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| Stow-on-the-Wold 1646 | ||
| Sir Jacob Astley had been recruiting for the Royalists in
Wales and the West Midlands and had formed an army of 3000 recruits. He
was marching them from Worcester to join the cavalry from Oxford.
Skirmishers from Gloucester awaited them at the river Avon but they managed to get across.
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| Sir William Brereton, who had come south from besieging
Chester, joined Col. Thomas Morgan and the garrison at Gloucester and
set out after the Royalist army.
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| Mar 20 | Brereton managed to intercept the Royalists near
Stow-on-the-Wold. Astley knows he cannot run so he takes up positions on
a slope with Lucas' cavalry on the right, Astley and his foot in the
centre and Vaughn's cavalry on the left.
The Parliamentarians approach lined up with Morgan's cavalry on the left, birch's foot in the centre and Brereton's cavalry on the right. Morgan's cavalry and musketeers are sent first to attack Lucas, but they are beaten back and it looks for a while that the Royalists are gaining an advantage. Brereton's superior numbers on the right manage to rout Vaughn's horse and then set upon the foot in the centre. The Royalists are pushed back into the centre of the town where, after fierce fighting they finally surrender in the market place.
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The Parliamentarian battle cry was 'God Be Our Guide' and the Royalist one was 'Patrick and St. George' |
| Royalist: (2300 foot, 700 horse) Sir
Jacob Astley, Sir Charles Lucas, Sir William Vaughn
Parliament:(1400 foot, 1400 horse) Sir William Brereton, Col. Thomas Morgan, Col. John Birch |
Royalists lost 200 dead and had 1700 taken prisoner. | |
| This battle was the defeat
of the last Royalist land army and the last main action of the First
Civil War.
Resistance remained now only in towns such as Exeter, Oxford and Newark. The Civil War was definitely lost now for the Royalists, and all Parliament had to do was 'mop up' the remaining Royalist pockets. Loyal friends of the King were either fleeing abroad or making peace terms with Parliament. The King was becoming more and more isolated. |
At the end of the battle,
Sir Jacob Astley sitting on a drum spoke these words to his
Parliamentarian captors....
'Gentlemen, ye may now sit and play, for you have done all your work, if you fall not out among yourselves' There were to be many 'falling-outs' in Parliament before too long! |
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