Thomas Fairfax

For other people with the same name, seeThomas Fairfax (disambiguation).

The Right Honourable The Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax byRobert Walker,painted between 1649 and 1658
Nickname(s)	Black Tom Rider of the White Horse
Born	(1612-01-17)17 January 1612 Denton Hall,Denton,West Riding of Yorkshire,England
Died	12 November 1671(1671-11-12)(aged 59) Nun Appleton,West Riding of Yorkshire,England
Buried	St James' Church, Bilbrough,Yorkshire
Allegiance	Kingdom of England Parliament of England
Service/branch	English Army Parliamentarian army New Model Army
Rank	Lord General
Battles/wars	Battle of Nantwich Battle of Marston Moor Siege of Oxford Battle of Naseby Battle of Maidstone Siege of Colchester Suppression of Leveller mutiny
Signature

Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Lord Fairfax of Cameron(17 January 1612 – 12 November 1671), also known asSir Thomas Fairfax,was an English politician, general andParliamentarycommander-in-chief during theEnglish Civil War.An adept and talented commander, Fairfax led Parliament to many victories, including the crucialBattle of Naseby,effectively becoming military ruler of England, but he was eventually overshadowed by his subordinateOliver Cromwell,who was more politically adept and radical in action againstCharles I.Fairfax became dissatisfied with Cromwell's policy and publicly refused to take part in Charles's show trial. Eventually he resigned, leaving Cromwell to control the country. Because of this, as well as his honourable battlefield conduct and active role in theRestorationof the monarchy after Cromwell's death, he was exempted from the retribution that was exacted on many other leaders of the revolution.

Early life

Thomas Fairfax was born atDenton Hall,halfway betweenIlkleyandOtleyin theWest Riding of Yorkshire,on 17 January 1612, the eldest son ofFerdinando Fairfax, 2nd Lord Fairfax of Cameron.(His family title ofLord Fairfax of Cameronwas in thepeerage of Scotland,then still independent from England, which was why he was able to sit in the English House of Commons after he inherited it.) His dark hair, eyes and swarthy complexion would earn him the nickname "Black Tom".

Fairfax studied atSt John's College, Cambridge,andGray's Inn(1626–1628), and then volunteered to joinSir Horace Vere's expedition to fight for the Protestant cause in the Netherlands.In 1639, he commanded a troop of Yorkshiredragoonswhich marched with King Charles I against the Scots in theFirst Bishops' War,which ended with thePacification of Berwickbefore any fighting took place. In theSecond Bishops' Warthe following year, the English army was routed at theBattle of Newburn.Fairfax fled with the rest of the defeated army, but was nevertheless knighted in January 1641 for his services.

Pre-Civil War events

Sir Thomas Fairfax, Knight,line engraving, 1680.National Portrait Gallery, London

The Fairfaxes, father and son, though serving at first under KingCharles I,were opposed to the arbitrary prerogative ofthe Crown,and Sir Thomas declared that "his judgment was for the Parliament as the king and kingdom's great and safest council". Charles endeavoured to raise a guard for his own person atYork,intending it, as the events afterwards would prove, to form the nucleus of an army. Fairfax was employed to present a petition to his sovereign, entreating him to listen to the voice of his parliament, and to discontinue the raising of troops. This was at a greatmeetingof the freeholders and farmers ofYorkshireconvened by the king onHeworth Moornear York. Charles attempted to ignore the petition, pressing his horse forward, but Fairfax followed him and placed the petition on the pommel of the king's saddle.

Civil War

When the civil war began in 1642, his father, Lord Fairfax, was appointed general of the Parliamentary forces in the north, and Sir Thomas was then made lieutenant-general of the horse under him. Both father and son distinguished themselves in the Yorkshire campaigns.

In 1643, a minor battle betweenRoyalistsforCharles Iand a small group ofRoundheadsunder Fairfax, who were en route fromTadcastertoLeeds,took place atSeacroft.Fairfax was obliged to retreat acrossBramham moor,and summed up theBattle of Seacroft Mooras 'the greatest loss we ever received'.

Sometimes severely defeated, but more often successful, and always energetic, prudent and resourceful, father and son contrived to keep up the struggle until the crisis of 1644, when York was held by theMarquess of Newcastleagainst the combined besieging forces of the English Parliamentarians and theScottish Covenanters,whilePrince Ruperthastened with all available forces to the relief of the besieged garrison. A gathering of eager national forces within a few square miles of ground naturally led to a battle, andMarston Moor(2 July 1644) proved decisive for the struggle in the north. The younger Fairfax bore himself with the greatest gallantry in the battle and, though severely wounded, managed to joinOliver Cromwelland the victorious cavalry on the other wing. One of his brothers, Colonel Charles Fairfax, was killed in action. But the Marquess of Newcastle fled the kingdom, and theRoyalistsabandoned all hope of retrieving their affairs. The city of York was taken, and nearly the whole of the north would submit to the Parliament.

In the West, South and South West of England, however, the Royalist cause remained strong. The war had lasted two years, and the nation began to complain of the contributions that were exacted of and the excesses that were committed by the military. Dissatisfaction was expressed with the military commanders and, as a preliminary step to reform, theSelf-denying Ordinancewas passed. This involved the removal ofthe Earl of Essexfrom the supreme command, along with other Members of Parliament. This was then followed by theNew Model Ordinance,which replaced the locally raised Parliamentary regiments with a unified army. Sir Thomas Fairfax was selected as the new Lord General, with Cromwell as his Lieutenant-General and cavalry commander. After a short preliminary campaign, theNew Model Armyjustified its existence, and "the rebels' new brutish general", as the king had called him, proved his capacity as commander-in-chief in the decisiveBattle of Naseby(14 June 1645). The king fled toWales.Fairfax besiegedLeicester,and was successful atTaunton,BridgwaterandBristol.The whole of the west was soon reduced.

Doublet worn by Fairfax at theBattle of Maidstonein 1648

Fairfax arrived inLondonon 12 November 1645. In his progress towards the capital he was accompanied by applauding crowds. Complimentary speeches and thanks were presented to him by both houses of parliament, along with a jewel of great value set with diamonds, and a sum of money. The king had returned from Wales and established himself atOxford,where there was a strong garrison but, ever vacillating, he withdrew secretly, and proceeded toNewarkto throw himself into the arms of the ScotsCovenanterarmy there. Oxford capitulated in June 1646 following the finalsiege,and by the end of September 1646 Charles had neither army nor garrison in England, following the surrender ofThomas BlaggeatWallingford Castleafter a siege conducted by Fairfax. In January 1647, the King was delivered up by the Covenanters to the commissioners of England's parliament. Fairfax met the king beyondNottingham,accompanying him during the journey toHoldenby,treating him with the utmost consideration in every way. "The general", said Charles, "is a man ofhonour,and keeps his word which he had pledged to me. "

With the collapse of the Royalist cause came a confused period of negotiations between the Parliament and the King, between the King and the Scots, and between thePresbyteriansand theIndependentsin and out of Parliament. In these negotiations the New Model Army soon began to take a most active part. The Lord General was placed in the unpleasant position of intermediary between his own officers and Parliament. In July the person of the King was seized byCornet Joyce,a subaltern of cavalry—an act which sufficiently demonstrated the hopelessness of controlling the army by itsArticles of War.

Goldmedal depicting Thomas Fairfax in profile, 1645.National Portrait Gallery, London

Fairfax was more at home in the field than at the head of a political committee, and, finding events too strong for him and that his officers were rallying around the more radical and politically shrewd Cromwell, he sought to resign his commission as commander-in-chief. He was, however, persuaded to retain it. He thus remained the titular chief of the army party, and with the greater part of its objects he was in complete, sometimes most active, sympathy. Shortly before the outbreak of theSecond Civil War,Fairfax succeeded his father in the barony and in the office of governor ofHull.In the field against the English Royalists in 1648 he displayed his former energy and skill, and his operations culminated in the successfulsiege of Colchester,after the surrender of which place he approved the execution of the Royalist leaders SirCharles LucasandSir George Lisle,holding that these officers had broken theirparole.At the same time, Cromwell's great victory ofPrestoncrushed the faction of the Scots Covenanters who had made an engagement with the king, theEngagers.

John Milton,in asonnetwritten during the siege of Colchester, called upon the Lord General to settle the kingdom, but the crisis was now at hand. Fairfax was in agreement with Cromwell and the army leaders in demanding the punishment of Charles, and he was still the effective head of the army. He approved, if he did not take an active part in,Pride's Purge(6 December 1648), but on the last and gravest of the questions at issue he set himself in deliberate and open opposition to the policy of the officers. He was placed at the head of the judges who were to try the King, and attended the preliminary sitting of the court, but absented himself after this. The most likely explanation is that when he saw that they were serious about intending to execute the king he declined to have anything to do with this.

In calling over the court, when the crier pronounced the name of Fairfax, it is said that his wife,Anne Fairfax,shouted from the gallery that "he had more wit than to be there". Later when the court said that they were acting for "all the good people of England", she shouted "No, nor the hundredth part of them!". This resulted in an investigation and Anne was asked or required to leave the court.It was said that Anne could not forbear, asBulstrode Whitelockesays, to exclaim aloud against the proceedings of the High Court of Justice.In February 1649 Fairfax was electedMember of ParliamentforCirencesterin theRump Parliament.Anne was later approached to intercede on the King's behalf to prevent his execution.

Fairfax's last service as Commander-in-chief was the suppression of theLevellermutinyatBurfordin May 1649. He had given his adhesion to the new order of things, and had been reappointed Lord General, but he merely administered the affairs of the army; when in 1650 Scots CovenanterKirk Partyeventually declared forCharles II,and theCouncil of Stateresolved to send an army to Scotland in order to prevent an invasion ofEngland,Fairfax resigned his commission. Cromwell desired to see him continue as Commander-in-chief, as did those planning the war, but Fairfax could not support the war. Cromwell was appointed his successor, "Captain-general and Commander-in-chief of all the forces raised or to be raised at authority of Parliament within the Commonwealth of England."

Interregnum

The Most Excellent Thomas Fairfax, Captin Generall of the Armyes etc,etching,1640s.National Portrait Gallery, London

During theCommonwealth of Englandin 1654, Fairfax was elected MP for the newly created constituency ofWest Ridingin theFirst Protectorate Parliament.He received a pension of £5,000 a year, and lived in retirement at his Yorkshire home ofNunappletonuntil after the death of theLord Protectorin 1658. Nunappleton and Fairfax's retirement there, as well as his personality, are the subject of Andrew Marvell's country house poem,Upon Appleton House.The troubles of the later Commonwealth recalled Lord Fairfax to political activity, and in 1659 he was elected MP forYorkshirein theThird Protectorate Parliament.

Restoration

For the last time Fairfax's appearance in arms helped to shape the future of the country, whenGeorge Monckinvited him to assist in the operations about to be undertaken againstJohn Lambert's army. In December 1659 he appeared at the head of a body of Yorkshire gentlemen, and such was the influence of Fairfax's name and reputation that 1,200 horse quit Lambert's colours and joined him. This was speedily followed by the breaking up of all Lambert's forces, and that day secured the restoration of the monarchy. For these actions, along with his honourable conduct in the civil war, he was spared from the wave of Royalist retributions. In April 1660 Fairfax was re-elected MP for Yorkshire in theConvention Parliament.He was put at the head of the commission appointed by theHouse of Commonsto wait upon Charles II atThe Hagueand urge his speedy return. His actions assisted theStuart Restoration.Fairfax provided the horse which Charles rode at his coronation.

Later life

The remaining eleven years of the life of Lord Fairfax were spent in retirement at his seat in Yorkshire. His wife died in 1665and Fairfax died atNun Appleton Prioryin 1671. He was buried atSt James' Church, Bilbrough,near York.

Writings

Fairfax had a taste forliterature.He translated some of thePsalms,and wrote poems on solitude, the Christian warfare, the shortness of life, etc.During the last year or two of his life he wrote two Memorials which have been published—one on the northern actions in which he was engaged in 1642–44, and the other on some events in his tenure of the chief command. At York and at Oxford he endeavoured to save the libraries from pillage, and he enriched theBodleianwith some valuable manuscripts. His correspondence was edited by G.W. Johnson and published in 1848–49 in four volumes.

The metaphysical poetAndrew Marvellwrote "Upon Appleton House, To My Lord Fairfax", nominally about Fairfax's home, but also his character as well as England during his era.

Family

Lead bust of Thomas Fairfax,c. 1650,National Portrait Gallery, London

Fairfax married Hon.Anne de Vere,daughter ofHorace Vere, 1st Baron Vere of Tilburyand Mary Tracy, on 20 June 1637. They had a daughter,Hon. Mary Fairfax(30 July 1638 – 20 October 1704),who marriedGeorge Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham.

Fairfax was succeeded as Lord Fairfax by a cousin,Henry Fairfax, 4th Lord Fairfax of Cameron.

Analysis

As a soldier he was exact and methodical in planning, in the heat of battle "so highly transported that scarce any one durst speak a word to him",chivalrous and punctilious in his dealings with his own men and the enemy. Honour and conscientiousness were equally the characteristics of his private and public character. But his modesty and distrust of his powers made him less effectual as astatesmanthan as a soldier, and above all he is placed at a disadvantage by being both in war and peace overshadowed by his associate Cromwell, who was politically talented and able to manipulate public antipathy against Charles to lead to his execution, something Fairfax never wanted.

In fiction

Fairfax, played by actorDougray Scott,is a pivotal character in the 2003 filmTo Kill a King,as well as inRosemary Sutcliff's 1953historical fictionSimon,being portrayed as inspiring and fair.He also appears as a central character in Sutcliff's 1959 novelThe Rider of the White Horse,which gives an account of the early stage of the Civil War from the point of view of his wife,and inHoward Brenton's 2012 play55 Days.Douglas Wilmerportrayed him in the 1970Ken HughesfilmCromwell.

He was played byJerome Willisin the 1975 historical filmWinstanley.He appears in Michael Arnold's novelMarston Moor,which includes an account of Fairfax's adventures in the eponymous battle.He was also a central character, played by Nigel Anthony, in the 1988 BBC Radio production of Don Taylor's playGod's Revolution.

References

• Cotterill, Anne (2004),Digressive voices in early modern English literature,Oxford University Press, p. 110,ISBN978-0-19-926117-8cites
• Fairfax, Thomas; Reed, Edward Bliss (1909),The poems of Thomas, third lord Fairfax from Ms. Fairfax 40 in the Bodleian library, Oxford,New Haven, Conn.: Pub. under the auspices of Yale university
• Gibbs, M. A. (1938),The Lord General: A life of Thomas Fairfax,Drummond, p. 4
• Helms, M. W.; Cruickshanks, Eveline (1983),"Fairfax, Thomas, 3rd Lord Fairfax of Cameron [S] (1612–71), of Nun Appleton, Yorks.",in Henning, B. D. (ed.),The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1660–1690,Boydell and Brewer
• Hopper, Andrew (2007),Black Tom: Sir Thomas Fairfax and the English Revolution(illustrated ed.), Manchester University Press, pp.174,ISBN9780719071096
• Mosley, Charles, ed. (2003),Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage,vol. 1 (107th ed.), Wilmington, Del.: Burke's Peerage, p. 1373
• Plant, David (21 June 2005),Sir Thomas, Lord Fairfax 1612–1671,british-civil-wars.co.uk, archived fromthe originalon 3 February 2020,retrieved17 May2011.

Attribution:

• This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Firth, Charles Harding (1889). "Fairfax, Thomas (1612–1671)".InStephen, Leslie(ed.).Dictionary of National Biography.Vol. 18. London: Smith, Elder & Co. pp. 141–149.
• This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Chisholm, Hugh,ed. (1911). "Fairfax of Cameron, Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Baron".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 10 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 130–131.