Its June 2002 and Greenhalgh Castle is again under siege, and the sound of battle rings out, only this time its just for fun.

My interest in the castle is in the name it carries, "Greenhalgh" (No surprise there)! I have wondered since finding out about the castle, why is it called Greenhalgh? Well it seems the old spelling was not too great back then! In documents which still exist in the Stanley archives spellings like Geenhall, Grenall, Grenhough and Greenhalgh were attributed to the Stanley manor. There is also one opinion that the manors headquarters were in Greenhalgh village which is roughly 9 miles away from the castle, which may again explain the naming.

On the evening we arrived, the Sealed Knot were starting to arrive in numbers and I took my chance to have a chat with a few of them and ask if they new why the castle was called Greenhalgh. The simple answer was NO! In fact one said "Oh! That's how you say it". I was told by 'Andy' that the Sealed Knot could not find too much history about the castle and that the event itself would be using a certain amount of artistic licence for the battle itself, this was as he reminded me a siege not a battle. Thanks Andy!

600 members of the Sealed Knot were to take the field, and this was considered a low turn out! The armies taking the field would Include all manor of troops, from the pike man to the artillery, so before the actual battle a demonstration was carried out to show the different type of troops on the field, and what they did.

With the demonstration complete the Sealed Knot retired to re-group in to the relevant parliamentarian and royalist armies, and get ready for battle. Now! if you have never seen one of these re-enactments then you really must! These guys go for it I can tell you, you even get "Live Commentary from the battle field" True Kate Addie stuff this I mean you could have someone's eye out with a pike you know. The Battle went on for ages and was quite a spectacle to see. The sound of battle was as real as it gets, and if there were any ghosts up there from that time they must have wondered what the hell was going on.

Needless to say we had a great day and we are looking forward to a return visit. I did not find out anything new which was disappointing, but I did get a feel for the place. The castles view is a commanding one, and it is easy to see why a siege ensued rather than a battle. I hope you enjoy the images, many of which I am sure are unique.

I would also like to mention the guesthouse we stayed in called Middle Holly Cottage, which is a short drive from the castle. We had a great stay, and will be back again. So if you are thinking of going to the castle and you need a place to stay please give them a try you wont regret it. http://www.a1tourism.com/uk/middle.html