1 6 The Life of William, Duke of Newcastle 



But notwithstanding all these discouragements, my Lord, 

 after he had refreshed his army at York, and recruited his 

 provisions, ordered a march before the said town in this 

 manner : that the greatest part of his horse and dragoons 

 should in the night march to a pass at Weatherby, five miles 

 distant from Tadcaster, towards north-west, from thence 

 under the command of his then Lieutenant-General of the 

 army, to appear on the west side of Tadcaster early the next 

 morning, by which time my Lord with the rest of his army 

 resolved to appear at the east side of the said town. Which 

 intention was well designed, but ill executed ; for though my 

 Lord with that part of the army which he commanded in 

 person, that is to say, his foot and cannon, attended by some 

 troops of horse, did march that night, and early in the morning 

 appeared before the town on the east side thereof, and there 

 drew up his army, planted his cannon, and closely and orderly 

 besieged that side of the town, and from ten in the morning 

 till four o'clock in the afternoon, battered the enemy's forts 

 and works, as being in continual expectation of the appearance 

 of the troops on the other side, according to his order ; yet 

 (whether it was out of neglect or treachery that my Lord's 

 orders were not obeyed) that day's work was rendered ineffec- 

 tual as to the whole design 1 . 



However, the vigilancy of my Lord did put the enemy into 

 such a terror, that they forsook that fort, and secretly fled 

 away with all their train that very night to another stronghold 

 not far distant from Tadcaster, called Cawood Castle, to which, 

 by reason of its low and boggy situation, and foul and narrow 

 lanes and passages, it was not possible for my Lord to pursue 

 them without too great an hazard to his army 2 . Whereas 



1 The battle took place on Tuesday, December 6 — at least Lord Fairfax, in his letter 

 of December io, mentions the preceding Tuesday as the tlay of the battle. Vicars, 

 however (Jehovah Jireh, p. 230), fixes Wednesday, December 7, as the date. But Decem- 

 ber 7 was a Tuesday in 1642. 



The Lieutenant-General of Newcastle's army was then the Earl of Newport. His 

 delay is thus explained by Drake (Eboracum, 161) : ' Captain Hotham, at the beginning 

 of the fight, wrote a letter to the Earl of Newport signed " Will. Newcastle ", and sent 

 it by a running footboy to tell him that, though his commission was to come and assist 

 him, yet he might now spare his pains, and stay till he sent him order the next morn- 

 ing.' Newport was deceived by this trick, delayed his march, and gave Lord Fairfax 

 time to escape. Sir Henry Slingsby, however, says that Newport's march ' was so 

 troublesome, having with him two drakes, that it grew too late, and a counter-order 

 (was) sent him on Clifford Moor to march back to Wetherby and there quarter.' — 

 Memoirs, p. 86. 



2 Fairfax thus explains his retreat : ' In this fight our men behaved themselves with 

 very great resolution far beyond expectation, insomuch as I conceive we might have 

 maintained the place still, if we had been furnished with powder and shot, but having 



