My life in history: artillery gun captain in the Sealed Knot

In History Revealed’s ‘My life in history’ series, Nathanial Shepheard talks about his role as artillery gun captain in the Sealed Knot

By Nathanial Shepheard

Published: Tuesday, 16 January 2024 at 08:30 AM

What is the Sealed Knot and how did you first get involved?

The Sealed Knot is a reenactment society that specialises in battles from the Civil Wars (1642–51). It is the largest and oldest of its kind in Britain, with thousands of members, and we put on events all around the country to show what a battle would have looked like, as well as everyday life in the 17th century. I didn’t so much become interested in the Sealed Knot, as was born into it.

Nathanial as a child helping his father and grandfather work on a cannon carriage.
From a young age, Nathaniel looked certain to follow in his parents’ footsteps; here he helps his father and grandfather work on a cannon carriage. Both were gun captains before him. (Picture provided by Nathanial)

Both of my parents were active members of the Sealed Knot long before I was around: my mum joining in 1983 and my dad not long before that. As a child, I attended every event that my parents did, and I started participating as soon as I was old enough.

What are your favourite (and least favourite) things about being in the Sealed Knot?

The shared interest between members is definitely my favourite aspect of being in the Sealed Knot; it certainly makes for an interesting bunch. We get people from all walks of life collected together to achieve one thing: putting on a good show. When it comes to my least favourite, it has to be the toilets – by a country mile! The Sealed Knot does its best, to be fair. Our camp sites range from permanent venues, which are quite civilised, to just a field.

We get people from all walks of life collected together to achieve one thing: putting on a good show

Can you tell us about your role as an artillery gun captain? Did you have to complete any specialist training?

Although many people in my regiment have had experience across several roles, our speciality is artillery – so when I joined the fielding members, I decided to take on the role of an artillery gun captain, commanding the cannons on the battlefield. The Sealed Knot has its own training for artillery captains.

Nathanial, in green, prepares a cannon for 'battle'
Nathaniel prepares a cannon for ‘battle’. Although the Sealed Knot strives for historical authenticity, Nathaniel has to wear modern ear defenders, as the replica guns make an almighty bang when fired. (Picture provided by Nathanial)

This involves acquiring general knowledge regarding artillery, practising leadership skills and communication, and – of course – learning about health and safety. Keeping our people safe is always a priority! Additionally, all crew members who handle explosives must hold a licence issued by their local police force.

Have you ever had any injuries?

Bar the odd blister, thankfully no. Injury is always a risk – as with doing any physical activity – but we take many steps to reduce the likelihood. This includes making sure we complete our training and having qualified health and safety experts on site (we even have a dedicated medical regiment). While I pray that they are never needed, their skills and experience would be invaluable if there ever was an emergency.

If you could reenact battles from any other historical period, what would it be?

If we are talking about periods broadly, I’d have to say medieval. This is kind of a trick answer, though, because the medieval period was so massive. It saw England develop in some interesting ways, defining and impacting the future to the extent you could say we still feel those changes today.

This article was first published in the January 2022 issue of BBC History Revealed