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| Battle of Chalgrove Field | |||||||
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| Part of the First English Civil War | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Royalists | Parliamentarians | ||||||
| Commanders | |||||||
| Prince Rupert | Sir Philip Stapleton Colonel John Hampden + |
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| Strength | |||||||
| 1000 cavalry 1 | 1150 cavalry and dragoons 1 | ||||||
The Battle of Chalgrove was a skirmish 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, between Chalgrove and Chiselhampton 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.
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Contents |
Prelude
Acting on information from Colonel Hurry, Prince Rupert took 1,800 men on 17th June on a raid to harass the Earl of Essex's army and attempt to capture his payroll of £21,0002. He surprised and destroyed Parliamentary garrisons at Postcombe and Chinnor3. The pay convoy avoided Rupert and Parliamentarian troops, led by Sir Philip Stapleton and Colonel John Hampden, pursued Rupert back towards Oxford. Ten miles south-east of the city, at Chalgrove, Rupert ordered his infantry ahead while his cavalry set an ambush.
The battle
The Parliamentarian horse closed quickly before the ambush could be set, leaving the two sides separated only by a large hedge. Leading the charge, Rupert
... set spurs to his horse, and first of all, in the very face of the [enemy], lept the hedge that parted [him] from the Rebells4
The Royalist troopers quickly followed and routed the Parliamentarians in the short, sharp skirmish that followed. During this fight, John Hampden's pistol exploded in his hand and he was mortally wounded4.
Aftermath
John Hampden retired to Thame where he died six days later3.
Poor Hampden is dead ... I have scarce strength to pronounce that word.
—Anthony Nichol, M.P., on hearing the news5
Following 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.
References
- ^ a b Battle of Chalgrove Battlefield Trust, Accessed 16 June 2008
- ^ English Heritage Battlefield Report: Chalgrove 1643, English Heritage, 1995
- ^ a b "1643: The siege of Reading and Chalgrove Field".
- ^ a b British Battles. 1997. ISBN 0-00-47-968-3.
- ^ John Adair.The death of John Hampden, John Hampden Society. Accessed 16 June 2008
Further reading
- Chalgrove Field, Buckinghamshire, 18 June 1643 on the British Civil Wars & Commonwealth website
- Chalgrove 1643 website of English Civil War
Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 2 December 2008, at 17:25.
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