Hopton's Narrative of his Campaign in the WestThe papers included in this volume relating to the military affairs in the western and southern counties of England were largely used by Lord Clarendon in the preparation of his history. They have been made use of by others also, and extracts from them have from time to time appeared in print, but hitherto they have not been available in their entirety for reference in a printed form. When the first volume of the "History of the Great Civil War" was written, the first of Hopton's documents was missing, and Mr. Gardiner had not seen it {see vol. i. p. 81). It was rediscovered and used by him in his second edition (see vol. i. p. 32, ed. 1893). Lord Hopton's narrative is contained in three documents, copies, numbered in the printed calendar of the Clarendon Papers in the Bodleian Library as 1738 (1), (4), and (6). The first covers the period from September, 1642, to June, 1643. The second continues the account down to and inclusive of the taking of Bristol by Prince Rupert on the 26th July, 1643. The last of the three brings the narrative down to the battle of Alresford on the 29th March, 1644. To this account are added Colonel Slingsby's relation of the battle of Lansdown, fought on the 5th July, and that of Roundway Down, fought on the 13th July, 1643; of the siege of Bristol and of the battle of Alresford. These three papers are No. 1738 (2), (3), and (7) in the calendar. A few further papers relating to the same period are included, and some notes from contemporary sources, chiefly the Thomasson tracts, known as the King's Pamphlets, in the British Museum, have been added. The documents are printed here as they are written, except that some trifling abbreviations, such as "yr" and "Math" have been extended. The proofs have been collated with the original manuscripts. Here and there dates have been inserted between square brackets where blanks had been left in the original. An endeavour has been made to trace upon a map Hopton's movements during the period covered by his narrative. The line of march so laid down is intended merely to show the movements of the headquarters of the army. The operations of bodies of troops detached from the main force could not be added except at the expense of clearness. As it is, the marchings and counter-marchings, around Launceston for example, are sufficiently complicated.
Lord Ralph Hopton Ralph Hopton was born at Witham, Somerset, the eldest son of a
wealthy landowner, Robert Hopton, and his wife, Jane, daughter of
Rowland Kemeys of Monmouthshire. Ralph was said to be a child prodigy
who could read by the age of three. After grammar school, he studied at
Lincoln College, Oxford, and the Middle Temple, but in 1620, he
abandoned his studies to take part in Sir Horace Vere's expedition to
rescue Elizabeth of Bohemia from Imperial Catholic forces. During the
expedition, Hopton became friends with William Waller when they served
together in Elizabeth's lifeguard. Hopton carried Elizabeth on the back
of his horse for forty miles during her escape from Prague. Upon his
return to England, he was elected MP for Shaftesbury in 1621 and married
Elizabeth Capel Lewin (d.1646) in 1623. He gained further military
experience in 1624 when he served as lieutenant-colonel in Sir Charles
Rich's regiment on Count Mansfeldt's expedition to the Palatinate. |