The Battle of Sedgemoor was fought on 6 July 1685^[1] and took place at Westonzoyland near Bridgwater in Somerset between the troops of the rebel James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth and James II of England in an attempt to seize the English throne, the "Monmouth Rebellion". James II had succeeded to the throne on the death of his brother Charles II on 2 February 1685; James Scott was Charles' illegitimate son. The Monmouth Rebellion of 1685, also known as the Pitchfork Rebellion, was an attempt to overthrow the King of England, James II, who became king when his elder brother, Charles II, died on 6 February 1685. ... is the 187th day of the year (188th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events February 6 - James Stuart, Duke of York becomes King James II of England and Ireland and King James VII of Scotland. ... The Julian calendar was a reform of the Roman calendar which was introduced by Julius Caesar in 46 BC and came into force in 45 BC (709 ab urbe condita). ... Westonzoyland is a small village on the Somerset Levels, a few miles from Bridgwater. ... , Bridgwater in Somerset, England, is a market town, the administrative centre of the Sedgemoor district, and the leading industrial town in the county. ... This article is about the county of Somerset in England. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... James II (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701)[1] became King of England, King of Scots,[2] and King of Ireland on 6 February 1685. ... James Crofts, later James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth and of Buccleuch (April 9, 1649 – July 15, 1685), was an English nobleman who was executed in 1685 after making an unsuccessful attempt to claim the British throne, the Monmouth Rebellion. ... Louis de Duras, 2nd Earl of Feversham , (1641 - 19 April 1709), was a French nobleman who became Earl of Feversham in Stuart England. ... John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough (26 May 1650 – 16 June 1722) (O.S)[1] was an English soldier and statesman whose career spanned the reigns of five monarchs throughout the late 17th and early 18th centuries. ... James Crofts, later James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth and of Buccleuch (April 9, 1649 – July 15, 1685), was an English nobleman who was executed in 1685 after making an unsuccessful attempt to claim the British throne, the Monmouth Rebellion. ... Sedgemoor is a local government district of Somerset in England. ... is the 187th day of the year (188th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events February 6 - James Stuart, Duke of York becomes King James II of England and Ireland and King James VII of Scotland. ... Westonzoyland is a small village on the Somerset Levels, a few miles from Bridgwater. ... , Bridgwater in Somerset, England, is a market town, the administrative centre of the Sedgemoor district, and the leading industrial town in the county. ... This article is about the county of Somerset in England. ... James Crofts, later James Scott, 1st Duke of Monmouth and of Buccleuch (April 9, 1649 – July 15, 1685), was an English nobleman who was executed in 1685 after making an unsuccessful attempt to claim the British throne, the Monmouth Rebellion. ... James II (14 October 1633 – 16 September 1701)[1] became King of England, King of Scots,[2] and King of Ireland on 6 February 1685. ... The Monmouth Rebellion of 1685, also known as the Pitchfork Rebellion, was an attempt to overthrow the King of England, James II, who became king when his elder brother, Charles II, died on 6 February 1685. ... Charles II (29 May 1630 – 6 February 1685) was the King of England, Scotland, and Ireland. ... is the 33rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events February 6 - James Stuart, Duke of York becomes King James II of England and Ireland and King James VII of Scotland. ...

After landing from the Netherlands at Lyme Regis in Dorset,^[2] the Duke eventually led his untrained and ill-equipped troops on a night-time attack on the King's position on the site of Bussex Farm outside the village of Westonzoyland. The element of surprise was lost when a musket was accidentally discharged,^[3] and the Battle of Sedgemoor resulted in defeat for the Duke by the Royal army under Lord Churchill and the Lord Feversham.^[3] , Lyme Regis (IPA: ) is a coastal town in West Dorset, England, situated 25 miles west of Dorchester and 25 miles east of Exeter. ... Dorset (pronounced DOR-sit or [dɔ.sət], and sometimes in the past called Dorsetshire) is a county in the south-west of England, on the English Channel coast. ... Westonzoyland is a small village on the Somerset Levels, a few miles from Bridgwater. ... John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough (26 May 1650 – 16 June 1722) (O.S)[1] was an English soldier and statesman whose career spanned the reigns of five monarchs throughout the late 17th and early 18th centuries. ... Louis de Duras, 2nd Earl of Feversham , (1641 - 19 April 1709), was a French nobleman who became Earl of Feversham in Stuart England. ...

Monmouth escaped the battlefield, but was captured near Ringwood, Hampshire. He was taken to the Tower of London in London where he was, after several blows of the axe, finally beheaded.^[2] Location within the British Isles Ringwood is a town in Hampshire, England, on the River Avon, to the west of the New Forest and north of Bournemouth. ... For other uses, see Hampshire (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Tower of London (disambiguation) Her Majestys Royal Palace and Fortress The Tower of London, more commonly known as the Tower of London (and historically simply as The Tower), is an historic monument in central London, England on the north bank of the River Thames. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ...

A letter written by the 5th Earl of Shaftesbury in 1787 provides more detail as to Monmouth's capture^[4]: Year 1787 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

The tradition of the neighbourhood is this: viz. That after the defeat of the Duke of Monmouth at Sedgemoor, near Bridgewater, he rode, accompanied by Lord Grey, to Woodyates, where they quitted their horses; and the Duke having changed clothes with a peasant, endeavoured to make his way across the country to Christchurch. Being closely pursued, he made for the Island, and concealed himself in a ditch which was overgrown with fern and underwood. When his pursuers came up, an old woman gave information of his being in the Island, and of her having seen him filling his pocket with peas. The Island was immediately surrounded by soldiers, who passed the night there, and threatened to fire the neighbouring cotts. As they were going away, one of them espied the skirt of the Duke's coat, and seized him. The soldier no sooner knew him, than he burst into tears, and reproached himself for the unhappy discovery. The Duke when taken was quite exhausted with fatigue and hunger, having had no food since the battle but the peas which he had gathered in the field. The ash tree is still standing under which the Duke was apprehended, and is marked with the initials of many of his friends who afterwards visited the spot.

The family of the woman who betrayed him were ever after holden in the greatest detestation, and are said to have fallen into decay, and to have never thriven afterwards. The house where she lived, which overlooked the spot, has since fallen down. It was with the greatest difficulty that any one could be made to inhabit it.

The king sent the infamous Judge Jeffreys to round up the Duke's supporters throughout the south west and try them in the Bloody Assizes at Taunton Castle. About 1,300 people were found guilty, many being transported abroad, while some were executed by drawing and quartering.^[3] For other persons named George Jeffreys, see George Jeffreys (disambiguation). ... The Bloody Assizes were the series of trials in the aftermath of the Battle of Sedgemoor, which ended the Monmouth Rebellion in England. ... Taunton Castle The history of Taunton as a fortified place starts early, for here King Ine of Wessex, in or about the year 710, timbered him a burgh, which his consort, Ethelburga, as an odd entry in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle relates, destroyed twelve years later. ... Drawing and quartering was part of the penalty once ordained in England for treason. ...

James II was overthrown in a coup d'état three years later, in the Glorious Revolution. The Glorious Revolution, also called the Revolution of 1688, was the overthrow of King James II of England (VII of Scotland) in 1688 by a union of Parliamentarians and the Dutch stadtholder William III of Orange-Nassau (William of Orange), who as a result ascended the English throne as William...

The battle of Sedgemoor is often referred to as the last battle fought on English soil, but this is incorrect: the Battle of Preston in Lancashire was fought on 14 November 1715, during the First Jacobite Rebellion, and the Second Jacobite Rebellion saw a minor engagement at Clifton Moor near Penrith in Cumbria on 18 December 1745. A more accurate statement would be that Sedgemoor is the last pitched battle fought on English soil. For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... The Battle of Preston (9 November–14 November 1715), also referred to as the Preston Fight, was fought during the Jacobite Rising of 1715 (often referred to as the First Jacobite Rising, or Rebellion by supporters of the Hanoverian government). ... Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England, bounded to the west by the Irish Sea. ... is the 318th day of the year (319th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1715 (MDCCXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Friday of the 11-day slower Julian calendar). ... Charles Edward Stuart, Bonnie Prince Charlie, wearing the Jacobite blue bonnet Jacobitism was (and, to a very limited extent, remains) the political movement dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England and Scotland. ... Charles Edward Stuart, Bonnie Prince Charlie, wearing the Jacobite blue bonnet Jacobitism was (and, to a very limited extent, remains) the political movement dedicated to the restoration of the Stuart kings to the thrones of England and Scotland. ... Categories: UK geography stubs | Towns in Cumbria ... Cumbria (IPA: ), is a shire county in the extreme North West of England. ... is the 352nd day of the year (353rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... // Events May 11 - War of Austrian Succession: Battle of Fontenoy - At Fontenoy, French forces defeat an Anglo-Dutch-Hanoverian army including the Black Watch June 4 – Frederick the Great destroys Austrian army at Hohenfriedberg August 19 - Beginning of the 45 Jacobite Rising at Glenfinnan September 12 - Francis I is elected... A pitched battle is a battle where both sides choose to fight at a chosen location and time and where either side has the option to disengage either before the battle starts, or shortly after the first armed exchanges. ...

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