Table of Contents

Colonel Edward Harley’s Regiment of Foot

Active1645 to 1660
CountryEngland
AllegianceParliamentarian
ConflictsFirst Civil War
Second Civil War
Third Civil War
Glencairn’s Rising
TypeFoot
ColonelEdward Harley
Thomas Pride
Richard Moss
Area RaisedSouth East
Coat ColourRed
Flag ColourGreen or Crimson?
Flag DesignUncertain
Field ArmiesNMA 1645-6
Cromwell 1648
Cromwell 1650-51
Monck 1654-5

Later Colonel Thomas Pride’s then Colonel Richard Moss’s Regiment of Foot

New Model Army regiment of foot, serving in the First, Second and Third Civil Wars, returning to Scotland to put down Glencairn’s rising

Service History

1645

1646

1647

1648

1649

1650

1651

1652

1653

1654

1655

1656

1657

1658

1659

1660

Notes

A history of the regiment is given in The Regimental History of Cromwell's Army by Sir Charles Firth and Godfrey Davies, Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1940.

The regiment was formed from Barclay’s Regiment of Foot and probably drafts from other regiments of Essex’s army. They fought at Naseby, where Lt Col Pride commanded, as Harley was recovering from an injury, on the Western campaign and at the siege of Oxford.

In 1647 Harley fell afoul of army politics and was replaced by Pride. At the start of the Second Civil War the regiment were with Cromwell, marching on South Wales. They took part in the initial assault on Chepstow then marched west to Pembroke. After the Welsh rising was put down they marched north with Cromwell and defeated the Scots at Preston. In December 1648 the regiment aided in ‘Pride’s Purge’ of the House of Commons.

The third Civil War saw the regiment fighting the Scots under Cromwell’s command again, at Dunbar and Worcester. 1654 and 1655 saw them returning to Scotland as part of Monck’s forces to put down Glencairn’s rising. After 1655 the regiment remained in England, and were disbanded in April 1660.

Coats, Flags and Equipment

Red coats. Their flag colours and designs are unknown but it's possible that they continued with the standards they'd been issued as Barclay’s regiment in November 1644. These were either green colours (with differences of yellow billets, yellow half-moons or white diamonds), or crimson colours (with differences of yellow mullets or white balls).

Notable Officers

Colonel Edward Harley

Edward Harley

Colonel Thomas Pride

Thomas Pride

Colonel Richard Moss

Moss had been a lieutenant in the regiment in 1647, rising through the ranks to succeed Lt Col Parsons after his unfortunate encounter with a highwayman near St Albans. On Pride’s death he was made Colonel. He supported Parliament rather than Lambert but retained command. Monck left Moss in charge but made sure the regiment were quartered outside London and swiftly disbanded them.

Officer Lists

More detailed lists of officers for April and May 1645, December 1646, May and August 1647 and May 1649 are shown in Reconstructing the New Model Army. Volume 1, Regimental Lists April 1645 to May 1649 by Malcolm Wanklyn, Helion & Co. 2015. ISBN 978-1-910777-10-7.

May 1645 and December 1646

From Anglia Rediviva1)

August 1648

Strength

See Also

1) Sprigge, Joshua, Anglia Rediviva, London 1647