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m42

By m42
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Mr Mosquito

Mr Mosquito

Posted
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The Civil War

During the Civil War the two most prominent families in Burnley were on opposing sides; the Towneley family were Royalists and supported King Charles I, but Richard Shuttleworth of Gawthorpe was a Colonel in the Parliamentary army in command of the local militia. Burnley supported the Parliamentary forces and several local battles and skirmishes took place in the area at this time between the Royalists and the Parliamentarians including the Battle of Read Bridge on 20th April 1643; this was significant because it helped to turn the tide of the Civil War in Lancashire in favour of the Parliamentary forces. In 1644 Charles Towneley was killed at the battle of Marston Moor and there is a story that Oliver Cromwell helped Mrs Towneley to search for the body of her husband on the battlefield.

Ta the.

As for turfmanphil, the greatest person who I have never met

This was, originally, a present for Arny & fka dagest of this forum for their support of my posts this Yuletide. It's an anti-establishment Bristolian historical special full of seething vitriol - my view of Bristol's predicament during the English Civil War....

Being Bristolian, English and Republican - here's my very own account of Sir Thomas Fairfax's and Oliver Cromwell's liberation of Bristol from the Royalist tyranny in the September of 1645......

Due to massive Royalist taxation against Bristol, Bristol declared on the side of the English Parliament against the King at the start of the English Civil War in 1642. Unfortunately, after a ferocious defence, Bristol fell to a huge Royalist army in 1643. It was agreed with Prince Rupert that the Parliamentarians should be able to leave Bristol under arms. Prince Rupert agreed that there should be no pillaging of the city when his army entered it.

As soon as the Royalist army entered Bristol there was, as might be expected from the Royalist toff/snob rabble, much pillaging and looting. Some Bristolian inhabitants lost everything, houses were broken into and ransacked, shops were looted and to add insult to injury the Royalist soldiers were billeted into the very houses they had just wrecked and the occupants turned out into the streets.

The double-crossing German nephew of the tyrannical King - Prince Rupert of the Rhine - and Sir Ralph Hopton, who had led the Southern Royalist Army argued about who should become Governor of the newly won city. King Charles arrived and settled the matter by making his nephew Rupert Governor and Hopton Lieutenant-Governor.

The defeated Parliamentarian Officer Fiennes was later put on trial for abandoning the city to the Royalists and several people stated that he had played no creditable role in the whole affair and could have still won the day. Military officers, including Thomas Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell himself, said that Fiennes had done all he could. His defences were broken and he was heavily out-numbered by the Royalist foe.

Bristol was now fined for it's support of Parliament, and a gift of £20,000 demanded from its inhabitants, this was in addition to the £300 demanded as payment to the Royalist troops that had occupied it and various other taxes imposed. In 1644 the plague returned and carried off 3,000 people. The coming of winter eased the problems, 81 people died in one week in September, but a month later the number was reduced to 32.

In June 1645, Oliver Cromwell and his New Model Army heavily defeated the Royalists at Naseby, and it was clear that if Bristol could be liberated from the Royalist tyranny then the support of the Royalists in the west of England would dwindle.

At the end of August, Parliamentary warships blockaded the Avon and Thomas Fairfax surrounded the city. The King moved westwards hoping to relieve Bristol, mindfull of the advancing army, Fairfax now demanded the surrender of the city. Prince Rupert tried to string out the negotiations, but Fairfax realising he was playing for time, attacked at 2am on 10th September 1645. Although Cromwell had stationed himself on Ashley Hill he appears to have played no part in the battle.

Lawford's Gate and Old Market was soon captured opening the way to the Great Gate of the castle. Prior's Hill fort was taken by Thomas Rainsbrough's regiment and just before sunrise it's defenders - the ancestors of today's Royalist toff/snob led Police - were massacred.

As Fiennes did before him once the outer defences were broken, Rupert now started negotiations for surrender. By now there were several fires in the city and the surrender was accepted on condition that the fires were extinguished. As Cromwell wrote in a letter "fearing to see so famous a city burnt to ashes before our faces". Rupert and his followers were allowed to leave under arms. King Charles I, who was Prince Rupert's uncle, never forgave him for capitulating so easily and from then on the word "Bristol" could not be mentioned between the two men.

When the Parliamentarian army of liberation entered the city they found "it looked more like a prison than a city, and the people more like prisoners than citizens; being brought so low with Royalist taxations, so poor in habits, and so dejected in countenance; the streets so noisome, and the houses so nasty as they were unfit to receive friends till they were cleansed".

On 17th September the House of Commons agreed that the following Sunday should be set aside as a day of thanksgiving and that collections should be made on Sunday, 5th October for the maimed soldiers and "for the relief of many distressed and plundered people of Bristol and places adjacent".

On 14th March 1646 the King's army surrendered to Fairfax in Cornwall and on 5th May he surrendered himself at Southwell. King Charles I was defeated and later executed for his treason and tyranny against the English people in 1649. So the moral of this historical account should be - Royalist toffs and snobs shouldn't mess with Bristol or Bristolians lest they be executed !!!!!

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Guest DanC

Guest DanC

Posted
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Funny that, I drink cider, Irish Magners though. Won't touch Welsh stuff, too many feet been in it.
Obviously you don't drink Cider if you drink Magners. If it hasn't had a dead rat in it then it isn't proper Cider..

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NORTHAVON_RED

NORTHAVON_RED

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:englandflag:

:englandflag::englandflag:

:englandflag::englandflag::englandflag:

Talking about Lumps of coal Taffy. you lot still mine it for a bag of leeks a week.

Back to school in January for extra geography lessons Monkeh!

ffs :englandsmile4wf:

1. thatchers,mans drink made in england.......like bristolians.....magners is for tarts and monkehs

2. your as welsh as we are........but your pi$$ poorer than them

3. your a small town in blackburn.........more like a mediocre village really

4. your outside toilets went out of fashion with pit ponies and coal

5. do you have light bulbs oop narth or candle powered lanterns

6. is your sister actually your mother

7. the whole of burnley could fit inside Bristol Temple Meads train station..nearly

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Mr Mosquito

Mr Mosquito

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Posted
:englandflag::englandflag:

As I thought, it took Parlimentary forces led by Burnley folk to Liberate your city from the Royalists.

I Thankyou, 1 day all will be CLARET.

You're on the wrong side of the Pennines, I believe Thomas Rainsbrough and Thomas Fairfax were from Yorkshire and Oliver Cromwell - well he was a Fenland farmer. The army they commanded was mainly that of the Eastern Association from East England.

Burnley 0 BCFC 1 - thanks for the points mate. That makes 4 points from you this year. :icecream:

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Rich

Rich

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You're on the wrong side of the Pennines, I believe Thomas Rainsbrough and Thomas Fairfax were from Yorkshire and Oliver Cromwell - well he was a Fenland farmer. The army they commanded was mainly that of the Eastern Association from East England.

Burnley 0 BCFC 1 - thanks for the points mate. That makes 4 points from you this year. :icecream:

OC I bet you love playing the Royals.

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Rich

Rich

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I'll never forget when we beat the Reading Royals in the Autoshield semi-final 4-0 at Ashton Gate circa year 2000. :winner_third_h4h:

May be we're destined to beat those same Royals home and away next season in the Premiership !!!!!!!!! :winner_third_h4h:

Fingers crossed (arrogant b######s).

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