156 Historic Notices of Haughton Castle. 



of whom is perhaps the best known hero of Chevy Chase, 

 because his valonr was such, that — 



" Wheu his legs were smitten off, 

 He f ought upon his stumps." 

 There is a weird story, founded on what may have been only 

 too frequent an occurrence in the "troublous days of old," 

 recorded of the time of Henry VIII. and Cardinal Wolsey, in 

 connection with Haughton Castle. The lord at this time is said 

 Lo have been Sir Thomas Swinburne, wdio was active, both in 

 resistance to the raids of the moss-troopers from across the 

 Borders, and in the prosecution of the warden of the East and 

 Middle Marches (Lord Dacre) for his remissness in duty. Sir 

 Thomas had taken captive no less a personage than the redoubt- 

 able chief of the Armstrong- clan of Liddesdale, and cast him 

 into the dungeon of Haughton Castle. The lord of Haughton 

 departed the next day for York to present the charge against the 

 warden to the Cardinal Archbishop, then on a visit to his metro- 

 politan city. After two days he arrived, and on the second 

 after his arrival, as he was on his way to the archiepiscopal 

 palace, suddenly he remembered .that he had given no instruc- 

 tions whatever about the captive being provided with food 

 during his absence. Being a humane man, as he is also said 

 to have been learned and clerkly, he was horror-struck at the 

 possible consequences of his neglect. This was now the fourth 

 day of Armstrong's confinement, and during the whole of that 

 time he might not have received either food or drink. Without 

 waiting to seu the Cardinal, Sir Thomas Swinburne instantly 

 mounting his horse set out for the North, galloping so hard that 

 before he reached Durham, his steed dropped dead beneath 

 him. Quickly borrowing another horse he pursued his journey 

 with the utmost speed. By the middle of the night of the 

 day on which he left York, he reached home, and stained 

 with the mire of the roads which he had traversed, his face 

 tlushed with a fearful excitement, and his panting and exhausted 

 ateed foaming at the mouth, was thundering at the outer portal 

 of his own castle of Haughton. He asked for a torch and the key 

 of the dungeon, but the key was found attached to his own girdle ; 

 so that as he had carried it away with him, no one in his absence 

 could have given food to the prisoner, even if the propriety of 

 doing it had occurred to anyone, without breaking the strong, 

 iron-bound door. But on the dungeon being opened, the blazing 



