The “Colonell Thomas Moncke” in this entry was the father of the unfortunate lieutenant, and brother of the celebrated George Monk, Duke of Albemarle and Earl of Torrington, who subsequently played the leading part in the Restoration of King Charles II. Potheridge, in the parish of Merton, which is now converted into a farm-house, was the family seat of the Monks.
On the morning of Monday, the 16th February, 1645, the Parliamentarian Army, with Fairfax as General and Cromwell Lieutenant-General, marched from Ashreingney viâ Stevenstone, reaching Great Torrington late in the evening, and after some hard fighting in the dark succeeded in forcing their way into the town and driving the Royalist soldiers, under Lord Hopton, through the streets and across the Torridge in the direction of Cornwall. Hardly had the victors effected an entrance, before the Church, which had been used by the Royalists as a magazine for their powder, was blown up, the explosion wrecking the surrounding houses and dealing ruin and destruction in all directions.
There are several very graphic accounts of the catastrophe and the incidents immediately leading up to it, by eye witnesses, which cannot be excelled in accurate and vivid description by any additional embellishments. The following is that of Joshua Sprigge, the chaplain of Fairfax:—
Monday, February 16th, the drums beat by four of the clock in the Morning; the general rendezvous of the army was appointed to be at Rings-Ash, about three miles from Chimleigh; where, accordingly, by seven of the clock in the morning, the whole army was drawn up in battalia, horse and foot, on the moor five miles short of Torrington, and so marched in order ready for a present engagement, in case the enemy should attempt any thing in our march through the narrow lanes; the forlorn hope of horse, commanded by major Stephens and Captain Moleneux, being advanced towards Stephenston (master Rolls’ house near Torrington), his excellency understood that the enemy had 200 dragoons in the House, whereupon a commanded party of horse and foot were sent to fall on them; but upon the advance of our forces towards them, the enemy quit the place; yet our horse marching fast, engaged their rear, took several of their dragoons prisoners, and afterwards the forlorn hope of horse on both sides were much engaged in the narrow and dirty lanes; at last we beat them from master Rolls’ house, all along the lane almost to Torrington. About five of the clock in the evening the van of the army was drawn up in the park, the forlorn hope of foot was drawn out near the forlorn hope of horse in the midway, between master Rolls’ house and Torrington, and there lined the hedges to make good the retreat of the horse; the enemy likewise drew out of the town four or five closes off, and lined the hedges with musketeers within a close of ours, and flanked their foot with horse; whereupon good reserves were sent to second our forlorn hope of foot, lest the enemy, knowing the ground, and we being strangers unto it, might suddenly encompass us (it being by this time dark night, and the whole army being then come up, having marched ten miles that day). About eight at night the enemy drew off from some of the closes they formerly possessed; whereupon we gained the ground they quitted, and a council of war being called, whether it was advisable, being night, to engage the enemy’s body, then in the town, who were ready with the best advantages of ground and barricadoes to receive us; it was the general sense of the council to make good our ground and double our guards till the next morning, that we might the better take view of the places where we were like to engage; whereupon the general and lieutenant-general went from master Rolls’ house to see the guards accordingly set, but, hearing a noise in the town, as if the enemy were retreating, and being loath that they should go away without an affront, to that purpose, and that we might get certain knowledge whether they were going off or not, a small party of dragoons were sent to fire on the enemy near the barricadoes and hedges. The enemy answered us with a round volley of shot; thereupon the forlorn hope of foot went and engaged themselves to bring off the dragoons, and the reserve fell on to bring off the forlorn hope; and being thus far engaged, the general being on the field, and seeing the general resolution of the soldiery, held fit that the whole regiments in order after them should fall on. And so both sides were accordingly engaged in the dark for some two hours, till we beat them from the hedges and within their barricadoes, which were very strong, and where some of their men disputed the entrance of our forces with push of pike and butt-end of musket for a long time. At last it pleased God to give us the victory, our foot first entering the town, and afterwards the horse, who chased the enemy through the town, the Lord Hopton, bringing up the rear, had his horse shot dead under him in the middle of the town, their horse once facing about in the street, caused our foot to retreat, but more of our horse coming up pursued them to the bridges, and through the other barricadoes at the further end of the town, where we had no sooner placed guards at the several avenues, and had drawn our whole army of foot and most of our horse into the town, but the magazine of near eighty barrels of powder, which the lord Hopton had in the church, was fired by a desperate villain, one Watts, whom the enemy had hired with thirty pounds for that purpose, as he himself confessed the next day, when he was pulled out from under the rubbish and timber, and the lead, stones, timber, and iron work of the church were blown up into the air and scattered all over the town and fields about it where our forces were; yet it pleased God miraculously to preserve the army, that few were slain besides the enemy’s (that were prisoners in the church where the magazine was blown up), and most of our men that guarded them who were killed and buried in the ruins: and here was God’s great mercy unto us, that the general being there in the streets escaped with his life so narrowly, there falling a web of lead with all its force which killed the horse of one master Rhoads of the lifeguard who was thereon next to the general in the street, but doing neither him nor the general any hurt. There were taken in the town about 600 prisoners besides officers, great store of arms (the lanes and fields being bestrewn with them), all their foot were scattered, their horse fled that night towards Cornwall in great confusion: the prisoners we took confessed they had about 4,000 foot and 4,000 horse at least; the service was very hot, we had many wounded, it was stoutly maintained on both sides for the time.
From other sources we learn that the main body of the Royalist Horse was stationed at the end of the barricade on the north side of the town, and the Prince’s Guards were in the Castle Green. The word for the night was, “We are with you,” and the signal was a handkerchief tied round the right arm. The word for the night of the Parliamentarian Army was, “Emmanuel, God with us,” and each man carried a sprig of furze in his hat.
Fairfax himself also gives a detailed account of the affair in a letter to the Speaker of the House of Commons, in which he says:—
Accordingly on Monday morning I drew out the army to an early rendezvous at Ring-Ash, within six miles of the enemy; the weather still continued very wet and so by all signs was like to hold till we advanced from the rendezvous; but suddenly, when we were upon march, it, beyond all expectation, began to be fair and dry, and so continued whereas we had scarce seen one fair blast for many days before. The enemy (as we understood by the way), had all their horses drawn together about Torrington, and with their foot prepared to defend the town, which they had fortified with good barricadoes of earth cast up at every avenue, and a competent line patched up round about it, their horse standing by to flank the same, and some within to scour the streets. Our forlorn hope had order to advance to Stephenson-park, about a mile from the town, and there to stay for the drawing up of the army, there being no other place fit for that purpose nearer to the town on that side we came on. But when we came near we understood that the enemy had with 200 dragoons possessed the house in the park, and were fortifying it, being of itself very strong, but upon our nearer approach their dragoons quitted the house, and our forlorn hope falling on them took many prisoners and pursuing them near the town were engaged so far as they could not well draw back to the park which occasioned to sending up of stronger parties to make them good where they were, or bring them off; and at last there being some fear that the enemy would draw about them and hem them in, Colonel Hammond was sent up with three regiments of foot, being his own, Colonel Harlow’s, and mine, and some more horse to lie for reserves unto them, by which time the night was grown on so that it was not thought fit unless the enemy appeared to be drawing away to attempt anything further upon the town till morning, in regard none of us knew the ground nor the advantages or disadvantages of it; but about nine of the clock, there being some apprehension of the enemy’s drawing away, by reason of their drawing back some outguards, small parties were sent out towards the town’s end to make a certain discovery which going very near their works before the enemy made any firing, but being at last entertained with a great volley of shot and thereupon supposed to be engaged, stronger parties were sent up to relieve them, and after them the three regiments went up for reserves, till at last they fell on in earnest. After very hot firings, our men coming up to the barricadoes and line, the dispute continued long at push of pike and with butt-ends of muskets till at last it pleased God to make the enemy fly from their works, and give our men the entrance; after which our men were twice repulsed by their horse and almost all driven out again, but colonel Hammond, with some other officers and a few soldiers, made a stop at the barricadoes, and, so making good their re-entrance, rallied their men, and went on again, major Stephens with their forlorn hope of horse coming seasonably up to second them: the enemy’s foot ran several ways, most of them leaving their arms, but most of their officers, with the assistance of horse, made good their own retreat out of the town towards the bridge, and taking the advantage of strait passages, to make often stands against our men, gave time for many of their foot to get over the bridge; their horse without the town, after some attempts at other avenues to have broken in again upon us, being repulsed, at last went all away over another bridge, and at several other passes of the river, and all fell westward; the ground where their horse had stood and the bridge they went over lying so beyond the town, as our horse could not come at them but through the town, which, by reason of strait passages through several barricadoes, was very tedious, by means whereof, and by reason of continued strait lanes the enemy had to retreat by, after they were over the river, as also by the advantage of the night, and by their perfect knowledge of the country and our ignorance therein, our horse could do little execution upon the pursuit, but parties being sent out several ways to follow them, as those disadvantages would admit, did the best they could, and brought back many prisoners and horses. We took many prisoners in the town, who, being put into the church where the enemy’s magazine lay, of above fourscore barrels of powder, as is reported, besides other ammunition either purposely by some desperate prisoner, or casually by some soldier, the powder was fired, whereby the church was quite blown up, the prisoners and most of our men that guarded them were killed and overwhelmed in the ruins; the houses of the town shaken and shattered, and our men all the town over much endangered by the stones, timber, and lead, which with the blast were carried up very high, and scattered in great abundance all the town over and beyond; yet it pleased God that few of our men were slain or hurt thereby, save those in the church only, our loss of men otherwise in this service was small, though many wounded, it being a hotter service than any storm this army hath before been upon, wherein God gave our men great resolution; and colonel Hammond especially, and other officers engaged with him, behaved themselves with much resolution, courage and diligence, recovering the ground after their men were twice repulsed; of prisoners taken in this service about 200 were blown up, 200 have taken up arms with us, and about 200 more common soldiers remain prisoners: besides many officers, gentlemen, and servants, not many slain, but their foot so dispersed as that of about 3,000, which the most credible persons do affirm they had there, and we find, by a list taken among the lord Hopton’s papers, themselves did account them more, we cannot hear of above 400 that they carried off with them into Cornwall, whither their horse also are gone, being much broken and dispersed as well as their foot. By the considerations and circumstances in this business which I have here touched upon, you will perceive whose hand it was that led us to it, and gave such success in it, and truly there were many more evident appearances of the good hand of God therein than I can set forth: let all the honour be to Him alone for ever.
A letter of John Rushworth, the Secretary to Fairfax, written at Torrington on the 22nd of February, 1645–6, states that:—
The other day, being the market day, Master Peters preacht unto the country people and souldiers in Torrington (the Church being blown up) he was forced to preach out of a belcony, where the audience was great: he made a great impression upon the hearts of the people.
This was the celebrated Hugh Peters, the Puritan preacher, who attended the army in its journeyings.