Editing Durham, England (section)

===Civil War and Cromwell (1640 to 1660)===
[[File:View of Durham Cathedral (4094887351).jpg|thumb|View of Durham Cathedral and its surroundings {{circa|1850}}]]
The city remained loyal to King [[Charles I of England|Charles I]] in the [[English Civil War]] – from 1642 to the execution of the king in 1649. Charles I came to Durham three times during his reign of 1625–1649. Firstly, he came in 1633<ref>
{{cite book
 | last1 = Dufferwiel
 | first1 = Martin
 | year = 1996
 | chapter = 10: The King, the Covenanters and Oliver Cromwell
 | title = Durham: Over 1,000 Years of History and Legend
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=gqTyBp8W2GAC
 | edition = reprint
 | location = Edinburgh
 | publisher = Random House
 | publication-date = 2011
 | isbn = 9781780573946
 | access-date = 30 October 2019
| quote = [...] an account of the King's first visit to Durham. The occasion arose in 1633 during Charles's journey north to Edinburgh and his coronation on the throne of Scotland.
}}
</ref>
to the cathedral for a majestic service in which he was entertained by the [[Chapter (religion)|Chapter]] and Bishop at great expense. He returned during preparations for the First Bishops' War (1639).<ref>
{{cite book
 | last1 = Dufferwiel
 | first1 = Martin
 | year = 1996
 | chapter = 10: The King, the Covenanters and Oliver Cromwell
 | title = Durham: Over 1,000 Years of History and Legend
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=gqTyBp8W2GAC
 | edition = reprint
 | location = Edinburgh
 | publisher = Random House
 | publication-date = 2011
 | isbn = 9781780573946
 | access-date = 30 October 2019
| quote = [...] the occasion of Charles's second visit to Durham. On 29 April 1639, he was again received [...] at Raby Castle [...]. He then proceeded to Durham where he remained while forces of horse and foot were raised in readiness for the march to the border. 
}}
</ref>
His final visit to the city came towards the end of the civil war; he escaped from the city as [[Oliver Cromwell]]'s forces got closer.<ref>
{{cite book
 | last1 = Noble
 | first1 = Mark
 | author-link1 = Mark Noble (biographer)
 | title = The Lives of the English Regicides: And Other Commissioners of the Pretended High Court of Justice, Appointed to Sit in Judgement Upon Their Sovereign, King Charles the First
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=v_1HAAAAMAAJ
 | publisher = J. Stockdale
 | date = 1798
 | access-date = 30 October 2019
}}
</ref>{{request quotation|date=October 2019}}<ref>
Compare:
{{cite book
 | last1 = Dufferwiel
 | first1 = Martin
 | year = 1996
 | chapter = 10: The King, the Covenanters and Oliver Cromwell
 | title = Durham: Over 1,000 Years of History and Legend
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=gqTyBp8W2GAC
 | edition = reprint
 | location = Edinburgh
 | publisher = Random House
 | publication-date = 2011
 | isbn = 9781780573946
 | access-date = 30 October 2019
| quote = [...] in 1647, he would make his final visit to Durham as a prisoner on his way south to his eventual trial and execution.
}}
</ref>
Local legend
<ref name="ReferenceA">The Society of Charles the King and Martyr: Newsletter (12)</ref> stated that he escaped down [[the Bailey]] and through Old Elvet. Another local legend has it that Cromwell stayed in a room in the present Royal County Hotel on Old Elvet during the civil war.<ref name="Noble">{{cite book |date=1798 |author-link=Mark Noble (biographer) |last=Noble |first=Mark |title=The Lives of the English Regicides: And Other Commissioners of the Pretended High Court of Justice, Appointed to Sit in Judgment Upon Their Sovereign, King Charles the First}}</ref> The room is reputed to be haunted by his ghost.<ref>{{Cite book |last= Deary | first= Terry | title= Deadly Durham | author-link= Terry Deary | publisher= County Durham Books | year= 2001 | isbn= 978-1-897585-64-1}}</ref> Durham suffered greatly during the civil war (1642–1651) and [[Commonwealth of England|Commonwealth]] (1649–1660). This was not due to direct assault by Cromwell or his allies, but to the abolition of the [[Church of England]]<ref name="ReferenceA" /> and the closure of religious institutions pertaining to it. The city has always relied upon the [[Dean (religion)|Dean]] and [[Chapter (religion)|Chapter]] and cathedral as an economic force.

The castle suffered considerable damage and dilapidation during the Commonwealth due to the abolition of the office of bishop (whose residence it was). Cromwell confiscated the castle and sold it to the [[Lord Mayor of London]] shortly after taking it from the bishop.<ref name="Noble" /> A similar fate befell the cathedral, it being closed in 1650 and used to incarcerate 3,000 Scottish prisoners, who were marched south after the [[Battle of Dunbar (1650)|Battle of Dunbar]].<ref name="Noble" /><ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-08-30 |title=Historian to retrace march of thousands of Dunbar captives to Durham Cathedral |language=en-GB |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-tyne-66657411 |access-date=2023-08-31}}</ref> [[Graffiti]] left by them can still be seen today etched into the interior stone.<ref>Durham Cathedral Guidebook (available from the cathedral)</ref>

At the [[English Restoration|Restoration]] in 1660, [[John Cosin]] (a former [[canon (priest)|canon]]) was appointed bishop (in office: 1660–1672) and set about a major restoration project. This included the commissioning of the famous elaborate woodwork in the cathedral [[choir]], the font cover and the Black Staircase in the castle.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.dur.ac.uk/things-to-do/venues/durham-castle/history-and-architecture/the-decline-of-the-bishops/ |title=Durham Castle: The 17th Restoration and Late Decline of the Prince Bishops |publisher=Durham University |access-date=4 January 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.durhamworldheritagesite.com/learn/architecture/cathedral/intro/woodwork |title=Cathedral Woodwork |work=Durham Castle and Cathedral |publisher=UNESCO |access-date=4 January 2023}}</ref> Bishop Cosin's successor Bishop Lord [[Nathaniel Crewe]] (in office: 1674–1721) carried out other renovations both to the city and to the cathedral.