The battle of Chalgrove took place on the morning of 18 June 1643, just outside the village of Chalgrove. It was fought between a Royalist force lead by Prince Rupert and a Parlimentarian force lead by John Gunter.
In these pages we will detail who was involved; what equipment they would have had available to them; the events leading up to the battle; the day of the battle in detail; the aftermath of the battle; Lord Nugent’s involvement in the exhumation of John Hampden’s body and the erection of the monument (at the wrong place). We will also detail some of the work that has been done, and is still on-going, to piece together the events of the battle itself and it’s impact on the course of the English Civil War together.
- Who was involved
- Equipment
- Prelude to the battle
- The Eve of the battle
- The day of the battle
- Aftermath of the Battle
- The death of John Hampden and his subsequent burial
- The case of Parslow’s chest.
- Lord Nugent and the exhumation of John Hampden’s body and subsequent erection of the monument:
- Research into the battle and locating the real site of the battlefield.
Further Reading:
The following are links to some of the material that has been compiled over the years from transcripts of contemporary documents to original work. (Note: some of these links take you to a different website, this will open in a new tab on your browser).
- The peer reviewed Oxoniensia article written by Derek & Gill Lester showing the Military and Political Importance of the Battle of Chalgrove. Link
- Transcript of “His Highnesse Prince Ruperts Late Beating Up The Rebels Quarters at Postcombe & Chinner in Oxfordshire And His Victory in Chalgrove Field on Sunday morning, June 18th 1643…” an account of the beating up of the Parlimentarian’s quarters and their subsequent victory at what would become the Battle of Chalgrove Field. An Royalists eye witness account and first printed in Oxford in 1643. Link
- Copy and transcript of Edward Hyde’s Manuscript that was written on the day of the battle. Link
- Two letters from his Excellence Robert Earl of Essex. Relating the “true” state of the skirmish at Chinner, between a party of the Kings and Parliaments forces, on the Sabbath day the 19 June, 1643, with the number of such persons as was taken and slain on both sides. Published by order of Parliament 23 June 1643. Link
- A True Relation of a Gret Fight – Between the Kings Forces and the Parliaments, at Chinner neer Tame on Saturday last. Printed in London, for Robert Wood & John Grenesmith. Link
- Transcript of a letter from Rob Goodwin to Col Sir Thomas Barrington dated 26 June 1643. Containing among other things the news of the death of John Hampden. Link
- Col. John Hampden’s Monument Unveiled a look at the circumstance regarding the unveiling and siting of Col. John Hampden’s monument at Chalgrove, written by Derek & Gill Lester and published in 2006. The book contains transcripts of the various newspaper articles that describe the unveiling of the Monument on 19th June 1843. Link
- Hampden Magna – Copy with Transcript of John Yates book written 1663 – 1675, that contains details the locations of the various tombs within the Chancel of St Mary Magdalene, Great Hampden. Link
Further articles can be found on Further Reading pages of the Col. John Hampden’s Regiment of Foote website. Link