Battle of St Neots (1648)
Who Fought
History & Significance
The Battle of St Neots on 10 July 1648 was a skirmish during the Second English Civil War at St Neots in Cambridgeshire. A Royalist force led by the Earl of Holland and Colonel John Dalbier was defeated by 100 veteran troops from the New Model Army, commanded by Colonel Adrian Scrope.
Taken by surprise in the early hours, the Royalists were quickly overpowered; Dalbier and several others were killed, while Holland was taken prisoner and executed for treason on 9 March 1649. Although a relatively minor action, Parliamentarian troops were struggling to deal with a series of local risings and victory ensured there was no central focus for Royalist groups in the East Midlands.
When the First English Civil War ended with Royalist defeat in May 1646, most Parliamentarians assumed Charles I would be forced to agree significant political concessions. This proved a fundamental misunderstanding of his character and for the next two years he refused to comply. Parliament went to war in 1642 to curb the power of the monarchy, not remove it, and despite their religious differences, the vast majority of Puritans viewed monarchy as divinely ordered.
This made Charles essential to a settlement, while his opponents were deeply divided between moderates who dominated Parliament and radicals within the New Model Army. In April 1648, his Scottish supporters gained a majority in the Parliament of Scotland and agreed to restore him to the English throne. This put the pieces in place for a rising by Scots and English Royalists, supported by some English Presbyterians, and Scots Covenanters.
When the Second English Civil War began in April 1648, the plan was to tie down the New Model with co-ordinated risings in South Wales and England, allowing time for the Scottish army to invade. By the end of June, the revolts in Wales and Kent had been suppressed, while a Royalist garrison in Colchester was besieged by the New Model under Sir Thomas Fairfax. On 4 July, a petition was presented to Parliament demanding the resumption of negotiations with Charles; on the same day, 400 cavalry were raised by the Earl of Holland and George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham in an attempt to seize London.
This was insufficient for the task and when the Royalists retreated through Surrey towards Reigate, they were scattered outside Surbiton by Sir Michael Livesey, Buckingham's younger brother Francis being one of the few casualties. Most of the Royalists deserted but Holland reached St Neots on Sunday 9 July, along with 100 to 200 men and Colonel John Dalbier, an experienced German mercenary who fought for Parliament during the First Civil War. At the same time, Fairfax detached 100 veteran cavalry under Colonel Adrian Scrope to prevent them establishing a hub for attracting Royalist supporters in the East Midlands.
The ground they fought on
The site of Battle of St Neots (1648) lies on Kellaways Formation And Oxford Clay Formation (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Oxfordian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.
- Royalists: 12 killed or wounded
- Parliamentarians: Minimal
Frequently Asked Questions
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