Siege of Plymouth
Who Fought
Parliamentarians: 2,500
History & Significance
The siege of Plymouth took place during the First English Civil War, when Royalist forces besieged Plymouth, in Devon, held by a Parliamentary garrison.
With the exception of a brief interlude in July 1644, the town was isolated for most of the period from August 1642 to January 1646; however, control of the sea meant the garrison could easily be resupplied.
The Royalists recognised this made its capture extremely difficult, and they generally restricted operations to a land blockade. However, there were two serious attempts to capture the town; the first, from October to December 1643, the second, January to February 1645. The town was finally relieved in February 1646.
When the war began in August 1642, Parliamentary forces secured most of southern and western England, including the ports of Plymouth and Exeter, and the bulk of the Royal Navy. This prevented Royalist efforts to import arms and men from Europe.
Shortly after the war began in August 1642, Plymouth was cut off by Royalist forces, who set up their headquarters in nearby Plymstock. They prevented supplies being brought in by land, and blocked the supply of fresh water; with refugees increasing the population to over 10,000, this caused the spread of disease, including typhus. However, the Royalist army lacked the means to take it by force, and a messenger asking the town to surrender was turned away and told never to return. Reinforcements were sent to Plymouth by sea, and every man in the town was required to swear an oath to defend the town to the last.
By the end of September 1642, Devon was held by Parliament, while Royalists under Sir Ralph Hopton secured Cornwall. In the early stages of the war, most soldiers on both sides were poorly trained and equipped militia. An exception was Plymouth, where the garrison was commanded by Colonel William Ruthven, and a contingent of experienced Scots mercenaries; their ship stopped to pick up supplies returning from Ireland in early October, and the Parliamentary town council hired them to defend the city.
Parliamentary control of the Royal Navy made Plymouth largely impregnable from the sea, and allowed them to bring in supplies and reinforcements as needed. The garrison constructed defences on high ground to the north, strengthening it against attack from the land; strongpoints were constructed at Lipson, Holiwell, Maudlyn, Pennycomequick and New Worke. Additional self-supporting forts at Lipson Mill and Stonehouse prevented the town from being fired on from the land, making its capture very difficult.
In June 1643, Hopton inflicted a serious defeat on Waller's 'Army of the Southern Association' at Roundway Down on 13 July. Arguably the most comprehensive Royalist victory of the war, it isolated Parliamentary garrisons in the west. On 26 July, Prince Rupert stormed Bristol, gaining the second largest city in Britain, and a landing point for reinforcements from Ireland. Exeter surrendered to Prince Maurice on 4 September, leaving Plymouth as the main Parliamentary enclave in the West Country.
The ground they fought on
The site of Siege of Plymouth lies on Upper Devonian Rocks (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Late Devonian. The rock here is mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.
Frequently Asked Questions
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- Siege of Plymouth · Wikidata
- Siege_of_Plymouth · Wikipedia