BattlefieldsPrayer Book Rebellion — Battle of Sampford Courtenay 1549
Tudor

Prayer Book Rebellion — Battle of Sampford Courtenay 1549

1549
Devon, England
Also known as: Sampford Courtenay 1549 · Final battle of Western Rising
Era
Tudor
Battle Type
Pitched Battle
Location
Devon, England
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated
Western rebels
Forces
c.2,000-4,000 Prayer Book rebels
VS
Victor
Crown (Lord Russell and Sir Peter Carew)
Forces
c.2,000-4,000 government forces
Outcome
Final major engagement of the Western Rising; rebels defeated at Sampford Courtenay where the rebellion had originally begun; rebel leadership killed or captured
The Battle

History & Significance

The rebellion had begun at Sampford Courtenay when parishioners forced their priest back into his Catholic vestments on Whit Sunday 1549. It fittingly ended there. The final battle was hard-fought — the rebels knew what defeat meant. The rebel leaders, including the Mayor of Bodmin Humphrey Arundell and the priest Henry Bray, were captured and later executed in London. The rebellion cost an estimated 4,000 lives in total — a substantial proportion of the adult male population of Devon and Cornwall.

Casualties & Losses

c.4,000 total deaths in the rebellion; hundreds at this final battle

Questions & Answers

Frequently Asked Questions

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