Marston Moor: Order of Battle T he battle of Marston Moor was fought on 2 July 1644 between the Royalists and the allied Parliamentarians and Scots. The first two lines consisted of around 3,000 men of the Eastern Association horse, including Cromwell's regiment of Ironsides. They feared that he would march southwards through Lincolnshire to join forces with the King's army. Prince Rupert rallied the survivors and retreated to Chester where he stoically set about building a new Royalist army. The first line of infantry were the troops that had marched to York with Prince Rupert, which had formed up early in the day under the command of Rupert's Sergeant-Major-General Henry Tillier. The positions of the cavalry were now reversed: Cromwell attacked from the position that Goring had held at the start of the battle, while Goring was on the disadvantageous ground formerly occupied by Fairfax. They were supported by a third line of around 1,000 Scottish horse, commanded by Major-General David Leslie. The Allied right wing of around 5,000 cavalry and musketeers comprised mainly the horse of Lord Fairfax's Yorkshire army in two lines, the first commanded by Sir Thomas Fairfax, the second by Colonel John Lambert. After the battle of Marston Moor he commanded the Northern Horse. Scottish Army of the Solemn League and Covenant, Parliamentarian Army of the Eastern Association, Parliamentarian Army of the Northern Association, People of the American Civil War by state, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, https://military.wikia.org/wiki/Marston_Moor_order_of_battle?oldid=5223940. It is reputed to have been the biggest battle ever fought in Britain. The Allied infantry advanced rapidly in the centre to storm the Royalist musketeers lining the ditch, driving them back and capturing some abandoned field guns. The battle took place seven miles to the west of York. The second and third lines were composed of Newcastle's infantry that finally arrived on Marston Moor late in the afternoon.The Royalist centre was further bolstered by cavalry brigades led by Sir William Blakiston and Sir Edward Widdrington. Cromwell was wounded and briefly left the field to have his wound dressed. The Marquis of Newcastle, unwilling to "endure the laughter of the Court," abandoned the King's cause and fled to the Netherlands accompanied by Lord Eythin and other senior officers. The Allies lost about 300 killed. Lord Fairfax and Lord Leven both fled. Although Lord Eglinton's Scottish reserve resisted for some time, the Allied right wing was finally routed under the impact of a charge from Sir Marmaduke Langdale and the Northern Horse. Goring's troops, disorganised and outnumbered, were scattered by a single charge and driven from the field. Facing Cromwell on the Royalist right wing were 2,500 horse interspersed with 500 musketeers under the command of Lord Byron. As a fire-fight developed in the centre, Lord Eythin ordered the second line of Royalist infantry to advance through the gaps between the front line brigades in a furious counter-attack. Three Scottish regiments under Lord Eglinton formed a third or reserve line. Marston Moor battle facts At the Battle of Marston Moor, Parliament and its allies lost 300 men while the Royalists suffered around 4,000 dead and 1,500 captured. It was the resolution of two Scottish regiments, the Earl of Lindsay's and Lord Maitland's, that prevented a complete rout in the Allied centre by holding firm against repeated cavalry charges. The Allies occupied cornfields on the low northern slopes of Marston Hill between the villages of Long Marston and Tockwith. Prince Rupert became separated from his lifeguard and was forced to hide in a beanfield to avoid capture. See Young, Gordon's Regiment does not appear on the Lumsden Key. Even the Allied generals thought that the battle was lost. In the first line, soldiers from the three Allied armies were interspersed, with Major-General Lawrence Crawford commanding the English and Major-General William Baillie commanding the Scots. In response to the Marquis of Newcastle's elegant letter of welcome and congratulation, Rupert sent a curt military order directing Newcastle and the York garrison to be ready to march against the enemy early next morning. KS3 lesson covering the key events of the Battle of Marston Moor, with a role play task and discussion questions. The Battle of Marston Moor, 1644 W hen Prince Rupert arrived to raise the siege of York on 1 July, he intended to join forces with the infantry of the York garrison and to strike immediately at the Allied army. The city of York surrendered two weeks after the battle, ending Royalist power in the north of England.