The Battle of Naseby was one of the last 12 battles of the First English Civil War. It gave the Parliamentarians' New Model Army one of its first victories and it marked the beginning of the end for the Royalist cause. This Entry aims to present the key information about the Battle in a handy reference form.

Context of the Battle

Although the English Civil Wars could trace their beginnings to the reign of James I, hostilities had begun when King Charles I had effectively declared war by raising his standard at Nottingham on 22 August, 1642. The first battle was on 23 September of that year at Powick Bridge, and the First Civil War continued until 16 March, 1647.

The Battle of Naseby took place on 14 June, 1645. There would be another nine months of war and another 11 battles yet to fight, the last of which was the Battle of Stow-on-the-Wold on 21 March, 1646. There were further uprisings in 1648 in Kent, Essex and Wales, which were to become known as the Second Civil War. Finally the Third Civil War took place in 1650-1651 when Oliver Cromwell's army marched into Scotland and a Scottish army entered England in the name of the Stewart cause. It was only after the death of Cromwell¹ that Parliament decided to invite Charles II to return from exile in France. Charles II became King of England on 25 May, 1660 after 18 years of hostility.

The Civil Wars had the effect of transforming both the army and navy of Britain into a professional force. This ultimately gave Britain the ability to forge an Empire that spanned the world. The conflict also awakened the political desires of the people of England, giving birth to political groups such as the Levellers and Diggers. These groups in their turn had greater influence. The writings they left behind were to inspire Karl Marx² and the birth of Communism.

The Battle of Naseby

The Battle of Naseby began around 9am on 14 June, 1645 and was to last until just after noon. The tactical advantage was on the Parliament side. They had a numerical advantage in troops and these troops were all men of Cromwell's New Model Army of professional officers and soldiers who were well paid and trained. The daily rate of pay was 8 pence for infantry and 2 shillings for cavalry. The Royalist troops were smaller in number, and this was partly because King Charles had been forced to send over 3,000 troops, under the command of Lord Goring, to relieve the siege of Taunton. In spite of a summons from the King to join the battle, Lord Goring refused to return.

Battle Positions

The Royalist lines were approximately 1.5 miles wide. On the right, drawn up against the Sulby Hedges, were Prince Rupert's cavalry with an estimated strength of 2,000 to 3,000. In the centre were three divisions of foot soldiers, and on the left was Sir Marmaduke Langdale and 1,500 'Northern Horse', with the Clipston to Naseby road to their left.

The Parliamentary lines were almost 2 miles wide. Their forces were drawn up on Naseby ridge. Sergeant-Major General Sir Philip Skippon took the centre and left positions. His command consisted of eight foot regiments, five of which were placed in the front line and three held in reserve, along with two companies of Colonel Harley's regiment of foot commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Pride. The cavalry under the command of Ireton formed up facing Prince Rupert's cavalry. Cromwell's horse troops took a position facing the Royalist horses.

The Battle Begins

Initially the battle went well for the Royalist army - at one point they managed to push the Parliamentary forces back. This was short lived as the Parliamentary dragoons, using Sulby Hedges for cover, opened fire on Prince Rupert's cavalry and caused some havoc on the Royalist right.

After a brief exchange of musket fire the foot forces in the front lines clashed and soon dissolved into hand to hand fighting with swords and club musket⁷. The impact of the Royalist charge caused the Parliamentary foot forces to slowly fall back. Ireton's horse charged to meet Rupert's advance and the Royalist charge was turned. Ireton then split his force leading part of his cavalry to the aid of the hard pressed Parliamentary foot forces. This was unsuccessful and Ireton was wounded⁸ and taken prisoner. The remainder of his troop were driven from the field by Rupert's cavalry, which effectively took most of Rupert's horse troops out of the battle, weakening the Royalist army as a result.

Cromwell's Attack

Cromwell waited as Langdale's regiment of horse held position in front of woodland. Finally Langdale advanced uphill to engage Cromwell. Cromwell ordered half his command to attack Langdale, sweeping the Royalist horses from the field. Cromwell dispatched a force in pursuit of Langdale and turned his attention to the Royalist southern flank. At the same time Oakey's dragoons and the survivors of Ireton's cavalry attacked the Royalist western flank.

The Royalist Collapse

The Royalist foot force had been held by the larger force of General Sir Philip Skippon and it was soon under attack on three sides. Some were commanded to lay down their arms. The rest attempted to fall back to Dust Hill. Prince Rupert's regiment, the Bluecoats, bravely covered the retreat but they were overwhelmed on the third assault by Skippon's forces. Prince Rupert finally managed to rally his cavalry but it was too late as the Royalist army was by then in full retreat.

Result

As a result of the battle, Parliament losses were 460, but Royalist losses were 1,000. Of the remaining Royalist forces, 4,500 surrendered and 3,000 fled the field. Most of those who escaped had horses - that meant most of the senior officers and the cavalry brigades. All field ordinance was lost to the Parliamentary forces.

A potential atrocity was recorded here. Around 500 Royalist camp followers, mostly women, were trapped in a nearby churchyard. They were put to the sword by the pursuing Parliamentary cavalry. The reason given for this was that the troops had assumed they were Irish. The cavalry involved received no punishment for this 'error'.

The Royalists lost their last main field army - there were other forces available to the royal cause, but they were committed to garrison duties in Royalist held towns. This defeat was to prove the mortal blow to the Royalist cause. As the remaining Royalist forces were now static defending towns and other strongholds, the Parliamentary forces took the towns one by one.