In July 2003, the Fairfax Battalia will be setting sail for the continent to portray part of the English levy sent to assist the Dutch at the siege of Gaasbeek Castle (Lennik, Belgium) during the 30 Years War. The following provides some historical background to the English Brigade which served on the continent at this time.
A
Brigade of English volunteers served on the continent for most of the Thirty
Years War. Originally formed by Sir Francis Vere, it was led for most of the
period by his brother, Sir Horace Vere (b. 1565) who was generally regarded as
the finest English soldier of his time.
At the battle of Newport in 1600 Sir Horace commanded 300 foot and helped Ogle and Sir Charles Fairfax rally the English vanguard on West Hill. Of the 1600 English soldiers, 800 were killed or wounded. He took command of the English Brigade (from his brother Sir Francis Vere) in the Netherlands in 1604. This comprised his own company plus that of Sir John Ogle, Sir Edward Cecil and Sir Edward Harwood. Sir Charles Fairfax, (the great-uncle of Sir Thomas Fairfax, the later Commander of the New Model Army) was killed in Sept 1604 during the very last days of the Siege of Ostend. He was mourned by the whole garrison as "a brave and well-beloved officer". He was probably shot by a Spanish musketeer, although one version of events claims that he was killed when a French Huguenot officer had his head fragmented by a cannon shot, and part of his skull pierced Fairfax!
There was a truce 1609 - 1621 but in 1620 Vere led a force of 2,200 volunteers raised in England to defend the Palatinate. They left from Gravesend. The English troops garrisoned Mannheim, Heidelburg and Frankenthal. Unfortunately, Mannheim and Heidelburg were forced to surrender in September 1621 but Frankenthal held out until April 1623. The English were allowed to withdraw with full military honour. In 1624 the brigade took part in the siege of Breda with the English winning fame for rushing down the dyke throwing fireballs into the Spanish redout.
In April 1629 at the siege of Bois le Duc in Brabant, the brigade also included the young (17 year old) Thomas Fairfax, Philip Skippon and Jacob Astley. The town was captured in August. Vere's final campaign was at the siege of Maastricht in May - August 1632 (at the age of 66) after which he returned home (along with Thomas Fairfax). Some of his men also returned home with him although many of the rest fought on as mercenaries.
Around 100,000 men were drafted for foreign service from 1585 - 1603 alone. The soldiers were either recruited voluntarily as individuals or they were impressed as part of the regular contingents that were sent by the King to serve on the continent or Ireland. In theory, the impressed men were supposed to exclude members of the Trained Bands, whose main role was seen as being for local defence. Instead, the petty constables would round up vagrants and any other undesirables that they could find in order to free the parish from any burden of supporting such men. Where this did not suffice and men of more substance were chosen, it was possible to pay for a substitute. Not surprisingly, there were frequent attempts to desert en route or at the ports. The county was responsible for the costs of the levy until the men reached the county border. The crown paid the men thereafter. In 1625 it cost Worcestershire £17 16s 8d to muster the soldiers who had been sent for service on the continent in the previous year, as part of Count Mansfeldt's expedition.
Despite the tradition of protection for members of the Trained Bands, their impressment became increasingly common in order to supply the foreign expeditions of Charles I. In 1631, 150 men of the Worcestershire Trained Bands formed part of a contingent of 6,000 men who were raised for service in Sweden under Lord Hamilton. Elsewhere, whole companies of men might be sent. Some of these men continued their service as mercenaries (as in the service of the Tsar of Russia). Others were recruited to become the training sergeants and Muster Masters of the Trained Bands back in England. Although there is little evidence for providing uniforms for Trained Bands during the English Civil War, there does appear to have been a strong tradition of providing men sent on active service abroad in the earlier 17th century with uniform coats.
All together, these veterans formed the core of military expertise at the start of the English Civil War.
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The dress of a Spanish soldier of c.1604 (sketch by Tony Barton) |
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