The parliamentary leaders were numerous and powerful, and they were all fired with zeal and enthusiasm in the cause which they espoused. The town of Oswestry was a military post of distinction in their eyes; and to possess it was an achievement “devoutly to be wished.” Oswestry stood on a towering height, vigilantly watching the varied movements of the parliamentary hosts, and protecting the communication between the town and Wales. The opposite party were equally active and observant. Colonel Mytton was well acquainted, from his local connexion, with the strength and resources of the town, and brought to his aid, in his meditated attack upon it, Sir Thomas Fairfax, the equal to Cromwell in military tactics. In the month of March, 1644, Fairfax and Mytton, with a strong force under their command, made a sudden attack upon the town, which was gallantly repulsed by Prince Rupert (the King’s nephew), who commanded the royalist troops in garrison. This triumph was but of short duration, for the town was attacked in a few months afterwards, and in this renewed onslaught, the parliamentary forces were victors. The Battle of Oswestry, if such it may be called, was fought on the 22nd June. The Earl of Denbigh, a young parliamentary leader of some military talents, and son of a nobleman who had died in defence of the crown, suddenly left the main body of his army, and marched, with his “forlorn hope” upon Oswestry, determined upon taking the town by a coup de main. He reached the vicinity in company with Colonel Mytton, about two o’clock in the afternoon of June the 22nd, the former probably knowing, from the “false brethren,” as spies were then called, that the garrison was partly defenceless, the Governor having imprudently gone to Shrewsbury with certain parliamentary prisoners. Denbigh’s force consisted merely of two hundred infantry, and two troops of cavalry. The engagement was short and sharp. After a hot affair of about two hours, in which Lord Denbigh’s artillery played fiercely upon the garrison with small and great shot, a breach was made in the walls of the town, and the infantry poured in, headed by Major Fraser, with the loss of only one man killed and three wounded. “The New-gate,” adds Pennant, “was next demolished by the cannon, when a young fellow, one George Cranage, went with a hatchet, and cutting down the chains of the draw-bridge, enabled the cavalry also to enter. The besieged made an attempt to maintain the Church, but soon finding it untenable, fled to the castle. Hither they were closely pursued, and the pioneers were quickly called in to undermine its walls; in which, we are informed, the skill as well as valour of Colonel Mytton was very conspicuous. He was probably enabled, from his residence in the neighbourhood, to direct the miners to proceed with most effect. But the daring valour of Cranage again anticipated these slower operations. He was persuaded to hang a Buttar (a petard) at the castle-gate! Being well animated with sack, he undertook this desperate attempt, crept with the engine from house to house, till he got to that next to the castle, fastened it to the gate, set fire to it, and escaped unhurt! The gate was then burst open, and the garrison, finding it impossible to make any further resistance, surrendered the castle upon promise of quarter for their lives. * * * It is greatly to the honour of the victorious commanders that they restrained their soldiers from pillage, at the expense of a gratuity of £500. One can scarcely err in ascribing this noble and uncommon act of mercy to Colonel Mytton’s solicitude for the welfare of his neighbours. The Earl dispatched intelligence of his success to the Parliament. His letter was read to the House of Commons, on the 27th June, giving an account of his taking the town and castle of Oswaldstree, with 400 prisoners and 300 arms. Thanks were voted to him for this his good service, and former testimonies of affection to the house.” The circumstantial narrative proceeds to state that “his Lordship returned, after this exploit, to his main army at Drayton,” and left Colonel Mytton in defence of the town. The fall of Oswestry was a severe blow to the royal party. Besides opening a door for the reduction of North Wales to the power of the Parliament, it lowered them in the scale of public opinion, a loss, in the declining posture of their affairs, of incalculable importance. Active and energetic as were both Lord Denbigh and Colonel Mytton, in their attack upon Oswestry, still they did not escape the slanders even of their own party. The Earl of Denbigh seems to have felt their calumnies acutely, for a few months after the siege his Lordship wrote a letter to Mytton, vindicating the gallantry of both; which we subjoin:—
“COLL. MITTON,
I will not trouble you with the injuries that are offered to you and myselfe, by the Committe of Wem. I am sure you have deserved more of the Parliament then the rest of that Committe. Captaine Clive, as I am informed, reports I was not at the takeing of Oswaldstre, and that my horse stood att too great a distance; I am sure they entred with the foote; but the false representations of passages heere shall not divert me from those occasions that may fully expresse me to be
Your faithfull frend and servant,
DENBIGH.”
“Condor, 29th Oct. 1644.”
At this period the King’s position was critical and alarming. In the early part of the month he determined to take refuge within the walls of Shrewsbury, in his march through Worcester and Bewdley. Waller, the parliamentary leader, hearing of Charles’s movements, broke up from Oxford, and hastened in the direction of Shropshire. On this intelligence the King left Shrewsbury, and retraced his steps. The battle of Copredy Bridge (June 29th) terminated in the defeat of the parliamentary forces; and in July the Earl of Denbigh, encouraged by his success at Oswestry, drew his forces towards Shrewsbury, but was repulsed by the royalist army, with a loss of 120 of his men. The King’s defeat at Marston Moor (July 3rd) added, however, to his disasters and dangers. The whole of Shropshire was in arms, and jeopardy and distress stared every man in the face.
Among the prisoners taken in the late disaster at Oswestry was Francis Newport, Esq., who had served both in the short and long Parliaments. The historians of Shrewsbury have furnished us with an interesting account of this distinguished man:—
“Mr. Newport was son and heir of Sir Richard Newport, of High Ercall, one of the knights of the shire. This young gentleman was but just eligible to serve in parliament, having arrived at full age only on the 23rd day of the preceding February. He manifested the same ardent loyalty which actuated his father: and ventured, with rare but honourable gallantry, to vote for the acquittal of Lord Strafford, at a time when such votes exposed those who gave them to no small personal hazard; the populace, with their usual toleration of sentiments differing from their own, denouncing all such, fifty-six in number, as Straffordians; and exposing their names to execration and danger by public placards. Mr. Newport was soon expelled from the house as a malignant; appeared in arms against the parliament; and was among the prisoners taken at Oswestry, on the capture of that town by the Earl of Denbigh and Colonel Mytton. It is needless to say that he suffered very considerably in his estate: being obliged to compound in the large sum of £5284, in addition to £3287, and £170 a year extorted from his father for the same crime of loyalty. Yet though attached to the monarchy, he was friendly to the rights of the subject; and it is not a little remarkable, that he who had suffered so deeply for the first Charles, was so much disgusted by the base and arbitary measures of the two succeeding kings, by the last of whom he had the honour of being dismissed from the office of lord lieutenant of this county; that he was a great promoter of the Revolution, and was excepted, by the abdicated monarch, from his general pardon. He was created earl of Bradford by king William; and died Sept., 1708, in the eighty-ninth year of his age.”
The town of Oswestry was now in the hands of the parliamentarians, under the temporary Governorship of Colonel Mytton, but was not long permitted to remain quietly in the power of the victors. Only one short week elapsed before a formidable attempt was made by part of the royalist army, under Colonel Marrow, a skilful and intrepid commander, to retake the town, and drive the parliamentary forces from their position. Colonel Marrow invested the town with 3,500 infantry, and 1,500 cavalry, and maintained a close siege for the three following days. This sudden assault greatly embarrassed Colonel Mytton, whose only hope for relief was from Sir Thomas Myddleton, his kinsman by marriage, who was then stationed at Knutsford, in Cheshire, more than fifty miles distant. Colonel Mytton, however, succeeded in making Sir Thomas acquainted with his position in less than twelve hours from the commencement of the royalist attack; and the gallant knight, who was heartily engaged in the parliamentary cause, immediately mustered three regiments, namely, Booth’s, Mainwaring’s, and Croxen’s, with Major Lothian at the head of the reserve, and marching onwards with all speed, reached in two days within sight of Oswestry—it is supposed between Halston and Whittington. During this interval of time the royalists had not obtained full possession of the town, though consisting, as Sir Thomas Myddleton says, “of the most valiant commanders and soldiers, drawn out of the garrisons of Chester, Cheshire, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, Ludlow, Denbighshire, Flintshire, and other places.” They had possessed themselves of the Church, but had made no inroad upon the Castle. Myddleton’s approach having been made known, Colonel Marrow marched out from the town, determined to attack him before his troops could recruit themselves after their long march. “They had taken the passage of water neere to Whittington,” says Sir Thomas, in his letter to Lenthall, the Speaker, “and very furiously assaulted and charged us, but were repulsed and forced to retire, through the courage of our horse, who most courageously entertained the enemy. Three several times the skirmish was doubtful; either side being forced so often to retreat. But in the end, our foot forces, coming up, relieved the horse, beat back the enemy, and pursued them with such force, that our horse being thereby encouraged, which indeed was formerly weary, joining with the foot, they put the enemy to an absolute flight, in which we pursued them five miles towards Shrewsbury, to a place called ‘Felton Heath,’ and where we remained after their flight, again masters of the field. In the skirmish with the enemy, and in the pursuite, we lost several of our horse, some of our troopers, but never a footman, which I am yet informed of. As for the enemy they lost several stout men; had many of them taken prisoners, some of them being of great quality, as the Lord Newport’s eldest son; and besides, in their flight, such was their haste, that we found in our pursuite the highway as it were strewed with bread, cheese, bacon, and other good provisions; clothes, and such necessary appurtenances to an army, besides some whole veals and muttons, new killed.” Sir Thomas adds, that “his forces followed up their blow nearly to Shrewsbury, and that Majors Manley and Whitney were afterwards taken under the walls of that town, in pursuite of them.”
This affair closed the struggle between the royalist and parliamentary forces for the possession of Oswestry. On the very day on which Sir Thomas Myddleton raised the siege, Prince Rupert was signally defeated at Marston Moor, with the loss of ten thousand men killed and taken prisoners. Colonel Mytton must subsequently have delegated his command as temporary Governor of Oswestry, as we find him soon afterwards actively engaged in commanding the parliamentary troops in the conquest of Shrewsbury. That event happened early in 1645, when the town was placed in the hands of the parliamentarians. At this period we find Mytton named, in several public documents, as Major-General in the parliamentary army, and some time afterwards as Commander-in-chief of the forces in North Wales.
All the historical records referring to this period give evidence of the arduous duties of General Mytton, and of the difficulties which he had suffered in maintaining his hold upon Oswestry. A letter which we here give indicates the straits he was in, and at the same time the friendly offers of support made to him in the county. The letter is from a Mr. Edward Mynshull, of Bearstone, near Drayton:—