The Miners’ Banner
In the South Transept, opposite the Durham Light Infantry Chapel, hangs the 1893 Haswell Colliery Lodge banner, on permanent display.
Miners’ banners were proudly carried at miners’ celebrations, protests and other events. They display the name of their colliery and union branch or ‘lodge’, together with religious or political images and mottos.
This banner is now ‘retired’, but many banners are still in use, and are paraded through the streets of Durham on the Miners’ Gala day each July.
Things to look for
- Haswell Colliery Lodge was part of the Durham Miners’ Association (DMA). The front picture shows the portraits of three men involved in union activities: Tommy Ramsay (left) and William Crawford (right), both involved with the DMA, and in the centre Alexander Macdonald, President of the Miners’ National Association and later an MP.
- Below them is the motto ‘They being dead yet speaketh’, based on a quote from the Bible (Hebrews 11:4).
- The back of the banner is also decorated, and features the portraits of four more DMA officials: William Patterson, John Foreman, John Wilson and John Johnson.
- The motto below them reads ‘But to act that each tomorrow finds us further than today’.
History
Coal and the Cathedral
The North East of England has a long history of coalmining. As a major North-East landowner, the cathedral was at the heart of this activity, an industry that endured for more than 900 years. Coal was a valuable source of income for the medieval Durham Priory, and between the 1100s and 1500s, the monks mined coal in around 40 places in County Durham. They sometimes worked the mines themselves, but would often lease or sell the mining rights to others.
After the Reformation, many of the Priory lands were transferred to the new Dean and Chapter of Durham Cathedral, and continued to provide a steady income. By 1830, a quarter of the Cathedral’s total income came from coal.
Did you know?
Durham Miners’ Gala
- The first Durham Miners’ Gala, or ‘Big Meeting’ was held in 1871. It began as a demonstration of the miners’ solidarity, showing their employers that they were united and would stand up for their rights. The Gala developed into the largest unofficial miners and trade union gathering in the United Kingdom.
- Over time, while retaining its trade union roots, the Gala became much more – a chance for people from mining communities across the region to meet and socialise, a day for fun and families.
- Since 1896, a ‘Miners’ Festival Service’ has been held in the Cathedral on the afternoon of Gala day. At the service, new union lodge banners are dedicated and blessed by the Bishop of Durham.
- Despite the closure of every deep mine in the North East, the Gala has survived, celebrating the region’s mining heritage and attracting many thousands of visitors to Durham each July.
Follow the guided tour
You’re in: South Transept You’re at: The Miners’ Banner Next stop: Prior Castell’s Clock
- Standing looking at the Miners' Banner, turn to your left
- In front of you is a large wooden clock