aerial photograph of Ye Olde Man & Scythe public house and Ye Olde Wench & Trinkets shop in Bolton, Greater Manchester UK.Ye Olde Man & Scythe is one of the 10 oldest Pubs in Britain and first mentioned in 1251 during the reign of Henry III. It was rebuilt in 1636 and only the cellar remains of the earlier building. During the English Civil war Bolton was defended by the Parliamentarians but captured after bloody fighting by the Royalists under Prince Rupert of the Rhine. More than 1000 defenders and civilians lost their lives in what became known as the Bolton massacre. The town was recaptured by the Parliamentarians in 1644. At the end of the war the Earl of Derby was tried for his part in the Bolton Massacre after which he was taken to this pub before being beheded outside.