pagination): ‘A thanksgiveing for the restoration of King Charles the second. of his Coronation May. 29th 1660’; Alice Thornton, Book 2: The First Book of My Widowed Condition, Durham Cathedral Library, GB-0033-CCOM 7 (hereafter Book 2), 180, 183 (182, 185 in our pagination). ↩︎

  2. The text quoted above is from our work-in-progress edition of Alice Thornton's Books. The text is modernised in the body of the blog and the semi-diplomatic transcription is reproduced here in the notes: ‘They had a shew att Richmond of all kinds of sports & country exprssions of Joy & amongst the rest they shott of musketts & had Soldiers & the Towns men of Richmond appeared in Armour’. Book 2, 183 (185 in our edition). ↩︎

  3. ‘The maides at St nickolas did beg leave to goe and see the shew, & would not be pleased till I lett my deare naly goe with them. but I refused & thought it would fright her & doe her hurt But they gott Mr Thornton persuaded & my Aunt to lett her goe, & they would take great cair of her’. Book 2, 183 (185 in our edition). ↩︎

  4. ‘delivrance from Death’: Book 2, 183 (185 in our edition). ↩︎

  5. ‘Butt before 2 hours, they returned with my Childe home in a very sad & Changed Condittion for alas she nevr having had seene any such things as Soldirs or guns, or drums or noyses & shoutings she was soe extreamly scaired att these things and when The musketts went of soe fast did soe affright her and terrify my poore Child that she was ready to fly out of Jane flours armes her maide’. Book 2, 183-4 (185-6 in our edition). ↩︎

  6. ‘oyle of ambr & Pieony’: Book 2, 184 (186 in our edition). ↩︎

Citing this web page:

Cordelia Beattie. 'Alice Thornton on the Coronation of Charles II: The North Remembers (sort of)'. Alice Thornton's Books. Accessed .
https://thornton.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/posts/blog/2023-04-23-coronation-charles-II/
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