The worm of Sockburn

"And in this limpid stream we find the Lords
Of Sogburn meet the Bishop new elect;
To him they homage pay with great respect.

... They hold a sword, and tell a wond'rous tale
Of a wing'd serpent which did infest
Sogburn's fine plains, of Durham lands the best...

... a deliverer to the oppress'd
Arose, whose name was Conyers, he a wight,

Did, like Alcides, in great deeds delight:
In his own prowess wrapt, and coat of mail,
He with his sword this serpent did assail...'

The presentation ceremony which also involves the giving of a sword is supposed to date from the time of Bishop Pudsey, who purchased from Richard I the title of Earl of Sadberge. The Bishop of Durham would be met by the Lord of the Manor of Sockburn on Croft Bridge over the River Tees and, having exchanged greetings, the following declaration was made as the falchion was handed over:

"My Lord Bishop, I here present you with the falchion where with the champion Conyers slew the worm, dragon and fiery flying serpent which destroyed man, woman and child; in memory of which the king then reigning gave him the manor of Sockburn, to hold by this tenure, that upon the first entrance of every bishop into the county this falchion should be presented."

Mention of the land tenure appears in the inquest into the death of a later Sir John Cortyers in 1396. The sword itself appears in the painted glass of a window in Sockburn Church, and together with the worm, is sculptured in marble on the tomb of an ancestor of the Conyers family. The falchion used to be kept at the manor house of Sockburn and was described as follows:

"The blade is broad, and two feet five inches long, and on the pommel of the weapon are two shields; on one side are the three lions of England, as borne by the Plantagenet monarchs from John to Edward III, and the eagle displayed on the other side is said to belong to Morcar the Saxon Earl of Northumberland."

The last known enactment of the Sockburn ceremony was recorded as April 1826 when a steward of Sir Edward Blackett presented a sword to Dr.Van Mildert, the last Prince Bishop of Durham.