2016-04-04 Mon

53-year old Dr Johnson was inspecting a hole dug by builders at his home in West Yorkshire when he found a lot of 600 gold and silver coins dating to the 1640s, kept inside an old pot protruding from the dirt. The Civil War currency could be worth as much as £51,000 but the doctor had to hand it all to the Government.

He also found a gold ring bearing an inscription 'When this you see, remember me'. The coins could have been hid underground by a Royalist who feared it would be looted by Roundhead troops.

In 1625, King Charles I’s style of governance was defined by religious dogma and a stubborn opposition to parliamentary rule. Deep mistrust in England and Scotland tensions with the English turned into a bloody conflict. He formed a parliament in 1640 which was never accepted.

When a violent Catholic rebellion broke out in Ireland, disagreements over how to respond split England in two, and in 1642 the English Civil War broke out.

The Royalists fought for the king and belonged to the north and west, while the Roundheads came from the south and east. They got their nickname from their preference for cropped hair, which set them apart from the ringlets of courtly Royalists.