4 Mistress Jane Lane. 
took the fort we turned his own guns upon him. The enemy hath 
had a great loss, and certainly is scattered, and run several ways: 
we are in pursuit of him, and have laid forces in several places that 
we hope will gather him up.” Next day he further writes:— 
“There are six or seven thousand prisoners taken here, and many 
officers and noblemen of quality. We have sent very considerable 
parties after the flying enemy, and are very close in pursuit. Indeed 
I hear the country rises upon them everywhere. I heard they had 
not many more than one thousand horse in their body that fled. 
ae ts I believe you have near four thousand forces following, 
Letter’s & and interposing between thera and home—what fish 
eae they will catch, time will declare.” This last signifi- 
203. ~—_— cant phrase of Cromwell’s was omitted in the newspaper 
of the day. The rout was complete—the King’s standard taken— 
all his personal effects —his coach and horses, with many rich goods, 
and his collar of SS (order of the Holy Ghost). The 
Clarendon. Great Seal of England was lost. His “George” he 
carried with him. This decoration, called the Lesser George, and 
ue ¢ set with diamonds, was happily preserved by the friends 
the Order of the King, and eventually restored to him by Izaak 
chee Walton, of fishing notoriety, who resided at Stafford. 
The King in after years described his position thus to old Pepys :— 
Account published “ After the battle was so absolutely lost as to be 
Bd belay ae beyond hope of recovery, I began to think of the 
1766. best way of saving myself, and the first thought 
that came into my head was that, if I could possibly, I would get’ 
to London as soon, if not sooner, than the news of our defeat could 
get thither. I did not impart my design to anyone but my Lord 
Wilmot.! We had such a number of beaten men with us of the 
horse that I strove, as soon as ever it was dark, to get from them, 
and tho’ I could not get them to stand by me against the enemy 
I could not get rid of them now I had a mind to it, so we, that is 
my Lord Duke of Buckingham, Lauderdale, Derby, Wilmot, Tom 
1 The Walsall Royalists, under Colonel John Lane, marched to join Charles IT. 
at Worcester, but the battle was fought and lost before they reached the army. 
Willmore’s History of Walsall. 
