900 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1805. 



nion ever was, and I delivered it 

 often, that if any good were done, 

 it must be on the way, before he 

 came to the to« no. 



On Monday, in the aftcrnoone, I 

 received sir William Russell's an- 

 swer, written the evening before, 

 wherein he gave mc first certain no- 

 tice of prince Maurice his march 

 towards his majestie ; and that for 

 his own horse, the Worcester troop, 

 a great part of them were sent to 

 convey some Scottish lords, affirm- 

 ing that, untill theirc returnc, there 

 was no expectation of any assistance 

 from him ; by wiiich woe found that 

 wee were to expect neither succour 

 from Worcester, nor diversion from 

 the prince. 



About the same time lieutenant 

 colonel Courtney sent for one hun- 

 dred and fifty musketeers, adver- 

 tising that the enemy was advanc- 

 ing, and within three miles and an 

 halfc of him. Instant orders were 

 given for these musketeers, and they 

 were upon marching, when another 

 messenger from him, informed that 

 the enemy had sent some musketeers 

 before, to make good a forde be- 

 twixt him and the towne, and there- 

 fore he thought it not safe to stay 

 wliere he was, but to retnat to the 

 towne which was done accordingly. 

 Now this forde I never heard of 

 before, being a passe, as I under- 

 stood afterwards, which might well 

 have been defended ; neither could 

 I Icarne of the enemy, after he came 

 into the towue, that he had possess- 

 ed himself of it with any considerable 

 strength of musketeers. But I, be- 

 ing a stranger in that countrie, was 

 unacquainted with that and other 

 places, of advantage to us, and dis- 

 advantage to them. Neither had I 

 time, in that confusion of all things, 

 to informe luyself by othersj having 



taken upon me to assist these in the 

 towne, but the very night before. 



Lieutenant colonel Courtney, came 

 not in uiiiil about nine of the clock 

 at night, the horse being so wearied 

 with continuall duty, that some of 

 them lay downe in the streete, 

 where he made a stand, which, ne- 

 vertheless, coiisidering the aforesaid 

 passage was quitted, together with 

 the weaknesse of the towne and ma- 

 gazine, it was my opinion the best 

 course to find out the enemy in his 

 quarter, or to make ourselves mas- 

 ters of some convenient place near 

 the towne, before day, where wee 

 might fight with him, or otherwise 

 hinder his passage ; and, therefore, 

 present order was given that the 

 horse should be well fedd, and that 

 both horse and foote should be rea- 

 dy to march by twelve of the clock 

 at night. 



Instantly after, lieutenant colonel 

 Courtney came to my lodging, and 

 there told me, that he had forty or 

 fifty very good men, whose horses 

 were soe beaten out and tired, that 

 they Avould be able to doe very little 

 service, and therefore desired, be- 

 cause his men wore very good, and 

 those of the county troopes raw, 

 and never upon service, that his 

 better men might mount their horses, 

 which motion I well liked of, and 

 accordingly order was given. 



At midnight, the time appointed 

 to march, 1 Mcnt into the church- 

 yard, where the foot stood ready, 

 and thence into the Broad -street, 

 where the horse were appointed to 

 be ; but finding there not above 

 three or four horses, I wasextream- 

 ly troubled, and went to the lieute^ 

 nant colonel's lodgings, who was 

 abroad, calling up his men ; thence 

 I T^cnt where the county troope 

 was, to cause them to make ready 

 3 their 



