The Burning of Bartle

http://greatest-blog.com/the-burning-of-bartle-video-930/
Royston Vasey meets the Wicca Man - a little Yorkshire Dales village celebrates the downfall of a reputed sheep hustler with Cumbrian pipes, a centuries old poem, an effigy of poor Bartle and a march through West Witton finishing with a bonfire - Bartle on top of it!

Bartle is carried by Gareth Robson and David Duff. This event takes place each year - usually on the last Bank Holiday Saturday in August. This video shows the 2008 event, complete with police escort!

The poem is as follows:
"At penhill crags he tore his rags,
At Hunter's Thorn he blew his horn,
At Capplebank Stee he brake his knee,
At Grassgill Beck he brake his neck,
At Wadhams End he could not fend,
At Grassgill End we made his end.
Shout, boys, shout!"

The village crowd usually go down to the pub afterwards and drink to the demise of an ancient sheep rustler.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• Cumbria
• Dales
• wicca
• man
• royston
• vasey
• west
• witton
• yorkshire
• bonfire
• effigy
• poem
• village
• events

[sturdle]

well, we will be there this year..........like the video