Cornwall played a significant role in the English Civil War, being a Royalist enclave in the generally Parliamentarian south-west.
Civil War military actions in Cornwall and the South West
The English Civil War lasted nearly nine years, having begun with the battle of Edgehill, in Warwickshire, on Sunday, 23 October 1642, and ended with the battle of Worcester, on 3 September 1651. The principal events in Cornwall happened in the following order.
1642
In October 1642, Cornwall was secured for the king when some 10,000 men rose under the command of the local Royalist gentry and drove out the small force of Cornish Parliamentarians who had gathered at Launceston. The Cornish-Royalist Army was formed by Sir Ralph Hopton in 1642 and although their first invasion of Devon in November – December 1642 ended in failure the army secured the Cornish side of Plymouth Sound which marked a serious reverse for Parliamentarian forces.
1643
The Battle of Braddock Down
The Battle of Braddock Down near Boconnoc on 19 January 1643 resulted from a parliamentarian counter-invasion of Cornwall. It ended in defeat for Col. Ruthin's Parliamentarian troops by Sir Ralph Hopton. Hopton's victory secured Cornwall for the King and the Royalists resumed the siege of Plymouth with their forces occupying surrounding towns to seal off the city by land.
The Battle of Stratton
The Battle of Stratton occurred on 15 May 1643. The Earl of Stamford's Parliamentarian force was repelled by Hopton's men after day-long fighting, with 300 men killed and 1700 captured, and retreated to Bideford. The victories for Hopton with five 'Old Cornish' regiments provided the impetus for campaigns in Devon and Somerset. Taunton and Bridgwater were taken by the Cornish army, but Sir Bevil Grenville was killed in the moment of victory at the Battle of Lansdown in Somerset and Hopton was seriously wounded. Bristol fell to Hopton's Royalist troops, followed by Exeter.
On 13 December the Royalists began a heavy bombardment of the northern defences of Plymouth but with little effect. Sir Richard Grenville, 1st Baronet, having previously declared for Parliament, invited his troops to follow him into the King's service and parliament proclaimed him a traitor.
1644
Siege of Plymouth
Sir Richard Grenville arrived in Plymouth in March 1644 to maintain a blockade, but it resulted in a stalemate as the inhabitants obtained enough provisions to survive. Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex, arrived in command of the Roundhead army of 8000 men and forced Grenville to retreat to Cornwall across the River Tamar.
The Battle of Lostwithiel
In June 1644 the Earl of Essex took an army of 9,500 to the South-West and successively ended Royalist sieges at Lyme and Plymouth without firing a shot. With such successes, Essex advanced into Cornwall on 26 July believing that with local support he would be able to take control away from the Royalists. On that very same day, however, King Charles, arrived in Exeter intent upon hunting down and destroying Essex’s force. Slowly and deliberately King Charles continued west growing his army to a strength of 19,000 by linking up with the Royalist armies of Prince Maurice and Richard Grenville. Given the size of the King’s army, Essex found himself trapped on the peninsula with the only means of escape by sea.
Essex quickly moved his army to the small town of Lostwithiel, approximately nine kilometers north of the port at Fowey. By 13 August King Charles and his army reached Lostwithiel and eight days later the Royalists attacked easily taking the high ground to the north and east of Lostwithiel away from Essex’s forces. In an untenable position, Essex moved to escape on 31 August first ordering his cavalry to cross the River Fowey and flee to Plymouth which they did successfully. Essex then attempted to retreat to Fowey with his infantry. King Charles had been forewarned of Essex’s plan, however, and immediately pursued the Parliamentarians. The resulting battle began at 07:00 hours and continued for eleven hours as Essex tried to disengage and move south while King Charles continued his pursuit.