First exhibition of 2020 at Daventry Museum commemorates 375 years since the Battle of Naseby and Daventry’s Place in the Confl ict.
On the morning of 14th June 1645, Parliament’s Newly Modelled Army destroyed King Charles I’s Army at Naseby, the decisive battle of the fi rst English Civil War. Nights before this, King Charles stayed at Daventry’s Wheatsheaf Inn and his Royalist forces used Borough Hill as a base before marching to fi ght at Naseby.
Daventry Museum’s exhibition Commemorating the Battle of Naseby: 375 years. Daventry’s Place in the Confl ict is a fi rst for the museum’s collaborators The Naseby Battlefi eld Project (NBP) and the fi rst of a number of activities planned by the Project in the run up to the anniversary in June 2020. Many items in the exhibition will be on display for the very fi rst time from lenders who were the fi rst to dig the battlefi eld site for archaeology, as well as patrons and trustees of the NBP.
Exhibits include articles such as original armour and swords, fi nds from the battlefi eld site such as cannon balls and smaller intimate items such as a love token, a playing dice and coins, plus contemporary paintings of soldiers and views of the battle itself. Highlights include loans from The National Civil War Centre in Newark such as Fairfax’s campaign cup and fl ask given to him by Cromwell, and a lobster pot helmet complete with ‘battle scars’ from the Naseby confl ict. Weaponry, silk standards and replica costumes, accompanied by the sights and sounds of a battle re-enactment will immerse visitors in the rich history of the turbulent 17th century Civil War.
During the exhibition there will be special evening and Saturday open day talks given by Civil War historians; please check social media and website for details. Reenactors from the Sealed Knot will attend the museum during open Saturdays, there will be showings of the Harborough Movie Makers fi lm about the battle. Throughout the exhibition’s run there will be activities for children and a selfi e area with replica ‘lobster pot’ helmet to try on.
The exhibition runs until Friday 24th April 2020. Opening hours: Tuesday to Friday 9.30am to 1.30pm and Saturday 7th March & 4th April 10am to 4pm. Entry free.
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