[188.] Extracts from some of the parliamentary Newsbooks, respecting the raising of the siege.

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"Monday Sept. 4. The last week's informations related how farre his excellency the parliament's lord generall, was advanced to the reliefe of "Gloucester, viz. that on Thursday last he was about Biceter in Oxfordshire, "where we then left him to proceed,-on Friday his excellency drew up all "his army at Bayard's Green on the plain of Biceter, from whence the army "marched towards Chipping Norton, so that it is conceived, he might be as "farre as Cheltenham this night, which lieth about seven miles from Glou"cester.

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Friday, Sept. 8. Some of the Gloucestershire clothiers that are lately come out of that county, report, that on Saturday and Sunday last, the "cavaliers came on to assault Gloucester, and got within pistol shot of the city. Whereupon Colonel Massey made a breach in his works, and drew up "six or seven pieces of ordnance, charged with musket bullets to the breach, "which he fired upon them, and slew a great many of them, cutting them off as mowers cut grasse, and forced them to retreat, and in their retreat sallied out upon them, beat them out of their works, and took four carts laden "with victuals from them, and one of them affirmeth, that he saw his ex"cellency the parliaments lord generall, on Sunday night last, at Sherborne "in Gloucestershire, which is Master Dutton's house, and lieth five miles "from Stowe in theWould, and about three miles from Burford in Oxfordshire, " and fifteen miles this side Gloucester near which city he was supposed to be " on Tuesday last;-But yesterday in the evening news was brought to London, "that on Friday last, the siege was raised from before Gloucester, and the "cavaliers had sent their ordnance down the river of Severne to Bristol, and were all marched there."

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"Sept. 12. The last weekly newes of the raising of the siege and the releiving of Gloucester, is now confirmed by some that are come from there, "that they saw a great market kept there on Wednesday and Thursday last, "which argues that there is free ingresse and egresse in that city, and whereas "it hath been reported that his excellency the parliaments lords generall, "hath been there in person, it is now informed that he came not within six "miles of it, but lay about Cheltenham; and some have said that the king, with "his army, was about Bradway hills, in the north part of Gloucestershire; but a day or two will give us better certainty of the reports.

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- Sept. 12. I make no doubt but this popish army (the king's) will within a few days be as weary of besieging Hull, as their brethren were before "Gloucester, from which siege the southern popish army is risen through "feare, for they durst not stay to view the London apprentices, that were "marched under the lord generall the Earle of Essex, within six miles of "Gloucester for their reliefe; markets are kept in Gloucester, ammunition "sent in, the cavaliers retreated, the queene for very griefe frighted," &c. Concerning the western parts, specially the city of Gloucester, our scout "finds the ways so impassible, by reason of the scattered troops of the enemy. "scattered not by any defeat given by my lord generall, but to prevent supplies, and hinder his excellency from sending to the parliament and city "of London an ample report or relation of that famous siege, and late reliefe "of Gloucester; for as his excellency had a quicker and a brave recruiter

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"from the city, so doubtless he will leave no means untried, to let them "understand of his good success: and though his packets are stopped, there "are clothiers come, eminent for their honesty, that tell us they were in Glou"cester since the reliefe of it, and that they set their feet upon the cannons "with which Colonel Massey pelted the king's men, when they undermined "the city and relate also a story of some cowes that were put out to entice some of the enemy's horse to fall on, but the governor laid in ambush some "musquetiers, who surprized them all: the short, if we may believe them, is "that Gloucester is relieved, and my lord generall unmolested only upon "his guard most commonly. His lot is haply fallen in the pasture of the most desperate malignants of those parts, who are fat and have not hitherto been "molested by either party. At our scouts coming away, he understood that "the royal army or the chief piece of it faced my lord generall, and bravadoes "it daily; but it is as the greyhound doth the mastiffe, gives a scratch and away; not daring to engage for feare of receiving a mortal pinch."

Another account-"The proceedings of the army under the command of "his excellency the parliaments lord generall (and more particularly the "affairs of the London trained bands and auxiliaries) doe of right require "the first place in our weekly intelligence, who (since their meeting with "the lord generals forces, at a place called Bayard's Green, in Oxfordshire, "where they made up his army 18,000 horse and foot complete) have alwaies "marched together, by which means altho' they have been much straight"ened for want of lodging, and wanted much necessaries that they were for"merly accustomed unto, yet, such was their valour and courage, that they went "forward with great resolution, desiring nothing so much as to encounter "with the enemy. A more particular and certain account of their proceedings "then hath yet been published I shall set downe as it was imparted in many "letters, from several credible persons in the trained bands in the army to "their friends here to this effect."

"On Sunday, Sept. 3, the London trained band and auxiliaries were "quartered at a small village called Addlestrap, in Gloucestershire: on Monday morning Prince Rupert with about 5,000 or 6,000 of the king's horse, came to "this side over which our army was to march: our forces with joyfull hearts "went out to meet them; they, (as was then conceived) supposing only the city regiments to be there, began to encompass them about a mile round, "with their horse (for my Lord Generall with his army was about a mile "behinde). Our city commander drew out their whole body of citizens, in "a loose manner towardes them, and set themselves in battalia: the enemy "sent out a forlorn hope of horse, our forces another of foot, and so faced one "another halfe an hour or more: during which time our city captains (to their 'everlasting honour for magnanimity and valour) rode up to them, fired in "their faces and so bravely retreated again : by which time the lord generall and "his army came up to them; and as soon as ever he came in sight, fired four or five drakes at the enemy, which so amazed the cavaliers, that they began "to retreat a little, and joyne in two bodies. The lord generall's horse pur"sued them, bravely fell upon them, and had a small skirmish with them, " and his own regiment of foot charged them in front, and fired four roaring "pieces at them; whereupon they all rode hastily away and our forces folfowed them. How many were slaine of them I cannot certainly relate, but we took divers prisoners, who say, that the lord of Holland was amongst

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"them, and that Prince Rupert when he saw our army, swore "thought all the Roundheads in England were there. Their word was "king and country;' ours 'religion;' which proved the best of the three in "the end."

"The next day our Londoners were appointed to quarter in a towne called 'Presbury, within six miles of Gloucester, (where the cavaliers then lay,) as soon as ever we appeared in sight of the town, on the edge of a hill in sight "of Gloucester, they drew out into a corne field and faced us againe; our "forlorne hope descended down upon them, and as soon as ever they were "at the bottom of the hill, our generall let the foure pieces of ordnance "at them; whereupon they fied as fast as their horses would carry them, "but we stayed some of them by the way, and sold their Welch hobbies for "ten shillings apiece, and that night they raised their siege from Gloucester, and burnt their huts, whereupon the Londoners and others of the " army entered Gloucester."

[189.] Tradition recorded by Rudder, p. 592. "When we drew off, it proved to be most miserable, tempestuous, rainy weather, that few or none could "take little or no rest on the hills where they were; and the ceasing winds "next morning soon dried up our thorough-wet clothes we lay pickled in all night, as a convenient washing of us at our coming out of the trenches." Gwynne. Memoirs, Pt. I. c. 5. It is singular that the omen-loving temper of some of the writers about this period should have forborne to notice this violent breaking up of the fair weather, on the evening upon which the siege was raised, a prelude to the king's future complicated calamities. It would at least have been as worthy of observation in this light as the blowing down of his standard at Nottingham, the falling off of the head of his cane at his trial, or the violent storm that occurred on the night of Cromwell's decease.

[190.] Heath. Pt. I. p. 50.

[191.] Steward's Accounts. MS. in a.

the pro

[192.] Tracts, p. 201. This requisition was of course made upon perty of the royalists During their three days continuance at Tewkesbury, three several companies of plunderers went to the house of Mr. Bartlet at Castle Morton, (mentioned in note 32,) and rifled it of every thing that they could find, to the very kitchen stuff, which a soldier carried off in a small barrel upon his shoulder. Thus, in a remote part of the country, this dwelling had been plundered five times within about a twelvemonth. Mercurius Rusticus.

[193.] Clarendon. Tracts. 240. The latter seems the most accurate. The Iter Carolinum shews that Charles remained at Sudley till Essex arrived at Tewkesbury; and that he moved forward on the day after.

[194. The discontent that Essex had for some time cherished was now greatly encreased. He told the parliament, when he gave in his resignation. C. J. April 2, 1645: "It is not unknown to many men of honour, that I "had resolved it after the action at Gloucester."

[195.] Lords' Journals. Sept. 16.

[196.] Clarendon. II. 341. One of them was Hatton, a cannonier Tracts. p. 218. He had been only taken in pay "to help about the "ordnance," as it is expressed in the Stewards' MS. Accounts, and was probably of no great importance to them, except as to the communications he might make of their weakness. The Perfect Diurnall from Aug. 28 to Sept. 4, gives a story of the "treachery of the mace-bearer and three or four other malignants of the town. They had conveyed themselves into an upper part of "the church-steeple with musquets, powder and shot, intending to kill the governor and some other of the chief officers, and in pursuance of their "treacherous purpose discharged a musket with such secresie against Captain Gray, as he marched with his soldiery by the church-wall, the bullet very "nearly escaping him, which he presently after declared to the governor, "and upon diligent search made in the church, they were apprehended, and "the chief of them presently hanged, and the mace-bearer's fingers on both "hands (as it is said) were cut off." This may have no foundation in truth, as it is neither to be found in Corbet nor Dorney.

[197.] Commons' Journals, 15 Sept. 1648.

[198.] A royalist account has thus explained the king's views in the measures that were adopted. "The Earle of Essex having descended with his army into the vale of Gloucester, before the king could well draw his from "the siege up to the hills to fight with him, it was not thought fit to follow him "into the inclosed country, where the king should lose the great advantage, "hee had about him in strength of horse, but rather to make choice of such a place to incamp his army, as might be aptest for these three ends to ac"comodate his quarters; to strengthen him in his provisions; and equally to intercept his (enemy's) flight in a faire country; whether he should take it by "the way of Worcester towards Warwick, or by the way of Cirencester towards "Reading, and to these purposes the towne of Winchcombe and Sudley "Castle were made choyse of as the most appropriate." True and Impartiall Relation of the Battaile, &c. near Newbery. Oxford. 1643.

[199.] Tracts. 262.

[200.] Foster. Tracts. 261. This was in all likelihood a bridge of boats. Prince Maurice had constructed one at Tewkesbury in the spring. See p. xxxviii. There is no account of the long bridge and causeway upon the Avon having been destroyed, over which lay the more direct road to Worcester. But the wary general preferred beginning to manoeuvre behind the greater river. On the right bank he was secure. "We caused a bridge to be made over Severne, and sent some forces to Upton bridge in policy, as if we in"tended to march for Worcester, which caused the enemy to draw all his "forces together for the defence of that place, planted their ordinance, and thought to tickle us by the way; but the fooles were cozened, for on Friday morning we went cleane another way." A True Relation of the late Battell neere Newbery, &c. The royalist tract above cited (note 198) adds a particular mentioned in none of our other authorities, which completes the ruse de guerre of Essex. Having left (as it seemes) most of his great ordnance and baggage "behind him, and amusing us with a shew of forces still in Teuxbury and "Upton, which were (as I conceive) those now remaining in garrison at Glo"cester."

[201.] Sunderland's letter, dated Sept. 16. Sidney State Papers.

[202.] Four and twenty hours. Clarendon II. 345. The true Relation says it was on the same day. Tracts. 262.

[203.] Sir Nicholas Crispe was a citizen of London, one of the farmers of the customs, and a rich merchant trading chiefly to the coast of Guinea; he entered into business with a large capital and prosecuted it with great success; he lent the king money to a very considerable amount, and appears to have entertained the greatest veneration for his personal character.

Crispe had been a very popular man in the city, where he had been a commander of the trained bands, till the ordinance of the militia removed him, and he was afterwards attacked with great severity by the house of commons for shewing his earnestness in a petition for peace. Upon this he fled to the king at Oxford; and in the preceeding May and June, about the time of the Bristol plot, he had been engaged in that design for which Tomkins and Chaloner were executed by the Parliament, and Waller hardly escaped with his life. He had prepared and despatched the commission of array which occasioned so much alarm and confusion among the traders of the houses.

At Oxford, Crispe and other citizens of London offered in conjunction with some gentlemen of Kent, to raise several regiments of horse and foot at their own expence. This regiment taken at Cirencester was one which he had thus enlisted and armed; and when the guns were brought from Oxford to the siege of Gloucester, he had escorted them to the camp. The cause of his absence from his men was as disastrous as the misfortune that befel them. He had been quartered, while his majesty was at Evesham, at the house of Sir Thomas Rous, at Rouslench in that neighbourhood; and on the day before this occurrence had been forced into a duel with Sir James Enyon, whom he had killed in mere self defence. The fault and provocation was on the part of the latter, but the king in Crispe lost the services of a valuable officer On the 2d of October ensuing, he was tried before a council of war, acquitted and received the royal pardon. He was dismissed from the army but had a commission of admiral in the navy. When the king's affairs grew desperate, he retired to France; but returned afterwards to London, and embarked again in trade with his usual spirit and success. He lived to see his master's son restored to the possession of his kingdoms: by whom he was created a baronet the year before his death, in 1665.

Lloyd has described this active and enterprising person, and the signal services which he rendered the king: "Awhile you would meet him with thousands of gold; another while, in his way to Oxford, riding on a pair of panniers, "like a butter-woman going to market; at other times he was a porter carrying on his majesty's interest in London; he was a fisherman in one place, and a merchant in another. All the succours which the king had from beyond sea came through his hands, and most of the reliefe he had at home was managed by his conveyance." Clarendon. Sanderson. MS. Diary of Sir William Dugdale in the possession of W. Hamper Esq. Granger.

[204] Cominons' Journals. Sept. 18.

[205.] Heath, Pt. I. 50. Their march must have been retarded in some measure by the sheep and cattle that they had carried off and were driving