Blog Archives

Sashes

1/20/2018

Bored with the everyday look of your English Civil War sash - Royalist red, Roundhead tawny? Then take a look at these chaps . . .

Sir William Fairfax (National Trust, Hatchlands)

Colonel Sir John Booth (National Trust, Dunham Massey)

Both the officers in the above portraits fought at the battle of Nantwich in January 1644, commanding formations on the Parliamentarian right wing. The website "historicalportraits.com" suggests that the battle scene in the background of William Fairfax's portrait probably depicts the fighting there (http://www.historicalportraits.com/Gallery.asp?Page=Item&ItemID=926&Desc=Sir-William-Fairfax-%7C-Edward-Bower)

Was the black sash, then, the colour favoured by Parliamentarians at the battle of Nantwich?

Colonel Sir Michael Livesay (National Maritime Museum)

Another Parliamentarian sporting the black sash, but one who served in the south of England rather than the north - the Kentish colonel and Regicide, Sir Michael Livesay.

Sir Thomas Fairfax (Manchester Art Gallery)

George Digby, Earl of Bristol (Royal Armouries Museum, Leeds)

Parliamentarian Sir Thomas Fairfax has here gone for the green sash, in a portrait which post-dates the battle of Marston Moor (judging from the scar on his jaw). On the right, royalist George Digby wears and washed-out blue-green, rather than the traditionally royalist red sash. However, this portrait would appear to date from after 1653 (when Digby was awarded the Order of the Garter, the blue ribbon of which he also wears), at which time Digby was a commander of French forces. We must therefore conclude that the blue-green sash is a French distinction.

Edward Mascall, Lord Conyers and Darcy (York Museums Trust)

"A Commonwealth Officer" (York Museums Trust)

Despite fighting on opposing sides, both Lord Conyers and Darcy (royalist commander of the Yorkshire trained bands) and an unknown Commonwealth officer are distinguished by a sash of blue.

Sir Thomas Byron (Newstead Abbey Collection)

Sir Nicholas Byron (Newstead Abbey Collection)

Twin portraits of two royalist Byron brothers, both attired in what might be described as 'dress' sashes with delicate embroidering. However, don't let the tawny orange of Sir Nicholas Byron mislead you into thinking he was a closet Roundhead - these portraits date from the 1630s.

Denzil Holles (Parliamentary Art Collection)

portrait of an unknown officer (full citation pending)

Denzil Holles's sash is just the sort of tawny-orange expected oon an officer who served under Essex on the Edgehill campaign, but the allegiance of the unknown officer on the right is not at all clear. Has his royalist-red sash faded to 'carnation', or was it always that colour?

Portrait of a Gentleman said to be George Joyce (via Artnet.com)

General Richard Dean (National Maritime Museum)

General John Lambert (private collection)

Another problem the well-dressed officer might encounter - how to wear the sash, on the shoulder or around the waist? Whether carnation, red or red and white, the three Cromwellian officers above prefer theirs round the upper arm.

If you have your own opinion, please feel free to comment below.

Robert Hodkinson
January 2018

Images sourced, unless otherwise stated, from Art UK [online] available: https://artuk.org

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Nantwich

1/6/2018

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"In the Coldest Season of the Year"
first-hand accounts of the Battle of Nantwich, January 1644

In January 1644 the Cheshire market town of Nantwich witnessed the end of a military campaign by the forces of King Charles the First to secure the north-west of England for the Crown. What follows are eyewitness accounts of the men who were there at the time.
The spelling and punctuation of the original sources has been retained.

adapted from R N Dore's "The Civil War in Cheshire" (1965)

Sir Thomas Fairfax, Parliamentarian commander: In the coldest Season of the Year I was commanded by the Parliament to go and raise the Siege at Nantwich, which the Lord Byron, with the Irish Army, had reduced to great Extremity. I was the most unfit of all their Forces, being ever the worst Paid, my Men sickly and almost naked. . . Upon the 21st of January I marched from Manchester towards Nantwych . . . When we came within a Days March, I had Intelligence the Lord Byron had drawn off his Siege, and intended to meet us in the Field. I put my Men into the Order in which I intended to Fight, and continued my March till we came within three Miles of the Town.

John Hodgson, Parliamentarian captain: [Fairfax] was appointed to raise the siege at Nantwich, which was made by those forces sent by King and Parliament to suppress the cut-throat tories in the rebellion. These desert their work, and fight in England against the Parliament's friends; besieged Nantwich, and had brought it very low, but that they proved stout within. The good man [Fairfax] wept when he looked upon us; yet did give great encouragement, if God gave success, that in the battle we should be taken care for in a peculiar manner.

Lord Byron, Royalist commander in Lancashire, Cheshire and North Wales: It fell out unfortunately that the night before we fought with them a small river, that ran betwixt our quarters, swelled so upon the falling of rain and melting of the snow that one part of the army was forced to march six miles before it could join with the other: before which time the enemy had gained a pass upon us where we thought to have stopped him.

Hodgson: That morning we came to engage, we beat up an ambuscade at a mill, and took many prisoners; our horse fell in, and took them off our hands. . . We marched on to the enemy's main body, near Acton church; and there we went to prayers: and, after a council of war, it was resolved to march the whole army to Nantwich.

Fairfax: The first Encounter we had was with a Party of theirs upon the Forest of Delamoer, where about Thirty were taken Prisoners. About six Miles farther, they maintained a Pass against us, with about 200 Men: I caused some Foot and Dragoons to he drawn out, to force it; which by God's Assistance they did in half an hours space.

Fairfax: Having advanced two Miles farther, we found a good Body of them planted about Acton Church, a Mile from Nantwych; we drew up within Cannon shot, which sometimes played upon us, but without hurt, God be thanked.

We then understood, that the Lord Byron, who had besieged the Town on both sides of the River, was prevented, by overflowing of the Water, from joining with that part at Acton-Church; but heard he was taking a Company to get over the River, to join with it.

We resolved to fall upon that Party at the Church, before he should get up to it; but staying to bring up our Rear and Carriages, we gave him time to obtain that he had sought for. Then we resolved to make way with Pyoneers through the Hedges, and so to march to the Town, to relieve it; and by it to add some more Forces to ourselves, to enable us better to fight with them.

Lord Byron: The place of the battle was in an inclosed country, where horse could do little service, and not above a mile from Nantwich: which I forewarned the Major-General [Gibson] of, and desired especial care might be taken lest we should receive prejudice by any sally out of the town: which he assured me he had done.

His own regiment [Major-General Gibson] had the right wing; my brother's [Robert Byron] the left; Warren's and Sir Mich. Erneley's the battle; Huncks's regiment was to wait upon them that should attempt to sally out of the town.

Hodgson: as we were slowly moving after the pioneers with the guns and wagons, the enemy fell upon our right flank with all the power they could: and much ado we had to get our party into order; yet at the last it was done, though through many difficulties and great hazards.

Fairfax: But being a little advanced in our March, they told me the Enemy was close upon the Rear. So having about two Regiments, being Colonel Holland's and Colonel Booth's, I marched not far before we came to be engaged with the greatest part of their Army.

Thomas Malbon, a Nantwich lawyer: There the battle began, between them, very fiercely; (about half an hour past three in the afternoon), equal on both sides. . .

Robert Byron, royalist cavalry commander and Lord Byron's younger brother: our army was drawn in several enclosures, where our horse (which we were superior in) could do no good, nor we help one another, by reason of the great distance from one another: yet Gibson's regiment and mine held them very good play and lost nothing by them.

Fairfax: These that fell on our Reer were that part of their Army that lay on the other side of the Town, who had past the River. Those who were drawn up under their Works, fell upon our Van, which was marching to the Town. Thus was the Battel divided, there being a quarter of a Mile betwixt us, in the Division that first engag'd. . .

The other part presently after assaulted our Front: There Sir William Brewerton and Colonel Ashton did very good Service; and so did Colonel Lambert and Major Copley, with the Horse. They were once in great danger, but that they being next to the Town, were assisted by Forces which came to their Succour in due time.

Hodgson: it pleased God we kept our ground; and one, Captain Holt, with four or five companies of Ashton's regiment, falls upon our enemy's flank in the hedges, and so we put the English-Irish to retreat to their wagons and guns at the church, and there we seized on all and set a guard about the prisoners.

Fairfax: We in the other Wing were in as great Distress, but that the Horse commanded by Sir William Fairfax did expose themselves to great Danger, to encourage the Foot, though capable of little Service in though narrow Lanes.

Lord Byron: At the first encounter we had much the better of them, both our wings clearly beating both theirs, and were possessed of many of their colours: and had given them a total defeat, had not Col. Warren's men and Sir Mich. Erneley's at the same time (notwithstanding all the endeavours of their officers) retreated, without almost fighting a stroke; so that the enemies battle fell into the flanks of both our wings: and at the same time the enemy sallied out of the town with at least 600 men, and possessed themselves of a churchyard where all our carriages stood.

Robert Byron: Warren's regiment, tho' they had their beloved Colonel Moncke in the head of them, was no sooner charged but they broke, and being rallied again, the next charge ran quite away. . . Some say, they played foul play, and ran over to the enemy, at the least 60 of them, and fired upon us.

Hodgson: Several took up arms with us.

Malbon: before five o'clock, many of the soldiers of the trained bands issued forth of [the] town, and falling upon the rear of the King's party.

Robert Byron: By this time they in the town had got 1,000 musketeers ready to sally out upon us. There was a bridge betwixt us and them, which they must pass. There instead of 400 men my brother appointed to make that pass good. Col. Gibson had appointed but 100, who were quickly beaten off and left the passage. Being over, the next regiment was Sir Mich. Erneley's, who stood not long to dispute with them; but broke and ran.

Fairfax: Yet it pleased God, after two hours of hot Fighting, they were forced by both Wings to retreat to the Church; where they were caught, as in a Trap. . . Our other Wing being assisted from the Town, who sally'd out with seven or eight hundred Musketeers, beat the Enemy back into the same Works.

Byron: Most of the officers retreated into the church; where they were all taken prisoners; only my brother's regiment had the good fortune to bring off their colours with little loss; only Sir Francis Butler was unfortunately taken by a mistake of the enemies colours for his own.

Robert Byron: All this while Gibson's regiment and mine held entire; till being overcharged on all sides with horse and foot, were forced every man to shift for himself as well as he could. It was now high time for my men to think of a retreat: which they did against two regiments of the enemy that pursued them; they keeping them off still with giving fire in the rear, till they recovered the horse which secured them.

Byron: The ground was so inclosed that the horse could do no service; and some of them who were struck with a panic fear, so disordered the rest, that though they did not run away, yet it was impossible to make them charge. . . I was forced to retreat to Chester, with what foot I could gather together of several regiments, which were betwixt 1,000 and 1,200.

Fairfax: That the Lord of Hosts hath done great things for us; to whose Name alone be ascribed all Glory: That nothing in the worthless Creature may any ways darken that which immediately appears herein of the Creator. Hoping still he will go along with us to prosper in this way, and make me, though unworthy, more capable to serve him in it.

Thus, by the Mercy of God, was this Victory obtain'd, being the more signal, in that we were not to deal with young Soldiers, but with Men of great Experience, and an Army which had ever been victorious.

A Note on the sources:

Sir Thomas Fairfax wrote two accounts of the battle at Nantwich. The first appears in a letter addressed to the Parliamentarian Lord General, the Earl of Essex, dated four days after the battle (Rushworth, Historical Collections). The second (less detailed) account appeared in Fairfax's “Short Memorialls”, written following the war. Excerpts from this later account are rendered in italics in the passages above.

Both Lord John and Robert Byron wrote reports of the battle in despatches addressed to the Marquis of Ormonde, commander of English forces, Ireland. Their reports are dated 30 and 31 January 1644 respectively.

Parliamentarian cavalry captain John Hodgson survived the fighting at Nantwich and went on to serve at the battles of Preston and Dunbar. He wrote his autobiography c.1670.

Nantwich lawyer and land-owner Thomas Malbon's manuscript account of the war in Cheshire is dated 1651.

Robert Hodkinson,
January, 2019

Sources:

Carte, T. (ed.), A Collection of Original Letters and Papers Found Among the Duke of Ormonde's Papers, 2 vols. (London 1739).

Dore, R. N., The Civil Wars in Cheshire (Chester, 1965)

Fairfax, T., Short Memorials of Thomas, Lord Fairfax, by himself (London: 1699)

Horsfall Turner, J. (ed.), The Autobiography of Captain John Hodgson (Brighouse: 1882)

Malbon, T., “Account of the Civil War in Cheshire and the Adjacent Counties”, in: Hall, J. A History of the Town And Parish of Nantwich (Nantwich, 1883)

Rushworth, J., “Historical Collections: Military action in 1643”, in: Historical Collections of Private Passages of State, Volume 5, 1642-45 (London: 1721)

Images, unless otherwise stated, have been adapted from those created by James Lancaster for the Battlefields of Britain website, part of the CastlesFortBattles.co.uk network:
http://www.battlefieldsofbritain.co.uk/battle_nantwich_1644.html

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