Handbags   (The sad, the bad and the ugly. Non-productive stuff here.)

'Hearts of oaks' If you can't beat with them, you can always joiner

Not all's fir in love and war:

Looking for this line here - 'Outside of these gates were tanneries, gardens, orchards ... ' - not even sure it relates to Wigan - I read this:

The Earl of Derby left Wigan on the night of the 26th August and rode to his friends at Boscobel House ... The Earl of Derby helped King Charles II to escape by taking them to his friends at Boscobel House. Firstly he hid in an oak tree whilst the Parliamentarian soldiers searched for him.

Tandem!