Memoirs of a Cavalier<br />A Military Journal of the Wars in Germany, and the Wars in England.<br /> by Daniel Defoe (best romantic books to read TXT) 📕

In this condition the king left Newark in the night, and got to Oxford. The king had in Oxford 8000 men, and the towns of Banbury, Farringdon, Donnington Castle, and such places as might have been brought together in twenty-four hours, 15,000 or 20,000 men, with which, if he had then resolved to have quitted the place, and collected the forces in Worcester, Hereford, Lichfield, Ashby-de-la-Zouch, and all the small castles and garrisons he had thereabouts, he might have had near 40,000 men, might have beaten the Scots from Newark, Colonel Jones from Chester, and all, before Fairfax, who was in the west, could be able to come to their relief. And this his Majesty's friends in North Wales had concerted; and, in order to it, Sir Jacob Ashby gathered what forces he could, in our parts, and attempted to join the king at Oxford, and to have proposed it to him; but Sir Jacob was entirely routed at Stow-on-the-Wold, and taken prisoner, and of 3000 men not above 600 came to Oxford.

All the king's garrisons dropped one by one; Hereford, which had stood out against the whole army of the Scots, was surprised by six men and a lieutenant dressed up for country labourers, and a constable pressed to work, who cut the guards in pieces, and let in a party of the enemy. Chester was reduced by famine, all the attempts the king made to relieve it being frustrated.

Sir Thomas Fairfax routed the Lord Hopton at Torrington, and drove him to such extremities, that he was forced up into the farthest corner of Cornwall. The Lord Hopton had a gallant body of horse with him of nine brigades, but no foot; Fairfax, a great army.

Heartless, and tired out with continual ill news, and ill success, I had frequent meetings with some gentlemen who had escaped from the rout of Sir William Vaughan, and we agreed upon a meeting at Worcester, of all the friends we could get, to see if we could raise a body fit to do any service; or, if not, to consider what was to be done. At this meeting we had almost as many opinions as people; our strength appeared too weak to make any attempt, the game was too far gone in our parts to be retrieved; all we could make up did not amount to above 800 horse.

'Twas unanimously agreed not to go into the Parliament as long as our royal master did not give up the cause; but in all places, and by all possible methods, to do him all the service we could. Some proposed one thing, some another; at last we proposed getting vessels to carry us to the Isle of Man to the Earl of Derby, as Sir Marmaduke Langdale, Lord Digby, and others had done. I did not foresee any service it would be to the king's affairs, but I started a proposal that, marching to Pembroke in a body, we should there seize upon all the vessels we could, and embarking ourselves, horses, and what foot we could get, cross the Severn Sea, and land in Cornwall to the assistance of Prince Charles, who was in the army of the Lord Hopton, and where only there seemed to be any possibility of a chance for the remaining part of our cause.

This proposal was not without its difficulties, as how to get to the seaside, and, when there, what assurance of shipping. The enemy, under Major-General Langhorn, had overrun Wales, and 'twould be next to impossible to effect it.

We could never carry our proposal with the whole assembly; but, however, about 200 of us resolved to attempt it, and [the] meeting being broken up without coming to any conclusion, we had a private meeting among ourselves to effect it.

We despatched private messengers to Swansea and Pembroke, and other places; but they all discouraged us from the attempt that way, and advised us to go higher towards North Wales, where the king's interest had more friends, and the Parliament no forces. Upon this we met, and resolved, and having sent several messengers that way, one of my men provided us two small vessels in a little creek near Harlech Castle, in Merionethshire. We marched away with what expedition we could, and embarked in the two vessels accordingly. It was the worst voyage sure that ever man went; for first we had no manner of accommodation for so many people, hay for our horses we got none, or very little, but good store of oats, which served us for our own bread as well as provender for the horses.

In this condition we put off to sea, and had a fair wind all the first night, but early in the morning a sudden storm drove us within two or three leagues of Ireland. In this pickle, sea-sick, our horses rolling about upon one another, and ourselves stifled for want of room, no cabins nor beds, very cold weather, and very indifferent diet, we wished ourselves ashore again a thousand times; and yet we were not willing to go ashore in Ireland if we could help it; for the rebels having possession of every place, that was just having our throats cut at once. Having rolled about at the mercy of the winds all day, the storm ceasing in the evening, we had fair weather again, but wind enough, which being large, in two days and a night we came upon the coast of Cornwall, and, to our no small comfort, landed the next day at St Ives, in the county of Cornwall.

We rested ourselves here, and sent an express to the Lord Hopton, who was then in Devonshire, of our arrival, and desired him to assign us quarters, and send us his farther orders. His lordship expressed a very great satisfaction at our arrival, and left it to our own conduct to join him as we saw convenient.

We were marching to join him, when news came that Fairfax had given him an entire defeat at Torrington. This was but the old story over again. We had been used to ill news a great while, and 'twas the less surprise to us.

Upon this news we halted at Bodmin, till we should hear farther; and it was not long before we saw a confirmation of the news before our eyes, for the Lord Hopton, with the remainder of his horse, which he had brought off at Torrington in a very shattered condition, retreated to Launceston, the first town in Cornwall, and hearing that Fairfax pursued him, came on to Bodmin. Hither he summoned all the troops which he had left, which, when he had got together, were a fine body indeed of 5000 horse, but few foot but what were at Pendennis, Barnstaple, and other garrisons. These were commanded by the Lord Hopton. The Lord Goring had taken shipping for France to get relief a few days before.

Here a grand council of war was called, and several things were proposed, but as it always is in distress, people are most irresolute, so 'twas here. Some were for breaking through by force, our number being superior to the enemy's horse. To fight them with their foot would be desperation and ridiculous; and to retreat would but be to coop up themselves in a narrow place, where at last they must be forced to fight upon disadvantage, or yield at mercy. Others opposed this as a desperate action, and without probability of success, and all were of different opinions. I confess, when I saw how things were, I saw 'twas a lost game, and I was for the opinion of breaking through, and doing it now, while the country was open and large, and not being forced to it when it must be with more disadvantage. But nothing was resolved on, and so we retreated before the enemy. Some small skirmishes there happened near Bodmin, but none that were very considerable.

'Twas the 1st of March when we quitted Bodmin, and quartered at large at Columb, St Dennis, and Truro, and the enemy took his quarters at Bodmin, posting his horse at the passes from Padstow on the north, to Wadebridge, Lostwithiel, and Fowey, spreading so from sea to sea, that now breaking through was impossible. There was no more room for counsel; for unless we had ships to carry us off, we had nothing to do but when we were fallen upon, to defend ourselves, and sell victory as dear as we could to the enemies.

The Prince of Wales seeing the distress we were in, and loth to fall into the enemy's hands, ships himself on board some vessels at Falmouth, with about 400 lords and gentlemen. And as I had no command here to oblige my attendance, I was once going to make one, but my comrades, whom I had been the principal occasion of bringing hither, began to take it ill, that I would leave them, and so I resolved we would take our fate together.

While thus we had nothing before us but a soldier's death, a fair field, and a strong enemy, and people began to look one upon another, the soldiers asked how their officers looked, and the officers asked how their soldiers looked, and every day we expected to be our last, when unexpectedly the enemy's general sent a trumpet to Truro to my Lord Hopton, with a very handsome gentlemanlike offer:—

That since the general could not be ignorant of his present condition, and that the place he was in could not afford him subsistence or defence; and especially considering that the state of our affairs were such, that if we should escape from thence we could not remove to our advantage, he had thought good to let us know, that if we would deliver up our horses and arms, he would, for avoiding the effusion of Christian blood, or the putting any unsoldierly extremities upon us, allow such honourable and safe conditions, as were rather better than our present circumstances could demand, and such as should discharge him to all the world, as a gentleman, as a soldier, and as a Christian.

After this followed the conditions he would give us, which were as follows, viz.:—That all the soldiery, as well English as foreigners, should have liberty to go beyond the seas, or to their own dwellings, as they pleased; and to such as shall choose to live at home, protection for their liberty, and from all violence and plundering of soldiers, and to give them bag and baggage, and all their goods, except horses and arms.

That for officers in commissions, and gentlemen of quality, he would allow them horses for themselves and one servant, or more, suitable to their quality, and such arms as are suitable to gentlemen of such quality travelling in times of peace; and such officers as would go beyond sea, should take with them their full arms and number of horses as are allowed in the army to such officers.

That all the troopers shall receive on the delivery of their horses, 20s. a man to carry them home; and the general's pass and recommendation to any gentleman who desires to go to the Parliament to settle the composition for their estates.

Lastly, a very honourable mention of the general, and offer of their mediation to the Parliament, to treat him as a man of honour, and one who has been tender of the country, and behaved himself with all the moderation and candour that could be expected from an enemy.

Upon the unexpected receipt of this message, a council of war was called, and the letter read; no man offered to speak a word; the general moved it, but every one was loth to begin.

At last an old colonel starts up, and asked the general what he thought might occasion the writing this letter? The general told him, he could not tell; but he could tell, he was sure, of one thing, that he knew what was not the occasion of it, viz., that is, not any want of force in their army to oblige us to other terms. Then a doubt was started, whether the king and Parliament were not in any treaty, which this agreement might be prejudicial to.

This occasioned a letter to my Lord Fairfax, wherein our general returning the civilities, and neither accepting nor refusing his proposal, put it upon his honour, whether there was not some agreement or concession between his Majesty and the Parliament, in order to a general peace, which this treaty might be prejudicial to, or thereby be prejudicial to us.

The Lord Fairfax ingenuously declared, he had heard the king had made some concessions, and he heartily wished he would make such as