Battle of Chalgrove Field
| Battle of Chalgrove Field | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the First English Civil War | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| Royalists | Parliamentarians | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Prince Rupert |
Sir Philip Stapleton Colonel John Hampden + | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 1000 cavalry [1] | 1150 cavalry and dragoons[1] | ||||||
The Battle of Chalgrove was a small battle during the English Civil War in the county of Oxfordshire. It took place around 09:00 hours on the morning of 18 June 1643 in Chalgrove Field, northeast of Chalgrove in Oxfordshire.
It was a minor Royalist victory and is notable for the mortal wounding of Parliamentarian colonel, John Hampden, who died six days later of his wounds.
Prelude
Acting on information from Colonel John Hurry, who had recently defected from the Parliamentarians, Prince Rupert took 2,000 men on the night of 17 June on a raid to harass the Earl of Essex's army and attempt to capture his payroll of £21,000.[2] On the morning of 18 June, Rupert's force surprised and destroyed Parliamentarian garrisons at Postcombe and Chinnor.[3]
The pay convoy evaded Rupert, and Parliamentarian troops led by Major John Gunter pursued Rupert back towards Oxford. Colonel John Hampden, the senior officer, put himself in Captain Crosse's company and fought as a trooper. At Chalgrove, about 10 miles (16 km) southeast of the city, Rupert ordered his infantry ahead while his cavalry set an ambush.
Battle
The Parliamentarian horse charged through the great hedge and made a front of eight cornets leaving the two sides separated only by a ragged hedge. Leading the charge, Rupert
... set spurs to His horse, and first of all, (in the very face of the Dragooners), leapt the hedge that parted us from the Rebels.[4]The Royalist troopers attacked while another troop blocked the Parliamentarian's reserve from entering the battlefield. The rebel force split from their reserves and, unable to flee the battlefield, suffered many casualties. During this fight, Hampden was mortally wounded in the shoulder (some sources claim by two carbine balls, others by shrapnel from his own pistol exploding).[5]
Aftermath
Hampden retired to Thame where he died six days later.[3]
Poor Hampden is dead ... I have scarce strength to pronounce that word.
After Chalgrove, Colonel Hurry led another raid a week later which swept around Essex's army and plundered Wycombe. This led to sharp criticism of Essex in London, and he offered his resignation, which was refused.
Today
The area is legally protected being a registered battlefield with English Heritage. It is marked by the Hampden Monument,[1] a stone obelisk erected for the battle's bicentenary in 1843.[7]
Notes
- 1 2 3 "Battle of Chalgrove 18th June 1643". UK Battlefields Resource Centre. Battlefield Trust. Retrieved 16 June 2008.
- ↑ "Chalgrove 1643" (PDF). English Heritage Battlefield Report. English Heritage. 1995.
- 1 2 Plant, David (23 March 2006). "Chalgrove Field, Oxfordshire, 18 June 1643". BCW Project. David Plant.
- ↑ Late Beating Up
- ↑ "two carbine balls" (Britannica 1911, Hampden, John). Pistol exploded.(Guest & Guest 1996, p. 112)
- ↑ Adair, John. "The death of John Hampden" (PDF). The John Hampden Society. Retrieved 16 June 2008.
- ↑ Historic England. "Hampden Monument (Grade II) (1059742)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 16 December 2015.
References
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Hampden, John". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.- Guest, Ken; Guest, Denise (1996). British Battles. London: Flamingo. p. 112. ISBN 0-00-470968-3.
Further reading
- Lester, Derek; Lester, Gill (2015). "The Military and Political Importance of the Battle of Chalgrove". Oxoniensia (Oxfordshire Architectural and Historical Society) LXXX: 27–39.
- Stevenson, John; Carter, Andrew (1973). "The Raid on Chinnor and the Fight at Chalgrove Field". Oxoniensia (Oxfordshire Architectural and Historical Society). XXXVIII: 346–356.
Coordinates: 51°40′N 1°04′W / 51.67°N 1.07°W