Newhouse and ‘the Anarchy’, 1135–54: power, piety, and patronage

King Stephen’s reign (1135–54) was condemned by 19th-century historians as a period of anarchy. Although many aspects of Stephen’s reign have been reappraised in more recent years, an archaeological examination of contemporary sites and their environs is still lacking. This local study provides an insight into how the civil war between Stephen and Matilda impacted North Lincolnshire. Through the case study of Newhouse, which saw the foundation of an abbey on the site of an earlier castle, this paper argues that magnates like Peter of Goxhill could largely have been motivated by their individual expressions of power, piety, and patronage rather than being solely embroiled in the overarching struggle for the English throne. This local perspective challenges the prevailing narrative and offers a more nuanced understanding of the period. It seeks to bring an archaeological lens to a conflict often still dominated by literary sources, aiming to explore whether the physical record aligns with, or challenges, the established historical narrative.