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Civil War Background 1641-1648 In the lead up, Parliament abolished many royal prerogatives and ordered the execution of Lord Strafford, Chief Adviser to Charles I. A statement of abuses by Charles I known as the ‘Grand Remonstrance’and reforms of the Long Parliament were published appealing for support against the King by a parliament already split into Royalist and Parliamentary factions. Significant battles were :- 1642 - Edgehill, 1643 - Newbury Royalists defeated, 1644 - Marston Moor Parliamentary forces led by Cromwell victorious leading to the collapse of the Royalist stronghold of York, 1645 - New Model Army created, 1645 - Naseby brings Cromwell and his Ironsides (Cavalry) in the ascendancy, 1648 - Preston the final battle. In total these actions cost the lives of one in ten of the adult male population of this country. |
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At the siege of Sandal Castle in 1644/45, Fairfax
the Parliamentary leader entrusted the seige to Sir John Savile entrenched at New Hall with his troopsl. In an account of the siege, Nathan Drake, gentleman volunteer and royalist wrote - ‘Sir John Saivell with his hipocriticall and trecherous rebells beat their drummes to praiers and being singing of psalms before sermon. Source : Thoresby, History of Methley /JW Walker, Wakefield its History and People |
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1672 - Petition by Old Soldiers of Methley for Payment for Past Services This is a document held at the West Yorks Archives Wakefield written on behalf of 11 men of Methley who did service for the Royalist cause 1642 - 1650. It identifies the men and
the battles they were involved in. The Archives record that the petition was made in 1672 which poses the question, why then, given that the last uprisings were put down in 1648. Why the delay of nearly 25 years before making this request. The outburst by Roger Hollings in favour of the monarchy and against the lord of the Manor suggests a a split in the village. I think it hardly likely that Roger Hollings would have been so bold had he been the sole Royalist supporter in the village, therefore there would have been others behind him despite the fact that Sir John Savile had taken men to arms under the command of Fairfax for the Parliamentary cause. After the battle of Naseby in 1645 and smaller uprisings in 1648 it would be hard to imagine the Lord of the Manor and his supporters shaking hands with, or throwing their arms round the Royalist camp in the village - relations would be extremely strained. Perhaps a review of the Manor Book of this time could throw light on the subject. So, here we had a village made up with Parliamentary and Royalist antagonists and a bigger majority of people who did not take sides and despite the Parliamentarians coming out on top and no doubt pushing their
weight about I don’t think it took long for the great majority of the population to become disillusioned with the more strict puritanical values being imposed with little or no recreation.
Older people would still remember stories of how during the reformation the many altars in the church had been pulled down and would view this puritanism as a continuing progression. It is as a result of these social changes that I suspect the ‘old soldiers’ on advice held back their petition for payment for past services until old resentments had healed. |
Colonel Bonivant Governor of the castle for the king caused his
drummers to beat to praiers so the besiegers thought they was secure, but our men, after they had dedicated themselves to God with upright hartes in brief manner to arms fell upon them’.
They suddenly threw open the gates and made two gallant sallies and fell upon the Roundheads who taken by surprise, were totally defeated with a loss of 42 men killed and over 50 taken prisoner
including one Captain and a substantial amount of arms. Sir John Savile, so dejected at this reverse ‘pack’t up bag and baggage, raised the seige and retired to Pontefract.