Travelling on the London overground recently on a family visit, going through Tottenham, the train stopped at Bruce Grove. Being curious, I asked my husband, not as quietly as I thought, who he thought Bruce was. An unexpected answer came from a smiling man facing us in the opposite seat. “Robert the Bruce,” he pleasantly said.
“He owned the land around here. There was once a house built on the site.” The conversation continued, despite my being surprised at his reply. But this man was correct. Bruce Castle in Tottenham relates to a Manor House dating back to the 16th Century which has connections with Robert the Bruce. The Tudor Mansion is now a museum.
Robert the Bruce was the 8th of that name. The De Brus family name comes from Brix near Cherbourg in Normandy, nobles coming to England with William the Conqueror as part of the conquest. King Henry I awarded Robert awarded Robert Bruce 1 with extensive lands in England, including land in Tottenham and Hartness in the Bishopric of Durham. Hartness district stretched from the River Tees to Castle Eden and included Hartlepool.
Hartlepool and the De Brus family
Hartlepool, Heartonesse, was referred to by Bede as “the place where deer come to drink,” the Old Saxon name being Herut eu, meaning Stag Island. The Norman French added the ‘le’; hence Hart (deer) le Pool.
Hartlepool, before ownership was claimed by the De Brus family, was the main port for the Bishopric of Durham. The town continued as a major, strategic port under the De Brus family rule. In the 13th Century it was fortified by a port wall, funded partially by the inhabitants by a murage tax, as a defence from attacks by sea. The town was an important port.
Robert the Bruce and the De Brus family burial ground
The church of St. Hilda was built as a burial ground for the de Brus family. A monastery under Aidan was formed in Hartlepool by St. Bega followed by St Hilda, hence the name of the Church. The monastery was destroyed by the Danes in 800CE and only the foundations have been discovered by ‘Time Team’ in 2000. The town grew into a fishing town with a major port. In 1191 it was granted a market by King John. King Richard I granted a charter for Hartlepool to have free burgesses, citizens.
King Robert the Bruce’s great grandfather, also Robert de Brus, married Isabella whose uncle was William the Lion, then King of Scotland. This marriage linked the Brus family to the Scottish Royal family, leading to consequences for Hartlepool.
Robert the Bruce crowned King of Scotland
Robert the Bruce was crowned King of Scotland at Scone on March 27th, 1306. His land ownership in England was confiscated by the English Crown.
In 1311 he invaded and plundered the Bishopric of Durham, including Hartlepool. In 1312 a similar attack was made on Chester-Le-street, making the town his headquarters where he instructed Sir James Douglas to attack Hartlepool with considerable force plundering but also taking people, men and women including burgesses from the town. Then in 1314, Edward II fled Bannockburn by boat when the English Army was defeated first to Berwick and then to Hartlepool. In 1315, raids occur once more but the inhabitants, forewarned, took to the sea, along with their treasured possessions aboard ships that were docked in the harbour.
The port of Hartlepool
Hartlepool was an important port. In 1346, it provided 5 ships and 145 men for the siege of Calais. But it had suffered. The Danes had destroyed the monastery. In Hartlepool. The last known Viking raid was by Norwegian pirates in 1153 when ships and goods were taken from the port. There were raids from the Scots.
In 1316, one ship set sail from Hartlepool carrying wheat, rye and salt on route for Berwick, but it was captured by pirates near Amble. In the 17th Century Hartlepool was occupied by the Scots in the Civil War.
Disaster struck
Disaster struck again on 16th December 1914. Out in the sea, shrouded in mist, a gunboat and two German destroyers lay off the shore. Bombardment commenced with shore batteries returning fire. The British flotilla of small craft at sea were no match for the warships.
The entrenched soldiers of the 18th D.L.I. were in the process of changing guard. The enemy ships drew nearer and opened fire. Five of the soldiers were killed outright with eleven wounded, one of whom later died. Fishermen landing their smacks on the beach, one of them wounded, were rescued when Sergeant Heal and Corporal Brewerton left the trench and raced down the beach bringing them to safety.
War in Hartlepool
Derrfflinger 12-inch shells burst in and around the battery. In forty minutes, 1,500 shells were fired from the ships. The ships moved down the coast to attack Old Hartlepool, West Hartlepool and the docks. One hundred and nineteen people died and over three hundred were wounded.
Houses were damaged or destroyed. Churches, hospitals, the workhouse and schools were struck. Children accompanied by their mothers, some with babes in arms, were going to school. These too were among the victims. A whole family of father, mother and six children were killed. There were written accounts of this attack. Not so for the attacks by Robert the Bruce on Hartlepool.
Did I learn this at school at the now demolished Henry Smith’s in Hartlepool? Well, I learned about the spider, only later to discover this was an invention by Sir Walter Scott. I later learned that Robert the Bruce on his death bed repented for the innocent lives lost in his wars and because of this asked that his heart be mummified and taken to a Crusade so he could be redeemed.
It duly was and although his body is buried in Dunfermline, his heart, inside a silver casket, lies at Melrose Abbey. Two different lessons to be learned; if the task is difficult, “If at first you don’t succeed, try, try, try again,” and the much more sober lesson, that innocent lives are lost in wars. Robert the Bruce knew both of these very well.
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