Sir Arthur Hesilrigge’s Regiment of Horse

Later Colonel James Berry’s, Unton Croke’s and Daniel O’Neill’s Regiment of Horse

Commonwealth regiment of horse serving in Scotland, later defeating Penruddock’s Rising in the West Country

• August: Raised in northern England
• September: Garrison of Linlithgow

• January: Defence of Linlithgow
• February: Skirmishes towards Stirling
• April: Raid on Dumbarton, capturing the Earl of Eglinton
• April: Skirmish at Linlithgow
• June: James Berry replaces Hesilrigge as Colonel
• July: Battle of Inverkeithing??
• July: Skirmish at Torwood?
• August to September: Siege of Dundee

• Serving in Scotland

• October: Return to England

• In England

• Quartered in Nottinghamshire (1 troop), Bristol (2 troops), Marlborough (2 troops) Exeter (1 troop)
• March: Berry suppresses rising in Nottinghamshire (Berry’s troop)
• March: Skirmish at South Molton (Unton Croke’s troop)

• In England
• Move to Scotland

• Serving in Scotland

• Spring: Return to England, quartered in Oxfordshire

• October: Berry cashiered by Parliament

• January: Major Unton Croke promoted to Colonel
• Suppress disturbances at Exeter
• July: Croke replaced by Dan O’Neill, now styled “The Royal Regiment”
• December: Disbanded at Bath

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 raised in the North by Hesilrigge, but his colonelcy appears nominal as it was quickly sent to Scotland led by Major Sanderson, who died in February 1651, then by Major John Sydenham who was mortally wounded in a skirmish at Linlithgow. They served initially as garrison of Linlithgow, then in the West of Scotland with Okey, and remained as part of Monck’s force.

In 1655 Captain Unton Croke was instrumental in ending Penruddock’s Rising, defeating Penruddock’s 250 to 400 Royalists at South Molton with a single troop. In 1660 Croke was promoted to Colonel but was soon replaced by Dan O’Neill before the regiment was disbanded at Bath in December.

Sir Arthur Heslirigge raised the regiment but never served with them on campaign.

James Berry

Unton Croke

Daniel O’Neill was an officer of Prince Rupert’s Regiment of Horse in the First Civil War.

Major-General James Berry's Regiment of Horse¹⁾

• Colonel's troop at St Andrews
• Major William Butler's troop at Burntisland & Kirkcaldy
• Captain Unton Crook's troop at Elgin
• John Robinson's troop at Drummond
• Robert Hutton's troop at Inverness
• John Hawkridge's troop at St Johnstons

• Six troops