Battle of Edgehill
Battle line-up map
| date | October 23, 1642 |
|---|---|
| place | Edge Hill , Warwickshire , England |
| output | undecided, controversial victory of the royalists |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
 England
|
.svg){kind=small} Commonwealth
in Shrewsbury |
| Commander | |
| Troop strength | |
| 14,400 soldiers | 14,700 soldiers |
| losses | |
|
3,000 dead |
3,000 dead |
The Battle of Edgehill (or Edge Hill ) was the first field battle of the English Civil War . The battle was fought on October 23, 1642 near Edge Hill at Kineton , in the south of Warwickshire . The outcome of the battle was undecided for both sides and deprived the royalists of the opportunity to march on London and thereby achieve a quick victory over the parliamentarians . The result was that the civil war in England would continue for several years.
process
In Shrewsbury , Prince Ruprecht of the Palatinate held a council of war to decide how to proceed. There were two options: either to march on Worcester , where the opposing parliamentary army had gathered under the Earl of Essex , or to march on London, since the roads there were free. It was decided not to attack the enemy and went straight to London.
Among the royalists, this decision was controversial among the generals. They wanted to deal with Essex before it got too strong. Given the mood on both sides, it was impossible to postpone the decision. The Earl of Clarendon put it this way: It was deemed advisable to march to London and it was considered certain that Essex would have to stand in their way . As a result the army left Shrewsbury on October 12 - two days' march ahead of the enemy - and started marching southeast. In doing so they took the step desired by Essex, which set out to intercept them before London. On the morning of October 23rd, the royalists stood ready to fight near the Edgehill and looked toward Kineton. Essex, who was an experienced soldier, lacked the confidence in his rather inexperienced parliamentary army to subsequently win the battle at Powick Bridge that had preceded September 23 .
strategy
On October 12, Charles I of England set out with his royalist army from Shrewsbury for London . Parallel to the southern movement that Charles I undertook, the Earl of Essex and his parliamentary forces from Worcester also set out for London.
In order to avoid the danger of side attacks, Ruprecht von der Pfalz urged Charles I to take a position on the other side of the Edge Hills. Essex, unaware of their proximity, marched dangerously close before he could spontaneously prepare his troops for battle. The battle opened on the afternoon of October 23rd.
tactics
Charles I rode alongside his armed forces to spur his troops on. The opposing parliamentary troops felt challenged and opened fire. This began a reciprocal artillery fire that lasted over an hour. On a suitable occasion, Prince Ruprecht opened the open battle by attacking the royalist cavalry. At this signal, a considerable and bribed number of parliamentary cavalrymen changed fronts to join the royalists. In the parliamentary army this left a gap in the left wing, so that two neighboring infantry regiments were separated from each other. Faced with the approaching cavalry of Prince Rupert and the betrayal of their own cavalry, many soldiers of the parliamentary army ran away. The royalist cavalry pursued them. They led an attack on the supply force in Kineton, which they could no longer support the right wing of the royalists.
Soon after parliamentarians and royalists met in the run-up to Radway , Balfour and Sir John Byron's brigade launched an attack on the center of royalist formation. The battle reached a dramatic climax on his right flank when Sir Edmund Verney fell defending the royal standard . Although the standard was demonstrably in the hands of the parliamentary ensign Arthur Young, it fell back into the hands of the royalists after six minutes.
The biggest mistake in the battle turned out to be the attack by Ruprecht's cavalry on Kineton, which ultimately cost the royalists a decisive victory over the parliamentarians.
The fighting at Edgehill on October 23, 1642, was said to last only four hours - four hours that inevitably led to four years of bloodshed and civil war.
Result
Neither side was able to assert itself decisively. Nevertheless, Essex claimed victory for itself, as he saw an offer of mercy from Charles I after the battle as an admission of defeat.
On the morning of the 24th, both parties were still on the battlefield but did not continue the fight. Essex withdrew to Warwick Castle, so the road to London was now open to Charles I. Prince Ruprecht collected the remains of his cavalry and urged Charles I to advance on the capital. However, the king decided against marching on, giving the parliamentary armed forces valuable time to regroup. In distant London, numerous but inexperienced militias gathered in a garrison. A little later these militias reached Reading , which was able to retake Essex and thus prevented any further royalist marches. Due to his hesitant attitude, Charles I lost the best opportunity to subdue the parliamentary resistance center with London and thus to achieve a possibly quick victory over the opposing side. This marked the beginning of a bloody war, which was modern for the times.
Strangely enough, both sides had the same number of victims to mourn: 3,000 wounded and 3,000 dead. The high number of surviving injuries was attributed to the cold weather on the night of October 23-24, 1642, which allowed the wounds to clot and fended off infections or simply prevented them from bleeding to death.
Charles I and the royalists spent the winter in the university city of Oxford , protecting the city and building entrenchments. The king was only to see London again as a prisoner, where he was eventually executed.
cards
- The official battlefield . This is the side of the parliamentary army that deals more with the period by which most of the fighting was over.
- The wider battlefield . (zoom out with one step). The narrow forest, which has probably overgrown since the battle, marks the slope of the Edge Hills from the top of the hill, where the royal army lined up for battle. To the northwest one could overlook the low slope and the plain on which the battle was fought. The parliamentary army positioned itself on the street with its left wing at the level of the later military depot.
swell
- William Seymour: Battles in Britain and their political background. 1066-1746 . Wordsworth Editions, Ware 1997, ISBN 1-85326-672-8 , ( Wordsworth military library ).
- Christopher L. Scott, Alan Turton, Eric Gruber from Arni: Edgehill. The Battle Reinterpreted . Pen & Sword Military, Barnsley 2004, ISBN 1-84415-133-6 .
- Keith Roberts, John Tincey: Edgehill 1642. The first Battle of the English Civil War . Osprey Military, Oxford 2001, ISBN 1-85532-991-3 .
- The UK Battlefieds Resource Center: The Battlefields Trust, Meadow Cottage, 33 High Green, Brooke, Norwich , NR15 1HR
- Gavin Bott, Executive Producer: Line of Fire: Battle of Edgehill . (2006) History International Channel US
