The Civil War

Please click a topic:

• The Battle of 1642
• The Raid on Kempsey
• The Battle of Worcester
• Pictures of the Battle

The Civil War started in 1642, and Kempsey was quickly involved. On 22 September Colonel Nathaniel Fiennes and Colonel Sandys led a detachment of Lord Essex's Parliamentary Army across the Severn at Pixham Ferry. The forces of Prince Rupert beat them on Powick Ham, and many of the fugitives re-crossed the river at Kempsey. This is according to Kempsey Collection. However, Green writes that the victory went to the Roundheads, and that Prince Rupert was forced to flee. Click here to read his account.

Kempsey was raided on 2 July 1646, in an attempt to capture a Colonel Betsworth in his quarters. He was forewarned and eluded capture.

The Battle of Worcester (3 September 1651) was the last main Battle of the Civil War, and King Charles hid in an oak tree afterwards, while trying to elude the parliamentarians. For more details on Worcester in the Civil War click here. For the role of the part-time soldiers from the Essex Trained Bands who took Fort Royal, click here.

Here are some pictures of the Battle of Worcester fought at the end of the Civil War. Click on the pictures for an enlargement. The re-enactment is by The Sealed Knot. For more of their pictures, click here.

The steeple in the background is Worcester Cathedral.

The location of the re-enactment was Powick Ham, just north of the causeway carrying the road after the new bridge.

Pictures copyright Andrew Morrall, 1998. Feel free to copy them to your site on condition that you have a link back to this site, and you e-mail me and let me know.

© 1999 Andy Morrall

Last updated 15^th August 1999.

E-mail: andymorrall@geocities.com

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