Alfred's Castle farmhouse was built within the abandoned prehistoric enclosure. King Alfred won a great victory against the Danes at the Battle of Ashdown, in AD 871. Being located just to the west of Ashdown House, Victorian antiquaries associated Alfred's Castle with the King's troop movements before the battle. The exact site of Alfred's battle has not yet been determined, however, so is a matter for debate. The most likely sites are near Compton and Aldworth in Berkshire. Excavations were carried out at Alfred's Castle from 1998-2000 by archaeologists from Oxford University, and post-excavation analysis is still ongoing (as of August 2011).
Battle of Leeds and Sir Thomas recaptured Wakefield. This was, however, almost immediately followed by another Royalist advance into the West Riding, this time under Newcastle himself. The Battle of Adwalton Moor saw the Parliamentarians narrowly defeated by Newcastle’s forces, with Bradford falling shortly afterwards. Fairfax escaped and spent the rest of 1643 besieged in the Parliamentarian stronghold of Hull. The Royalists only withdrew to York when the Scottish Covenanter army marched south in support of Parliament. In July 1644, the Royalists were comprehensively defeated at the Battle of Marston Moor, which lost the north of England for King Charles I. Battle of