The Battle of Cropredy Bridge was the last battle won on English soil under the command of an English King. It was a battle of the English Civil Wars fought on 29 June 1644 by a detachment of the Parliamentarian army under Sir William Waller and the Royalist army of King Charles. The Bridge at Cropredy was first built in 1312 and carries a road into a village of the same name beside the upper reaches of the River Cherwell. ... The term English Civil War (or Wars) refers to the series of armed conflicts and political machinations which took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1651. ... June 29 is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 185 days remaining. ... // Events February to August - Explorer Abel Tasmans second expedition for the Dutch East India Company maps the north coast of Australia. ... English parliament in front of the king c. ... For the former governor of Mississippi, see Bill Waller. ... Prince Rupert of the Rhine Cavaliers was the name used by Parliamentarians for the Royalist supporters of King Charles I during the English Civil War (1642–1651). ... Charles I (19 November 1600 – 30 January 1649) was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland, from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. ...

Background

At this stage in the long conflict it seemed as though a decisive Parliamentary victory was near at hand. The combined Parliamentarian armies of Waller and the Earl of Essex had forced the King to abandon Oxford, his wartime capital, and march westward in search of safety. Then on June 7, Essex and Waller conferred, and agreed that Essex would march westward to relieve the siege of Lyme Regis, while Waller shadowed the King. June 7 is the 158th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (159th in leap years), with 207 days remaining. ... Location within the British Isles The Cobb, with boats grounded in the harbour at low tide. ...

This allowed the King to return to Oxford and collect reinforcements. Waller, having failed to intercept the King, went to Gloucester for provisions. On June 24 he marched from Gloucester to Stow on the Wold where he received intelligence that the King was marching eastward and soon received orders to pursue him. By June 27 Waller had reached Hanwell Castle on high ground to the west of the River Cherwell, the King being just five miles away in Edgecote. It was nightfall by the time the King had resolved to offer battle, giving orders to march in Waller's direction. Gloucester (pronounced ) is a city and district in south-west England, close to the Welsh border. ... June 24 is the 175th day of the year (176th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 190 days remaining. ... Map sources for Stow-on-the-Wold at grid reference SP195255 An English Gloucestershire market town, Stow-on-the-Wold sits on top of a 800 foot tall hill, at the convergence of a number of roads through the Cotswolds. ... June 27 is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 187 days remaining. ... The River Cherwell is a river which flows through the midlands of England. ...

Battle

It was on a Saturday, June 29, and Waller's forces proceeded to shadow the king's movements on the other side of the river Cherwell, the two armies facing one other across the river, neither committing to cross under the fire of enemy guns. They marched on, little more than a mile apart. June 29 is the 180th day of the year (181st in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 185 days remaining. ...

The king received a warning that 300 additional horsemen were approaching from the north to join Waller's army, so Charles ordered a small detachment of dragoons, under Lord Brentford, the Royalist Commander in Chief, forward to hold the bridge at Cropredy against Waller's reinforcements. This movement caused a clear gap in the column to develop ahead of the King's straggling rearguard.

About a mile to the South lay the river crossing of Slat Mill Ford. Waller, seeing his opportunity, sent Lieutenant General John Middleton to cross the bridge with two regiments of horse and nine companies of foot. Waller himself commanded 1000 men and crossed the ford intending to catch the Royalist rear in a pincer movement.

Cropredy Bridge was held by the king's dragoons, but these were soon overpowered by Middleton's dragoons who collided with the main body of the Royalist force, during which time the King became alerted to the fact that he had left his rearguard exposed.

Waller's initiative met with some success until the young Earl of Northampton forced the Parliamentary troops back across the ford, but the dragoons guarding the bridge had to concede control of the bridge to the Roundheads. The title of Marquess of Northampton was created in the Peerage of the United Kingdom in 1812 for the Earl of Northampton. ... A light dragoon from the American Revolution French dragoon, 1745. ... The Roundheads was the nickname given to supporters of the Parliamentarian cause in the English Civil War. ...

Charles was most fortunate in having two highly capable commanders at the rear of his army. At Slat Mill, the young Earl of Northampton, not twenty years of age, reacted with a swift charge, driving Waller's force back across the river Cherwell.

Col. Ralph Weldon's Kentish Regiment of foot and Tower Hamlets regiments managed to secure the bridge, keeping the Royalist army clear of it for the rest of the day. The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is the London borough to the east of the City of London, north of the River Thames in East London. ...

Waller's artillery continued to fire from their vantage point on Bourton hill, forcing the Cavaliers to retreat further away from the river. Prince Rupert of the Rhine Cavaliers was the name used by Parliamentarians for the Royalist supporters of King Charles I during the English Civil War (1642–1651). ...

Nevertheless, the King's hundred loyal Lifeguards, under Lord Bernard, drove the Parliamentary forces back a second time and proceeded to clear the Roundheads back over Cropredy Bridge, and in so doing were able to capture Waller's entire battery of eleven guns. Waller retreated in the face of this misfortune.

Aftermath

By the following evening, the two armies still faced each other across the river Cherwell. Charles took opportunity in the lull to dispatch his Secretary of War, being Sir Edward Walker, to parley with Waller, sending a message of grace and pardon, but the Parliamentarian replied that he had no power to treaty.

At length, after receiving further intelligence of additional Parliamentarians nearby, and as the king's train was low in food and supplies the Royalists slipped away under the cover of night, taking Waller's guns with them. While the Royalists had suffered casualties, Waller had lost 700 men, many having deserted after the battle.

Although Sir William Waller had lost the initiative, the King was unwilling to risk forcing a passage across the river and the affray ended in a something of a stalemate.

Further reading

• The English Civil War
• Robert Giglio The Battle of Cropredy Bridge Being a short account of the action from the English Civil War Society of America collections.