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Battle of Powick Bridge

Coordinates:52°10′13″N02°14′33″W/ 52.17028°N 2.24250°W/52.17028; -2.24250
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Battle of Powick Bridge
Part of theFirst English Civil War

Powick Bridge pictured in 2006
Date23 September 1642
Location
Worcester,Worcestershire
52°10′13″N02°14′33″W/ 52.17028°N 2.24250°W/52.17028; -2.24250
Result Royalist victory
Belligerents
Royalists Parliamentarians
Commanders and leaders
Prince Rupert
Strength
1,000 horse 1,000 horse
Casualties and losses
Unknown, one estimate suggests around 30 dead Estimated between 30 and 150 dead or captured
Worcester is located in Worcestershire
Worcester
Worcester
class=notpageimage|
Worcestershire and Worcester

Thebattle of Powick Bridgewas a skirmish fought on 23 September 1642[a]south ofWorcester,England, during theFirst English Civil War.It was the first engagement between elements of the principal field armies of theRoyalistsandParliamentarians.SirJohn Byronwas escorting a Royalistconvoyof valuables fromOxfordtoKing Charles's army inShrewsburyand, worried about the proximity of the Parliamentarians, took refuge in Worcester on 16 September to await reinforcements. The Royalists despatched a force commanded byPrince Rupert.Meanwhile, the Parliamentarians sent a detachment, under Colonel John Brown, to try to capture the convoy. Each force consisted of around 1,000 mounted troops, a mix ofcavalryanddragoons.

The Parliamentarians approached the city from the south on the afternoon of 23 September. Their route took them up narrow lanes and straight into Rupert's force, which was resting in a field. The noise of the approaching Parliamentarian cavalry alerted the Royalists, who quickly formed up. The Royalist dragoons gave their cavalry time to prepare, firing at point-blank range as the Parliamentarians emerged into the field. Rupert's cavalry then charged and broke most of the Parliamentarian cavalry, although onetroopstood its ground and returned fire. Ultimately, all the Parliamentarians wererouted.

Brown protected his cavalry's escape by making arearguardstand with his dragoons at Powick Bridge. Rupert gave chase as far asPowickvillage, but the Parliamentarian cavalry fled 15 mi (24 km) further, their flight causing panic among part of the main Parliamentarian field army. The Royalists abandoned Worcester, leaving safely with their valuable convoy. The Parliamentarian army arrived in the city the next day and remained for four weeks before shadowing the Royalist move towards London, which led to theBattle of Edgehill.

Background[edit]

Build-up of the First English Civil War[edit]

In 1642 the tension between theEnglish ParliamentandKing Charles,which had been building throughout his reign, escalated sharply after the King had attempted toarrest five Members of Parliament,whom he accused oftreason.Having failed, Charles fled London with his family; many historians believe these events made civil war probable.[2]In anticipation of a likely conflict, both sides began preparing for war and attempting to recruit the existingmilitiaand new men into their armies. Parliament passed theMilitia Ordinancein March 1642 withoutRoyal assent,granting themselves control of thecounty militias.In response Charles grantedcommissions of arrayto his commanders, a medieval device forlevyingsoldiers which had not been used for almost a century until the King reintroduced it during theBishops' Wars(1639–1640).[3]

Despite the animosity between the King and Parliament, there remained an illusion that the two sides were still governing the country together. This illusion ended when Charles moved toYorkin mid-March, fearing that he would be captured if he remained in the south of England. The first open conflict between the two sides occurred atKingston-upon-Hull,where a largearsenalhoused arms and equipment collected for the earlier Bishops' Wars.[4]During thefirst Siege of Hullin 1642 Charles was refused entrance into the city in April and again in July by the Parliamentarian governor.[5]Charles was successful in raising men to the Royalist cause in the north of England, theEast Midlandsand Wales, but without control of a significant arsenal, he lacked the means to arm them. In contrast, Parliament drew troops from the south-east of England, had plentiful arms, and controlled the navy.[6]

On 22 August Charles raised hisroyal standardinNottingham,effectively declaring war on Parliament.[7]The two sides continued to recruit; Parliament positioned its main field army, commanded by theEarl of Essex,between the King and London, inNorthampton.[8]Charles was heavily outnumbered at this stage; he fielded between a quarter and half as many men as Essex's 20,000, and those he did have were not so well equipped.[9][10][11]Despite this, Essex did not press his advantage: possibly because his orders allowed him to present the King with a petition to peacefully submit to Parliament, as an alternative to military action.[12]Although there had been small-scale fighting, particularly in northern and south-western England, the two field armies did not significantly manoeuvre against each other until mid-September.[13]On 13 September Charles moved his army west throughDerbyandStaffordtowardsShrewsbury,where he hoped to be reinforced by the Royalist regiments being raised in Wales and the north-west and south-west of England.[14]

Sir John Byron's convoy[edit]

portrait of Sir John Byron
SirJohn Byron's treasure convoy brought the opposing sides to Worcester.

SirJohn Byronwas a strong supporter of King Charles and raised what was probably the first Royalistcavalryregiment of the war. In August he occupiedOxfordwith that 160-strong regiment until it was forced to withdraw on 10 September by a larger Parliamentarian force. Byron's regiment left with a large convoy of gold andsilver platedonated byOxford Universityto help fund the King's war preparations. Heading towards the Royalist forces in Shrewsbury, Byron became aware of the proximity of the Parliamentarian army and chose to seek refuge. On 16 September he stopped atWorcester,[15]a large town on theRiver Severnsurrounded bymedieval city wallsin poor condition.[16]Aware that he would not be able to hold the city, Byron awaited reinforcements.[15]

Prelude[edit]

The Parliamentarians did not react to the movement of the Royalist army until 19 September, as they sought intelligence on the King's destination, and then moved on a parallel path throughCoventryand towards Worcester. This would again position Parliament's army between the Royalists and London, and Worcester was surrounded by agricultural land which could support Essex's army.[17]While Essex was still some distance away,[18]he received intelligence of the Royalist convoy. One of his cavalry colonels, John Brown, convinced him to send a detachment to the city to try to capture the valuables being transported.[19]

Brown led a detachment of around 1,000 mounted troops, which reached Worcester on 22 September. They approached the eastern gate but found it well-defended. They withdrew to the south,[20]where they secured a bridge across the Severn. One of the Parliamentarian officers present, Nathaniel Fiennes, either wrote a report or had it written for him. It stated that fellow officer ColonelEdwin Sandysargued they should move closer to Worcester to prevent the convoy from escaping. They went on toPowick,just south of theRiver Teme,around two mi (3 km) south of Worcester. There they spent the night and most of the following day[19]guarding the route they expected Byron to attempt to escape along.[16]

The Parliamentarians did not send out scouts nor post a lookout in the church tower[16]and so were unaware that Byron had been reinforced earlier that day.Prince Rupert,[21]the Royalistgeneral of horse,had arrived, also with about a thousand mounted troops. Rupert's men were just north of the Teme, guarding the southern approach to the city. The modern historian Peter Gaunt suggests that Rupert was probably aware of the presence of the Parliamentarian detachment in the area,[22]but allowed his men to rest in a field known as Wick Field (or Brickfield Meadow) and many removed their armour.[23]

Opposing forces[edit]

black and white engraving of a dragoon mounted on his horse, showing his armour and weaponry
Dragoons typically rode into battle, but dismounted to fight.

Two major categories of mounted troops often referred to simply as "horse", were employed during the First English Civil War.Dragoonswere mountedinfantry,armed withmuskets,who were typically used asskirmishersor as part ofadvanced guardsdue to their mobility. They rode into battle but dismounted to fight. The cavalry remained mounted to fight, generally on larger horses than dragoons. Most wereharquebusiers,who were armoured with a helmet andplate armour on their torsoand carried a sword, two pistols, and acarbine.[24]Rupert's force was split roughly evenly between dragoons and cavalry, while the proportion of each in the Parliamentarian force is unknown: records indicate only that they had ten troops of cavalry and five companies of dragoons.[16]

The cavalry tactics of the two forces differed. The Parliamentarians used manoeuvres originated in the army of theDutch Republicwhich was the pre-eminent force in the early 17th century, and with whom many English cavalry officers had first experienced battle. In both attack and defence, Parliamentarian cavalry relied on their firepower, a tactic known ascaracole.When they were on the offensive, onerankat a time moved forward to fire at their opponents, while in defence the cavalry initially remained stationary and fired into the enemy charge, hoping to break their opponents and thencounter-charge.[25]In contrast, Rupert's cavalry used a modified version of tactics used byGustavus Adolphus of Sweden.Deploying in shallower formations than the Parliamentarians to allow a greater frontage, the Royalist cavalry attacked at the charge,[b]using their firearms only when they were already among their opponents and often relied on their swords instead.[26]

Battle[edit]

At around 4pm, Brown and Sandys ordered an advance towards the city.[27]The historian Richard Brooks suggests they had received intelligence that Byron was preparing to leave Worcester.[16]Sandys led a small group of troops ahead, across the narrow bridge and along a country lane that allowed no more than three riders abreast.[28]Modern historians vary slightly in their account of the first stage of the engagement: Brooks, Chris Scott, and Alan Turton have the Royalist dragoons already prepared, lining the hedges of the lane. When the Parliamentarians advanced up the path, the dragoons opened fire on them, causing Sandys's men to panic and bolt forward into Wick Field; the musket-fire alerting the resting Royalist cavalry of their approach.[16][29]Peter Gaunt and Trevor Royle describe all the Royalists as within the field; the noise of the Parliamentarian horsemen alerted Rupert to their approach, allowing him to quickly prepare his men for battle as best as he could.[27][28]He lined the hedges with the dismounted dragoons while the cavalry was drawn up into open order in the meadow. When Sandys and his cavalry troop emerged into the field, they were faced with point-blank gunfire from the dragoons, giving the Royalist cavalry extra time to prepare.[28]

The Parliamentarians attempted to regroup and return fire but were charged by Rupert's cavalry. Sandys was mortally wounded during the initial assault. Sandys's troops were routed with no support from their dragoons, which were stuck behind the cavalry in the narrow country lanes.[28][30]Fiennes said that he managed to control his cavalry and hold fire until the charging Royalists were close enough "so that their horses' noses almost touched those of our first rank".[16]Despite this, they were isolated after the retreat of Sandys's men and forced to abandon the fight.[16]The Parliamentarian dragoons made arearguardstand on Powick Bridge to protect the cavalry's retreat, but Rupert called off the chase at Powick.[31]

Aftermath[edit]

portrait of Prince Rupert
The reputation ofPrince Rupert,and his Royalist cavalry, was enhanced by the battle.

The Parliamentarian cavalry rode in alarm all the way back toPershore,15 mi (24 km) away, where they met Essex's Lifeguard.[c]Their account of the battle and belief that Rupert's cavalry was still chasing them broke the Lifeguard, which was thencarried awayin the flight.[33]According to Fiennes, both sides lost around 30 men dead.[31]Other reports place the Parliamentarian losses higher; Brooks estimates that desertions, drownings, and prisoners might have increased the total to 100–150.[16]The Royalists claimed to have lost no one of note, though many of their officers, includingPrince Maurice(Rupert's younger brother) andHenry Wilmot,were wounded.[16][34]

The battle established Rupert's reputation as an effective cavalry commander; soldiers from both sides told stories of the battle, according to the Royalist commentatorEdward Hyde, 1st Earl of Clarendonthe victory "rendered the name of Prince Rupert very terrible".[35]The historianAustin Woolrychdescribes Powick Bridge as having "significance... disproportionate to its scale ": it proved that the Royalists had forces capable of standing up to and beating those of Parliament, and affected the morale of both armies leading up to theBattle of Edgehilla month later.[36]

No longer threatened by the Parliamentarians, the convoy was able to continue on its journey to the King and Rupert abandoned the indefensible Worcester and returned north to Shropshire. The next day, Essex's army arrived in Worcester, where they remained for the next four weeks.[31]Although the city had declared its loyalty to Parliament on 13 September, many in Essex's army thought Worcester's citizens had helped the Royalists and that the city was accordingly treated poorly: it had to pay for transporting the wounded and burying the dead from the battle and much of the city was ransacked, particularly thecathedral.[37]

After the further build-up of the respective armies, King Charles marched out of Shrewsbury on 12 October aiming towards London. It was considered that either defeating Essex's field army in battle or capturing London had the potential to finish the war quickly.[38]In the event, the two armies met inconclusively at the Battle of Edgehill on 23 October, after which the Royalists were able to continue their slow approach towards London. The Parliamentarians took a less direct route to the capital but still arrived there first. After further battles atBrentfordandTurnham Green,Charles withdrew to Oxford to establish winter quarters.[39]

Almost nine years later, the final battle of theThird English Civil War,theBattle of Worcester,was also fought in and around Powick;Oliver Cromwell's ParliamentarianNew Model Armysecured a decisive victory overKing CharlesII.The day after the Battle of Worcester, thePuritanpreacherHugh Petergave a sermon to Cromwell's troops referring to the two battles, "when their wives and children should ask them where they had been and what news, they should say they had been at Worcester, where England's sorrows began, and where they were happily ended."[40]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^Britain used theOld StyleJulian calendarduring the English Civil War, in which the new year started on 25 March. This article uses New Style Julian calendar dates, which assumes the year starts on 1 January.[1]
  2. ^Although termed a "charge", Rupert's cavalry advanced no faster than a quick trot and remained in a controlledclose order formation.[26]
  3. ^Essex's Lifeguard was a cavalry troop commanded by SirPhilip Stapleton.They were considered the most elite cavalry troop in the Parliamentarian army, well armoured and mounted, and were responsible for guarding Essex.[32]

References[edit]

  1. ^Harrington 2003,p. 8.
  2. ^Gaunt 2019,pp. 41–42.
  3. ^Gaunt 2019,p. 51.
  4. ^Wanklyn & Jones 2014,p. 39.
  5. ^Manganiello 2004,pp. 267–268.
  6. ^Wanklyn & Jones 2014,pp. 42–46.
  7. ^Royle 2005,p. 169.
  8. ^Gaunt 2019,pp. 64–67.
  9. ^Wanklyn & Jones 2014,p. 43.
  10. ^Gaunt 2019,p. 68.
  11. ^Scott & Turton 2017,p. 34.
  12. ^Gaunt 2019,pp. 67–68.
  13. ^Gaunt 2019,p. 67.
  14. ^Wanklyn 2006,p. 36.
  15. ^abBarratt 2004,pp. 120–121.
  16. ^abcdefghijBrooks 2005,p. 373.
  17. ^Gaunt 2019,pp. 68–69.
  18. ^Wanklyn & Jones 2014,p. 44.
  19. ^abGaunt 2019,p. 69.
  20. ^Scott & Turton 2017,p. 35.
  21. ^Roberts & Tincey 2001,p. 44.
  22. ^Gaunt 2019,pp. 69–70.
  23. ^Royle 2005,pp. 186–187.
  24. ^Roberts & Tincey 2001,pp. 19–22.
  25. ^Tincey 1990,p. 17.
  26. ^abBarratt 2004,pp. 27–28.
  27. ^abGaunt 2019,p. 70.
  28. ^abcdRoyle 2005,p. 187.
  29. ^Scott & Turton 2017,p. 36.
  30. ^Gaunt 2019,pp. 70–71.
  31. ^abcGaunt 2019,p. 71.
  32. ^Carpenter 2007,p. 84.
  33. ^Roberts & Tincey 2001,pp. 44–45.
  34. ^Barratt 2004,p. 62.
  35. ^Royle 2005,p. 188.
  36. ^Woolrych 2002,p. 238.
  37. ^Atkin 2004,pp. 50–53.
  38. ^Scott, Turton & Gruber von Arni 2004,p. 5.
  39. ^Gaunt 2019,pp. 79–82.
  40. ^Atkin 1998,p. 120.

Bibliography[edit]

  • Atkin, Malcolm (1998).Cromwell's Crowning Mercy: The Battle of Worcester 1651.Stroud: Sutton Publishing.ISBN978-0750918886.
  • Atkin, Malcolm (2004).Worcestershire Under Arms: An English County During the Civil Wars.Barnsley: Pen & Sword Military.ISBN1844150720.
  • Barratt, John (2004).Cavalier Generals: King Charles I & His Commanders in the English Civil War, 1642–46.Barnsley: Pen & Sword Military.ISBN978-1844151288.
  • Brooks, Richard (2005).Cassell's Battlefields of Britain and Ireland.London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson.ISBN0304363332.
  • Carpenter, Stanley D.M. (2007).The English Civil War.Aldershot: Ashgate.ISBN978-0754624806.
  • Gaunt, Peter (2019) [2014].The English Civil War: A Military History.London: Bloomsbury Academic.ISBN978-1350143517.
  • Harrington, Peter (2003).English Civil War Fortifications 1642–51.Oxford: Osprey Publishing.ISBN1841766046.
  • Manganiello, Stephen C. (2004).The Concise Encyclopedia of the Revolutions and Wars of England, Scotland, and Ireland, 1639–1660.Lanham, Maryland; Toronto; Oxford: Scarecrow Press.ISBN978-0810851009.
  • Roberts, Keith; Tincey, John (2001).Edgehill 1642: The First Battle of the English Civil War.Oxford: Osprey Publishing.ISBN1855329913.
  • Royle, Trevor (2005) [2004].Civil War: The Wars of the Three Kingdoms, 1638–1660.London: Abacus.ISBN0349115648.
  • Scott, Chris; Turton, Alan (2017).Hey For Old Robin! The Campaigns and Armies of the Earl of Essex during the First Civil War, 1642–44.Solihull: Helion & Company.ISBN978-1911512219.
  • Scott, Christopher L.; Turton, Alan; Gruber von Arni, Eric (2004).Edgehill: The Battle Reinterpreted.Barnsley: Pen & Sword Military.ISBN1844151336.
  • Tincey, John (1990).Soldiers of the English Civil War (2): Cavalry.Oxford: Osprey.ISBN0850459400.
  • Wanklyn, Malcolm (2006).Decisive Battles of the English Civil War.Barnsley: Pen & Sword Military.ISBN978-1844154548.
  • Wanklyn, Malcolm; Jones, Frank (2014) [2005].A Military History of the English Civil War: 1642–1649.Abingdon: Routledge.ISBN978-0582772816.
  • Woolrych, Austin(2002).Britain in Revolution: 1625–1660.Oxford: Oxford University Press.ISBN0199272689.
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