Jacobites in Northumberland 1689-1710

Sir John Fenwick of Wallington was a key Jacobite conspirator from the Glorious Revolution onwards, and his house in London became a centre of Jacobite activity. He was executed for a plot to kill King William and launch an invasion through Newcastle in 1697. Edward Charlton of Hesleyside was another key local activist, his house being a centre for Jacobite activity from 1689. Jacobite spies visited him regularly.

The visits of such spies were part of a plan to invade England from the North-east formed as early as 1690. In 1691 a small party from the French navy landed at Druridge Bay and plundered Widdrington Village. The court at Saint-Germain hoped to land on the North-east coast and, with the help of the local gentry and colliers, seize Newcastle. An invasion from Scotland and a French landing would then follow, culminating in the capture of London. This connection between the North-eastern Jacobites and those of Scotland was to be a consistent theme in all subsequent Jacobite plans.

The Jacobites in the area were constantly talking about restoring James by force of arms, but with the exception of the attempt to land in Scotland with a French fleet in 1708 (with hopes again of a rising in Newcastle), this talk came to nothing. It was only after 1710 and the renewed speculation over the succession to Queen Anne that the local Jacobites began to plan a serious rising.

 
 

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