The English Civil War Battle of Langport in Somerset. The decisive Parliamentarian victory in the West of England.

The 10th of July saw the anniversary of the English Civil War Battle of Langport which took place in 1645.  Although there is no monument or memorial of any sort to mark the site I decided to drive over to Langport and walk the battlefield.  The battle actually took place closer to the village of Huish Episcopi than Langport as the Royalist Army, commanded by Lord Goring, was trying to block the approach to Langport and keep open the road to Bridgwater.  The Royalists intended retreating to Bridgwater and needed time to fortify the town.

The two armies faced each other across Wagg Rhyne, which runs either side of Wagg Drove, just east of Huish Episcopi.  The rhyne runs north to south through a gently sloping valley.  Goring was aiming to prevent Lord Fairfax’s Parliamentarian Army, which was approaching from Long Sutton to the south east, from crossing Wagg Rhyne.  There are three possible sites for the crucial crossing point: where the Wagg Rhyne crosses the A372 in the south; at Wagg Bridge on the B3153 to Somerton where at the time of the battle there was a ford; or between those two sites where today the railway crosses Wagg Drove about a quarter of a mile south of Wagg Bridge.

The view east from Wagg Bridge looking toward Pitney Hill.

The battle began with an exchange of artillery fire which silenced the Royalist guns.  Cromwell, commanding the Parliamentarian cavalry, sent two divisions to force a crossing of Wagg Rhyne – a difficult task as the narrow crossing was only wide enough to allow four horses abreast.  Major Bethel successfully led his division across the rhyne although counter attacked and hard-pressed by the Royalist cavalry.  Colonel Desborough led further Parliamentarian cavalry to re-inforce Bethel and together they engaged and drove off the Royalist cavalry.  Meanwhile, infantry from the New Model Army were clearing Royalist musketeers from their defensive positions along the hedgerows bordering Wagg Rhyne.  A retreat quickly became a rout as the Royalists fell back through Langport toward Bridgwater although there were attempts at delaying actions in Aller and at Burrow Mump.

Just north of the railway bridge which crosses Wagg Rhyne, the view east toward the New Model Army's positions.

The gentle slopes of the valley west of Wagg Rhyne.  Easier going for Cromwell's cavalry?

The New Model Army laid siege to Bridgwater which surrendered on the 23rd July while the Royalist bastion of Bristol was taken by the Parliamentarians on 10th September.  Royalist resistance in the West of England was at an end.  

The car park next to the war memorial opposite St. Mary’s Church in Huish Episcopi was a convenient place to start my walk.  I set off east along the A372 past the Rose and Crown and on to Wagg Drove.  Turning left along the drove there was not much to see due to the tree lined rhynes, which ran either side of the narrow tarmac road, the scattering of neatly kept houses and the occasional farm.  Only when I reached the railway bridge over the road did the view of the gently sloping valley open up.  I walked on along the drove, which ran straight and level for just over 400 yards, to Wagg Bridge at the steeper end of the valley. 

The ford which was once at Wagg Bridge would, I suggest, not be the best place for Cromwell’s cavalry to have charged across.  Galloping down the steeper ground from the direction of Pitney Hill to the east and then slowing to negotiate the narrow ford would have caused a loss of momentum before having to charge up Pict’s Hill to the west and engage the Royalist cavalry – perhaps not the easiest approach for Bethel and Desborough.

There are lanes and footpaths which cross Wagg Rhyne near the railway bridge: one of them is closed at present due to an unsafe footbridge across the rhyne.  Would a cavalry charge over Wagg Rhyne near here, with gently sloping ground on either side of the valley, have offered the best chance of success?  Only a cavalryman could answer that!

I estimate I walked about 3 miles during my visit to the battlefield.  Wagg Drove has no pavement but the local drivers were very considerate and most gave me a friendly wave as they slowed while I stepped onto the verge.  At Wagg Bridge on the B3153 I did not explore further as there is no pavement or verge on this section of the Langport to Somerton road – and it is rather busy!

All in all, I enjoyed a very pleasant afternoon in the South Somerset countryside.