Battlefields›Siege of Basing House (Royalist relief 1644)
English Civil War

Siege of Basing House (Royalist relief 1644)

1644
Hampshire, England
Era
English Civil War
Battle Type
Siege
Location
Hampshire, England
Status
Unregistered
The Combatants

Who Fought

Defeated
Parliamentarians
VS
Victor
Royalists (garrison held, relieved twice by Gage)
Outcome
Parliamentary forces under Norton and then Waller blockaded and assaulted Basing House from June 1644; Colonel Henry Gage broke through the siege lines with a relief column on 12 September 1644 (Wikipedia gives 12 September; britishbattles.com gives the march setting off 9 September and breaking through around 11-12 September), resupplying the garrison and capturing prisoners in a sortie, then withdrew safely to Oxford. Disease-weakened Parliamentary besiegers withdrew into winter quarters by 15 November 1644, after which Gage delivered a second unopposed relief convoy of 1,000 cavalry on 20 November 1644. The garrison held out through 1644 (it fell only in the final storming of October 1645, a separate action).
The Battle

History & Significance

Siege of Basing House (Royalist relief 1644) was a Civil War siege, the investment of a fortified position, fought at Hampshire, England in 1644. Royalists (garrison held, relieved twice by Gage) prevailed over Parliamentarians. Parliamentary forces under Norton and then Waller blockaded and assaulted Basing House from June 1644; Colonel Henry Gage broke through the siege lines with a relief column on 12 September 1644 (Wikipedia gives 12 September; britishbattles.com gives the march setting off 9 September and breaking through around 11-12 September), resupplying the garrison and capturing prisoners in a sortie, then withdrew safely to Oxford. Disease-weakened Parliamentary besiegers withdrew into winter quarters by 15 November 1644, after which Gage delivered a second unopposed relief convoy of 1,000 cavalry on 20 November 1644. The garrison held out through 1644 (it fell only in the final storming of October 1645, a separate action).

Confirmed battlefield location
The ground

The ground they fought on

The site of Siege of Basing House (Royalist relief 1644) lies on White Chalk Subgroup, bedrock that formed in the Maastrichtian. The rock here is chalk.

Casualties & Losses
  • Gage's relief column lost about 11 killed and 40-50 wounded during the 12 September 1644 breakthrough; overall Parliamentary losses across the whole multi-year siege are estimated at upwards of 2,000, but no separate figure is given for the 1644 phase alone
Questions & Answers

Frequently Asked Questions

Unlimited access

Everything a full report reveals about Siege of Basing House (Royalist relief 1644)

This page covers Siege of Basing House (Royalist relief 1644). A full Aubrey report for the area pulls together this battle alongside scheduled monuments and everything else the record holds within a few miles:

Overview
An interactive map of the location with every monument and battle plotted, and a plain-language history built only from what the record holds.
Monuments
The legally protected scheduled monuments around the location, each with its period, type and significance.
Battlefields
The battles and sieges fought on this ground, mapped and set on a timeline of the wider conflict.
Roman Britain
The Roman roads, forts and towns near here, and the Iron Age people who held the land before Rome arrived.
Domesday
The settlement's entry in the 1086 Domesday Book: who held it, what it was worth, and the people who worked the land.
Civil War
The Civil War fighting, garrisons and recorded militaria in this area, woven into the arc of 1642 to 1651.
Geology
The bedrock beneath the site, its age and rock type, reaching back hundreds of millions of years.
LiDAR
Laser-scanned terrain that reveals earthworks hidden under fields and woodland, with likely features flagged.
Local Names
What the street and field names around here actually mean, and the history buried inside them.
Historical Maps
Ordnance Survey maps from the 1800s, layered over the location as it stands today.
Literature
The books, county histories, charters and archives that mention this place, quoted with their sources.
Legal
The protected sites nearby and the metal-detecting, access and treasure laws that apply to this ground.
Spotlight
A deep dive into the most remarkable, lesser-known history of the place, traced back to the record.
Target Zones
For detectorists: the most promising ground to search nearby, ranked by confidence, with what to expect.
Timeline
The whole story of the location told era by era, from prehistory to the present day.
First month just £4.99, then £9.99 a month. Unlimited locations, cancel anytime.

Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.

Start your Siege of Basing House (Royalist relief 1644) report
Or see a real report first
Protected heritage nearby

Scheduled Monuments near Siege of Basing House (Royalist relief 1644)

Basing House and the Grange Field
Basing House and the Grange Field
Scheduled monument · ~0.8 mi

Basing House is a scheduled ancient monument comprising the ruins of a substantial fortified residence located near Basingstoke in Hampshire. The site represents the remains of a medieval and early modern aristocratic dwelling that achieved particular prominence during the sixteenth century under…

Sandy B / CC BY-SA 2.0 / Wikimedia Commons
Winklebury camp
Winklebury camp
Scheduled monument · ~2.2 mi

Winklebury camp is a hillfort of Iron Age date located in Hampshire. The site comprises a univallate enclosure, defended by a single bank and ditch, situated on rising ground. Scheduled as an ancient monument, it represents the type of fortified settlement that characterised Iron Age settlement p…

Sebastian Ballard / CC BY-SA 2.0 / Wikimedia Commons
Odiham Castle
Odiham Castle
Scheduled monument · ~4.8 mi

Odiham Castle is a Norman fortress constructed in the early 13th century, with its distinctive octagonal keep built by King John between 1207 and 1214. The castle features a striking eight-sided tower keep surrounded by the remains of defensive walls and a substantial moat, representing a sophist…

BabelStone / CC BY-SA 3.0 / Wikimedia Commons
Flex Ditch
Flex Ditch
Scheduled monument · ~6 mi

Flex Ditch is a linear earthwork located in Hampshire, England. The monument comprises a ditch with associated bank that represents a boundary feature of archaeological significance. Dating evidence and scholarly interpretation place it within the Iron Age period, when such linear earthworks serv…

ian freeman / CC BY-SA 3.0 / Wikimedia Commons
The Late Iron Age oppidum and Roman town of Calleva Atrebatum and associated features
The Late Iron Age oppidum and Roman town of Calleva Atrebatum and associated features
Scheduled monument · ~6.3 mi

Calleva Atrebatum is a Late Iron Age oppidum and Romano-British town located near Silchester in Hampshire, representing one of the most extensively excavated urban centres of Roman Britain. The site, which originated as a major settlement of the Atrebates tribe during the Iron Age, was substantia…

Simon Burchell / CC BY-SA 4.0 / Wikimedia Commons
Hillfort south west of Pond Farm, near Silchester
Hillfort south west of Pond Farm, near Silchester
Scheduled monument · ~6.9 mi

Hillfort south west of Pond Farm, near Silchester, is a prehistoric fortified enclosure located in Hampshire. The site comprises a substantial univallate or multivallate earthwork of Iron Age date, characteristic of the defensive settlements constructed during the later prehistoric period in sout…

Simon Burchell / CC BY-SA 4.0 / Wikimedia Commons
Holy Ghost Chapel
Scheduled monument · ~0.9 miles
Oliver's Battery: a motte and bailey castle at Old Basing
Scheduled monument · ~1.4 miles
More from this era

Other English Civil War Battles

Battle of Kringen
1612
Scotland
Campbell Raid into MacDonald Islay Territory 1612
1612
Scotland
Mackenzie Seizure of Lewis 1610
1610
Scotland
Iona — Chiefs Signing Under Duress 1609
1609
Scotland
In the same landscape

Battles near Siege of Basing House (Royalist relief 1644)

Battle of Basing 871
871
~0.2 miles away
Basing House Pitman Sortie 1644
1644
~0.5 miles away
Basing House 1645 Breach Assault and Fall
1645
~0.8 miles away
Siege of Basing House
1643
~0.9 miles away
Explore the history of Hampshire
Aubrey Research

Explore the landscape around Hampshire

Aubrey generates in-depth historical research for any location in the UK — drawing on Domesday records, scheduled monuments, Victorian OS maps, geological data and archaeological archives to tell the full story of a place.

Research a location near HampshireView a sample report
All Battlefields