We know we’ve said this before but … phew, what a scorcher! While the rest of the country sought relief from temperatures up to 32, we all spent our late May Bank Holiday donning woollen clothes and going into battle at Colchester Living History Fair — but not before we enjoyed some top tier socialising, a great ’90s-themed fancy dress party, and a night to remember in the beer tent!
Organised by The Cittie of London Brigade of the Sealed Knot, Colchester Living History Fair took place at Alresford Hall in the rolling Essex countryside. The Siege of Colchester in 1648 was one of the bitterest sieges of the English Civil Wars, with a Royalist force under Sir Charles Lucas surrounded by Sir Thomas Fairfax’s New Model Army for over two months. Things were slightly less unbearable for us, though the heat did make keeping cool a priority, with the regiment’s kids enjoying a paddling pool and water-gun fights as the adults wilted under the regimental awnings.
Luckily, it cooled off in time for Saturday evening, when we had another of our legendary fancy dress parties – this time the theme was “’90s” and, boy, did our members deliver some deep 1990s cuts…
Just some of the ’90s-themed costumes on display at our fancy dress party
With the prize of Mr Blobby pin badges on offer, we all did our best to embody the Best Decade Ever™ (in this author’s opinion) — see how many of the entries you can guess in this video (if you get them all then you’re officially old)…
@english.civil.war ’90s fancy dress – can you guess who’s who? We zipped back three decades to the 1990s but which iconic moments/people did we dress up as? It was a Bank Holiday weekend at Alresford Hall near Colchester, so of course we had to have one of our legendary fancy dress party, with prizes for the best embodiment of the ’90s. The top prize? A Mr Blobby pin badge 🤣🤣🤣 #1990s #fancydress #outdoors #camping #reenactment
It was also an opportunity to celebrate a couple of special birthdays and an anniversary. The most stalwart member of Manchester’s, Ian Herridge, marked his 60th birthday at the weekend, and not only did we get him a Leeds United club shirt with his name on it, we also arranged for him to meet the Spice Girls … sort of!
It was also our young member Milli’s 16th birthday, which is not only a milestone but also means she’s old enough to join us on the battlefield! Born into the Sealed Knot, Milli has been coming with her parents, Martin and Monika, since she was a baby and is now a much-loved member of the cannon crew with her mum! It was a real pleasure to witness her firing our cannon, the Lady Ann, in anger for the first time…
It was also the birthday of Stan, who’s also someone who’s grown up in the regiment and is now a stalwart pikeman, though he gets a bit embarrassed when we draw attention to him so we won’t post the videos we took of him in the beer tent 😉
It was also the weekend where three of our members celebrated two whole decades of being in Manchester’s — Mike, Ian, and Dave all joined at the same time in 2006, attending the Wetherby muster on Late May Bank Holiday and have been friends ever since. Twenty years later they’re still going strong, although slightly hairier and creakier than they were back then!
Of course, it’s not all fun and games — there’s also the deadly serious matter of reenacting history! It was a first for our member Rhodri, who was not only our regimental ensign (the person who carries our regimental flag, or ‘colour’) for the weekend but even stepped up to take part in a pre-battle display of drums and colours. He did marvelously, as this video from Mel Green shows:
@belle_of_tricks @The Sealed Knot drums and colours display at Siege of Colchester! @Earl of Manchester’s Regiment . #sealedknot #englishcivil #livinghistory #reenactment #17thcentury
When it came time for battle proper the temperature had ticked up to a breathtaking 30 degrees Celcius, which is a LOT when you’re dressed in wool. But our soldiers acquitted themselves admirably, teaming up with our friends in the Northern Association of the Armie of Parliament — Lord Thomas Grey’s Regiment of Foote, Lord Saye & Sele’s Blew Regiment of Foote, and Sir John Gell’s Regiment of Foote — to take on the Royalists. Muskets blazed, swords flashed, pike blocks crashed, and cannons roared in front of a large and appreciative audience.
Photos by Mel Green
Photos by SM Photography
Gun captain Scott with four members of his crew — Gill, Milli, Monika, and Amanda
The heat did take its toll though…
@english.civil.war it’s hot, hot, HOT 🥵🥵🥵 So it’s the perfect time to don wool and steal and battle it our at Colchester!! 🤪🤪🤪 We had a fantastic weekend at Alresford Hall near Colchester, even with 32° heat on the battlefield. #reenactment #HistoryTok #History #Camping #Heatwave @The Sealed Knot
Once we’d all cooled down, we gathered at the beer tent as the sun set, enjoying some drinks while we waited for the evening’s entertainment — the brilliant covers band, Allergy! They absolutely rocked at Lamport Hall last year and this year was no exception, only better! What an amazing night of dancing, laughing, and singing ourselves hoarse!
Video by Bespoke Reenactment Bars
@english.civil.war You’re tired and dusty after a hot day of battle, but it all comes down to this moment – we’re all together, in a beer tent, screaming our heads off to @Radiohead with our friends, Royalist and Parliamentarian and Scot. Friends we’ve known for decades and those we’ve just met. It’s memories like this that last a lifetime and are what makes being part of this oh-so-very-weird hobby so special. Come and be a weirdo with us… #SpecialMoments #radiohead #reenactment #singing #camping @The Sealed Knot
The next day was same again, just hotter! Luckily, everyone survived unscathed thanks to the ministrations of the dedicated watercarriers of our Baggage Trayne, who kept us hydrated throughout the battle, and on the marches to and from the battlefield.
@english.civil.war That’s a long Diet Coke Break, Mike 🤣🤣🤣 We battled both the Royalists AND the elements last weekend thanks to the heatwave – but we came out smiling! Damp … but smiling 😂 Well done to all the brave buds who put on a show for the public while wilting quite badly! #reenactment #HistoryTok #heatwave #Hobbies #Camping
What an incredible weekend — we all returned home tired, sunburnt, bitten, but buzzing. Events like this are what makes being in the Sealed Knot so special and well done to all of the organisers for overcoming the odds to put on such a great time for everyone.
There’s still time to join us in 2026 and experience weekends like this for yourself — you could be taking part for as little as £10, with your kit provided! Message us now and you could:
Fire a cannon!
Fire a musket and go into hand-to-hand!
Be a drummer and lead the regiment!
If that’s not your thing then join our living history, where you can learn traditional skills!