Timeline

Introduction

Danish Invasion of 870

Danish Invasion of 1006

St Mary's Butts

Civil War

Civil War defences

Siege of Reading

Battle of Caversham Bridge

After the Siege

Battle of Reading

Napoleon

World War 1

World War 2

Reading at War

Reading has been the scene of several battles since its foundation. The Vikings used it as a base for their raids on Wessex in Saxon times.

During the English Civil War the town found itself caught between Parliament in London and the Royalists in Oxford. Although the town was for parliament, it was taken over by the Royalists until the siege of 1643. This was a disaster for the wool trade, as for the years of the Civil War it could not either bring in wool or send out cloth.

Later the same century, during the Glorious Revolution, Reading was one of the few towns in which a battle occurred between the Catholic and Protestant forces.

When Napoleon was threatening to invade the country in the late 18th Century, local people formed to volunteer regiments which were inspected by the King.

In the 20th Century, Reading played a supportive role in both World Wars, as a centre where people could escape from the worst of the war. Reading was bombed however, which led to 41 people being killed in the town centre.