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A.D. 1643,
NAMELY,
1. A true Relation of Prince Rupert's barbarous
Cruelty against the Towne of Brumingham.
2. A Letter written from Walshall by a worthy Gentleman
to his Friend in Oxford, concerning Burmingham.
3. Prince Rupert's Burning Love to England, discovered
in Birmingham's Flames.
LONDON, PRINTED 1643.
BIRMINGHAM
REPRINTED FOR T. BEILBY AND T. KNOTT
BY THOMAS KNOTT, JUN. 1815.
A TRUE RELATION of PRINCE RUPERT'S BARBAROUS CRUELTY
AGAINST THE TOWNE OF BRUMINGHAM,
To which place on Monday Apr. 3, 1643, he marcht
with 2000 horse and foot,
4 Drakes, and 2 Sakers; where after two houres fight (being twice
beaten
off by the Townsmen, in all but 140 Musqueteers) he entered, put
divers
to the Sword, and burnt about 80 Houses to ashes, suffering no man
to carry
away his goods, or quench the fire, and making no difference between
friend
or foe; yet by God's providence the greatest losse fell on the malignants
of the Town.
And of the Cavaliers were slaine divers chiefe Commanders,
and men of great
quality, amongst whom was the Earle of Denbigh, the Lord John
Stewart: and as themselves report, the Lord Digby.
London
Printed for John Wright in the Old-baily,
April 12, 1643.
This was the first of the pamphlets to be published, and is most
blatantly Roundhead in tone and manner. When one considers the probable
authorship, this is scarcely surprisin9, for "R.P." was
almost certainly R.Porter -whose sward-mill was pulled down on the
orders of Prince Rupert. "R.G." is more puzzling, but
traces of style, and comments in that section, written by "R.G.",
could sugqest that his identity is none other than R.Graves -the
Captain who defended the town.'
SIR,
THOUGH I can write you but the same lamentation which I believe
you have already heard, yet I cannot be silent to acquaint you of
the truth as neere as I can; If Coventrey had sent us what helpe
it might, {Coventry had recalled 300 men only 3 days previously}
I be-leeve the enemy durst not have assaulted us, but in regard
they had been in danger of cutting off by the way, in case they
had been sent, I must excuse them, though it be to our owne suffering.
We with the Captaines were sensible, that if the Cavaliers came,
we were not likely to withstand them, they being neere 1500, and
we not above 150 Musketiers, {These figures do not agree with those
on the title page} with a Troope of Horse of Captaine Greaves, which
did no good but in their flight, as hereafter you will heare; but
in regard the generall desire of the Towne, especially of those
that bore Armes, would have them stand it out, and not march away
with their Armes, as we might in time, and that both they, and the
malignant would have reviled, and curst the Captaines and Majestrates
of the Towne if they had left them, made the Captaines and bet-ter
sort content to stay and trie the issue, rather then be so perpetually
reproacht. And though the same fall hard on our side in loosing
the Towne and some Armes, and about 80 Houses burnt to ashes, with
all that therein was, and some fifteen men, and two women lost their
lives, yet their gaine was nothing at all, yea, they count it greate
losse and curse the time that ever they medled with us, for I be-lieve
they lost as many ordinary men as we, besides three men of great
quality, which they much lament, whereof two of them were Lords,
as we have great cause to thinke, the one the Earle of Denby thats
sure, the other Lord we something doubt of his name, but we heare
by divers of the Cavaliers it is Digby, sure we are he is wounded;
and it is as sure that some of their Collonels say it was a man
of greater ranke, and more considerable then Denby; the other a
chiefe Commander : Denby pursued Captaine Greaves Troope some two
Miles out of Towne being at their heeles, before our Troope departed,
among whom I went away, and Captaine Greaves observing his Time
betwixt two woods faced about, and charged the pursuers most valiantly
as they themselves confesse, and drove them backe againe: in which
charge Denby was slaine immediately, and the rest fled, and so we
escaped with safety; onely Captaine Greaves received one shot in
the face, and a cut in the Arme, but not mortall; in the pur-suit
of that troope God made a way for all our souldiers, saving some
two or three, to escape most with their armes, which they threw
away and hid in pits and ditches as they could, whereof the most,
1 thinke, the cavaleeres found not, and not one Captaine or Officer
was hurt or taken prisoner, nor any considerable man, but most poore
fellowes, and malignants, because they could meet with no better,
and all are released saving two of the best, though of no great
quality, some redeemed themselves for 2d. 12d. and 8d. apiece, and
some one or two for 20s. Prince Rubert being enraged that he should
take never a pri-soner of so great a company, and of those not to
raise 20l. when he himselfe had undergon so great a losse; and of
those that were slaine [of our side were most poore malignants,
some three young men of ordinary quality that bare Armes, and John
Carter, and that in their flight; for but one was slaine,] and one
lightly shot in the flesh; in the enterance for pillage they spared
none, friend or foe they lighted of; yet for the most part those
that did most against them escaped best, the same I may say of the
fire, though they intended to burne the Towne utterly, as may be
known by their laying lighted match, with powder, and other combustible
matter at the other end, which fired in divers places, and divers
was found out and prevented, so that we may truely say, that the
flames, sword, pilledgers, but especially the prison, made a difference
betwixt those that feared God, and those that feare him not. But
this is remarkable in their vilenesse, that all these houses saving
two were fired in cold blood, at their departure, wherein they endeavoured
to fire all, and in the flames they would not suffer the people
to carry out their goods, or to quench it, triumphingly with reproaches
rejoyced that the Wind stood right to consume the Towne, at which
present the Lord caused the Winds to turn, which was a token of
his notice of their insultation.
For pillage I heare but of little I lost, having obscured the things
I had of any valew; and for fire, God did mar-veliously prevent,
both to me and many others, whereat the malignants {it is interesting
that RP should refer to malignants, rather than Prince R, as if
he is loath to apportion blame to the commander for this oiutrage}
are so enraged that they have since pulled down my Mill {the evidence
that the author was Porter}, and pretend that Prince Rupert so commanded,
and threaten to pull downe my house and divers others, which I thinke
they dare not, lest they build it up againe, the County having sent
them admonition of their inso-lency.
Prince Rupert with Hastings kept their rendezvow this day, within
two miles of Lichfield, as we credibly heare, what their designe
is we know not, I believe they can doe no good at Lichfield; I hope
their cruelty in our sufferings will provoke this unwilling kingdome
to jealousy for the Parliament. I pray you when you have read this,
shew it to Mr. B. and Mr. E. not onely to acquaint them with the
newes, but of my being in health, with all my Company, wherein I
have great cause to rejoyce in the Lord, and so 1 rest,
Your loving friend,
Coventry, April 8, R. P.
1643.
SIR,
BEING by my promise ingaged unto you I am now to make relation of
a most barbarous massacree of our townes-men of Bermingham, and
of the enraged cruelty of Prince Rupert and his inhumane Cavaliers:
Sir, thus it was, about three of the clocke one Munday in the afternoone,
he had with neere two thousand horse and foote, foure Drakes and
two Sakers, {a degree of technical knowledge probably not available
to laymen; how many people today would know the difference between
howitzer and mortar?}set against the towne, playing with his ordnance,
and endeavouring to force his way, with foote and horse, were twice
beaten off with our musqueteers at the entrance of Derrington, {Deritend}at
which many of their men fell, the townes-men held them in play above
an houre, we had not above one hundred and fourtie musquets and
having many entrances into the towne they were many too few, Coventry
men had withdrawne their forces three daies before, all but Captaine
Castledownes Dragooneers, a Troope of horse of Master Perkes commanded
by Captaine Greaves being in the Towne, not fit for that service,
made escape when the adversaries began to incompasse the Towne,
and force the waies over the medowes, and fired the Towne in two
places, and so by incompassing them that did defend the out-worke,
caused them to draw inward, to other workes there in Digboth, which
worke they defended to the adversaries losse, but being the enemy
brake in at the Millone, they were forced to leave that worke also,
and so put to shift for themselves, with breaking through houses,
over garden waies, escaped over hedges and boggy me-dowes, and hiding
their armes, saved most of them, the enemy killed none, as I here
in flight unlesse some three or foure, Mr. Carter, and Saumell Elsmore,
being of them, some with their armes defended themselves stoutly
till death, they persued the rest in fields and lanes, cutting and
most barbarously mangling naked men to the number of fifteene men,
one woman, another being shot, and many hurt, many men sore wounded,
and Mr. Tillam the sur-geon standing in his dore to entertaine them,
was most cruelly shot, having his leg and thigh bones broken, they
pillaged the Towne generally, their owne friends sped worst, and
one tuesday morning set fire in diverse places of theTowne, and
have burnt neere a hundred dwellings {rather high number, other
sources agree on about 80} the Welch end, Dale end, and More street
end, Hum-phrey Rans, the Bell, and diverse houses thereabout, many
other fires they kindled, but they did not burne, they left kindled
matches with gunpowder also in other places, intending nothing lesse
then utterly to destroy the Towne, but by Gods providence they whose
hurt they chiefly intended by Gods hand is much prevented, the Ca-valiers
lye about Clanke beyond Wosall {Cannock & Walsall}, are joyned
with Hastings forces, and intend to set on the Close at Lichfield,
where 1 feare not but they will have enough; your Father's house
stands, but hath lost much, Mr. Roberts Mr. Por'ters, and mine be
safe {if R.G. is Graves, he has wintered in Birmingham and so would
have a house}, but are threatned to be pulled downe, and they pretend
Prince Ruperts warrant, but how-ever jts their eny to God's overruling
providence hath turned the mischiefe so much on the heads of those
that might with their timely helpe have prevented this mischief;
I am much grieved at the losse of your brother, and many other friends,
three being my honest worke-men, whose lives I would I had redeeined
with mine estate. The Ca-valiers have lost thirty men at least,
of which there be three or foure chjefe men Earles and Lords, I
beleeve you have heard them named the Earle of Denby, the Lord John
Stewart, some say the Lord Digby, thirty are said to be buried and
many carried away wounded, this did so much enrage them, that they
appeared more like Devills then men, lamenting more their losse,
then boasting of their game, which was much in goods and in money,
its thought above two-thousand pound, thirteene hundred being taken
from Mr. Peake, Mr. Jennens lost much, the which men if they had
parted with little before, our fortification had beene such as they
could not have entred, which went on well for the time.{this reference
to the obvious meanness of the men concerned is quite amusing -
the suggestion being that if they had given, Prince Rupert could
have been kept out. It is written with the air of one directly concerned
with the fortification - Greaves perhaps ?} So wishing you to have
comfort in our God, who is able to turne the rage of men to his
praise, and sweeten this bitter cup by some other comfort, I con-clude
and rest,
Yours to command,
B.G.
I could wish I might heare how the City stands affected with our
losse, for a little reliefe from them, might much comfort many poore
people, which have lost all, and are left well nie naked and harbourlesse:
it would much en-courage all to stand out in the cause, that are
but indifferent, a helpe to ease the better party of, the burthen
of the which will be otherwaies too great for us; I would move some
friends if you thinke fit, I have already put on the worke of contribution
in this City.
{This conclusion suggests that R.G. does not write from the City.
The evidence is thus at least as strong in favour of R.G. being
Graves as much as anyone else. But decisive evidence, there is none.}
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