Battle of Lansdowne

The English Civil War battle of Lansdowne (or Lansdown) was fought on 5 July 1643, near Bath, Somerset, southwest England. Although the Royalists under Lord Hopton forced the Parliamentarians under Sir William Waller to retreat from their hilltop position, they suffered so many casualties themselves and were left so disordered and short of ammunition that an injured Hopton was forced to retire.PreludeBy late May 1643, Lord Hopton's royalist army had captured most of the south west of England. Joined by the Earl of Hertford, he then advanced eastward into Parliamentarian-held territory. Sir William Waller's army held Bath, to obstruct their further advance. On 2 July 1643 the Royalists seized the bridge at Bradford on Avon. On 3 July, skirmishes took place at Claverton and at Waller's positions south and east of Bath. Waller retired to a strong position on Lansdown Hill, northwest of Bath while the main Royalist force moved north through Batheaston to Marshfield.Hopton's forces encountered this position on 4 July and were unpleasantly surprised at its strength. They withdrew 5mi north-east to Marshfield, while their rearguard repulsed an attempt by Waller's cavalry to pursue.BattleEarly on 5 July, Waller moved to the north end of Lansdown Hill, where he built crude breastworks for his infantry, and sent some of his cavalry against Hopton's outposts. They put to flight some badly-led Royalist cavalry, and the alarm caused all of Hopton's army to form up and to begin advancing west until they came in sight of Waller's position.