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Historical background to the Riot
Programme of Events: 19th June 2004
Project Team
What was the Militia?
Recreating the Hexham Riot of 1761
Hexham Riot Song
Hexham Riot workshops for Schools
Creative Writing
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Recreating the Hexham Riot of 1761
Location: Northumberland
The finale to the commemorative day on Saturday 19th June was a re-enactment of some of the key events of the Hexham Riot.
The main characters were played by a cast of local people, including several who had no previous acting experience.
Prominent among the establishment figures were Sir Lancelot Allgood (Tom Corfe) and Jane Allgood (played by her descendant and namesake, the present Jane Allgood).
Major Christopher Crow (Derek Sharman) commanded the two companies of North Yorkshire Militia who were called in from their barracks in Newcastle to protect the magistrates as they conducted the ballot.
The Reverend William Totton (Joe Linton) was Lecturer at Hexham Abbey in 1761, and his sermons at the time strongly supported the government line on balloting for the militia.
Sarah Carter (Amy Hutchinson) was a Hexham woman caught up in the dramatic events of the day, one of the many innocent casualties of the day. She was killed as she searched for her young Sam, who had come to watch the excitement in the Market Place.
In the forefront of the ranks of the protesters was Jane Longstaff (Anna Rossiter), a farmer’s wife who had marched the 16 miles to Hexham with the pitmen of Throckley.
The rioters were played by a combination of local volunteers and members of the Steel Bonnets Re-enactment Society.
The Militia were formed from members of three historical re-enactment regiments, the 13th Foot (Pulteney’s Regiment), the 47th Foot (“The Lancashire Lads”) and Royal Marines from Hartlepool.
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