The New Murrey and Blue blog

Bury

How many English pubs are named after monarchs….?

Feb 10, 2023

anniversaries, buildings, heraldry, humour

blue boar, Bury, Gloucester, Henry VII, Henry VIII, JD Wetherspoon, John Earl of Oxford, Leicester, Lord High Constable, Malton, Middleham, monarchs, pubs, Richard II, Richard III, Scarborough, Shrewsbury, Victoria, white boar, white hart

Well, obviously a lot of our pubs bear the names of kings and queens, with Queen Victoria heading the list above. I’m surprised to find Kings George III, George IV and William IV galloping up behind her, while all the rest are far more thinly spread. Why are these four monarchs, who all reigned…
Sir Thomas Pilkington

Mar 2, 2022

anniversaries, battles, buildings, genealogy, heraldry, religion

Alexander de Pilkington, arms, attainder, Bishops of Durham, Bosworth, Bury, Bury castle, Edward IV, Henry VII, Lancashire towns, Lord Mayors of London, Oldham, pardons, Pilkington glass, pub signs, Richard III, Scotland, siege of Berwick, Sir Thomas Pilkington, Stand Old Hall, Stanleys, Stoke Field, The man and Scythe, Thomas Stanley

Sir Thomas Pilkington, of Pilkington, Bury and various other places, led his tenants and retainers to Bosworth to fight for Richard III. Whether they got there in time is not 100% clear but Sir Thomas was attainted and lost his Lancashire lands. You’ll never guess which family received them. Yes, those caring, sharing Stanleys, in…