Table of Contents

Colonel John Pickering’s Regiment of Foot

Flag Illustration1)
Active1645 to 1660
CountryEngland
AllegianceParliamentarian
ConflictsFirst Civil War
Second Civil War
Irish Confederate War
Booth’s Rising
Restoration Crisis
TypeFoot
ColonelJohn Pickering
John Hewson
Henry Markham
John Streeter
Lord Belasyse
Area RaisedEast Anglia
Coat ColourRed
Flag ColourBlue
Flag DesignUnknown
Field ArmiesNMA 1645-6
Fairfax 1648
Cromwell 1649-50

Later Colonel John Hewson’s, Henry Markham’s, John Streeter’s and Lord Belasyse’s Regiment of Foot

New Model Army regiment of foot, serving in the First and Second Civil Wars and thereafter in Ireland, with a detachment sent back to England forming a second regiment

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. An online history of the regiment is shown at Pickering's Regiment of Foote.

Pickering’s regiment was formed from his Regiment of Foot of Manchester’s army. They fought at Naseby, on Fairfax’s Western campaign and under Cromwell’s command at a series of sieges. In November 1645 Pickering died of ‘the new disease’ at the siege of Exeter and was replaced by his Lt Col, John Hewson, who led the regiment at the siege of Oxford.

In the Second Civil War Hewson’s regiment fought at Maidstone under Fairfax and were then detached to relieve Dover and re-take Royalist-occupied strongholds in Kent. In 1649 they were sent to Ireland, serving on Cromwell’s Irish campaign, with Lt Col Daniel Axtell blamed for initiating the notorious massacre at Drogheda. The regiment continued to serve in Ireland up to the Restoration, though transferred to Colonel Henry Markham in 1659.

In 1655 four companies were sent back to England and the next year Hewson was authorised to build them back up to a full regiment. Therefore from 1656-1659 Hewson was nominally commander of two foot regiments, one in Ireland and one in England. The regiment in England helped put down Booth’s rising and were involved in the Restoration crisis. Hewson was replaced by Streeter, who led a detachment to capture Lambert at Daventry. In July, Streeter was demoted to major and the Royalist Lord Belasyse was given the colonelcy, with Anthony Gilby as Lt Col. The regiment were disbanded in October 1660, though four companies continued in service as garrison of Hull, where Belasyse was governor.

Coats, Flags and Equipment

Red coats. The regiment were paid for ten new flags in April 1645, and were noted as flying blue flags at the storm of Basing House in October of that year2). The designs of the flags are unknown. In June 1649 Hewson's regiment were given £20 to buy new flags, colours and design unknown.

Notable Officers

Colonel John Pickering

John Pickering

Colonel John Hewson

John Hewson

Colonel Henry Markham

In 1659 Markham was given command of Hewson’s regiment serving in Ireland, but this appears mainly nominal as he remained in England.

Colonel John Streeter

John Streeter

Lord Belasyse

John, 1st Baron Belasyse

Lt Colonel Daniel Axtell

Daniel Axtell, see Colonel Daniel Axtell’s Regiment of Foot.

Lt Col Anthony Gilby

Gilby was a Royalist colonel in the First Civil War.

Lord Bellasis

John, Lord Belasyse

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

From Anglia Rediviva3)

December 1646

From Anglia Rediviva4)

Strength

See Also

Pickering's are now re-enacted by Colonel John Pickering, His Regiment of Foote of the Sealed Knot.

1) Flag images by kind permission of Wargames Designs
2) ECW Flags and Colours 1: English Foot, Stuart Peachey & Les Prince 1990, Partizan Press ISBN:0946525846
3) , 4) Sprigge, Joshua, Anglia Rediviva, London 1647