King Charles surrenders to the Scots — the surrender of Oxford — the battle of Benburb — the First Ormond Peace
January
| 2 | Cardinal Mazarin's envoy Jean de Montereul arrives at Oxford and urges King Charles to accept the peace proposals he had rejected at the Uxbridge Treaty and to surrender to the Scots army at Newark. Source: HGCW3 |
| 3 | The Covenanters re-occupy Aberdeen. TCW |
| 9 | Lieutenant-General Cromwell routs Lord Wentworth's troops in a surprise attack at Bovey Tracey in Devon. The New Model Army advances further west. HGCW3 |
| 12 | Royalists abandon the siege of Plymouth. ATKA |
| 13 | Parliament and the Scottish commissioners refuse to allow the King to come to Westminster to negotiate in person. HGCW3 |
| 15 | The Prince of Wales appoints Lord Hopton commander of the Royalist western army. HGCW3 |
| Negotiations for the surrender of Chester begin. SGCW | |
| 16 | Details of the Glamorgan Treaty revealed at Westminster, prompting some Independents to demand the deposition of the King. HGCW3, DNB |
| The Scottish Parliament condemns to death several nobles who had supported Montrose. HGCW3 | |
| 18 | Sir Richard Grenville refuses to serve under Lord Hopton and resigns his commission. He is arrested at Launceston for insubordination and imprisoned on St Michael's Mount. ODNB |
| 18-19 | General Fairfax storms and captures Dartmouth and surrounding outposts. HGCW3 |
| 22 | The Earl of Glamorgan released on bail in Dublin. TCW, ODNB |
| 24 | The Earl of Glamorgan returns to Kilkenny. HGCW3 |
| 26 | Powderham Castle surrenders to Fairfax, completing his encirclement of Exeter. HGCW3 |
| Parliamentary ordinance grants Cromwell's commission as lieutenant-general for a further six months. AOI | |
| 29 | King Charles publicly disavows the Glamorgan Treaty, but continues to encourage Glamorgan in private. DNB |
February
| 3 | Lord Byron surrenders Chester to Sir William Brereton. Source: SGCW |
| 4 | The Committee of Estates appoints John Middleton commander-in-chief in Scotland. ODNB |
| 5 | Sixth Confederate General Assembly (until 4 March). TCW |
| 7 | Archbishop Rinuccini urges the Confederate Supreme Council to accept the treaty negotiated with the Pope in Rome by Sir Kenelm Digby on behalf of Queen Henrietta Maria rather than continue negotiations with Ormond. The Earl of Glamorgan urges Ormond to accept the Rome Treaty. HGCW3 |
| 10 | Lord Hopton occupies Torrington in north Devon. General Fairfax marches north to intercept him. TGCW |
| 16 | Battle of Torrington: Fairfax defeats Hopton, who withdraws into Cornwall. HGCW3 |
| Archbishop Rinuccini and the Earl of Glamorgan negotiate a continuation of the Cessation of Arms until 1 May pending the Pope's confirmation of the terms of the Rome Treaty and the King's acceptance of them. HGCW3 | |
| 18-20 | Major-General Rowland Laugharne defeats Royalist forces besieging Cardiff. ODNB |
| 20 | Fairfax advances into Cornwall. HGCW3 |
| 25 | Fairfax enters Launceston in Cornwall. HGCW3 |
| 27 | Surrender of Corfe Castle in Dorset. TCW |
| (Late February) Jean de Montereul continues to negotiate with the Scottish commissioners for terms to allow the King to go to the Scottish army. HGCW3 | |
March
| 1 | Hopton falls back to Falmouth. Source: HGCW3 |
| 2 | Fairfax occupies Bodmin. HGCW3 |
| The Prince of Wales and his advisers sail from Falmouth for the Isles of Scilly, where they arrive two days later. CHGR | |
| 5 | The House of Commons passes an ordinance for the establishment of Presbyterianism in England, but the Covenanters and strict Presbyterians are dismayed by a clause that limits the power of church courts and makes them subservient to Parliament. HCW3, HCJ |
| 6 | Fairfax offers Lord Hopton honourable terms for surrender. HGCW3 |
| Sir William Brereton captures Lichfield Close. TCG | |
| 10 | Commissioners from Hopton and Fairfax's armies meet at Tresillian Bridge in Cornwall to negotiate a treaty. HGCW3 |
| 12 | Having ascertained that the epidemic of plague is over, the Committee of Estates moves back to Edinburgh. RCRS |
| 13 | The House of Lords passes the ordinance for the establishment of a Presbyterian church, including the controversial clause limiting the power of church courts. HLJ |
| 14 | Lord Hopton surrenders to Sir Thomas Fairfax at Truro. Hopton agrees to disband the Royalist western army and go abroad. Fairfax marches back to Exeter. HGCW3 |
| 15 | Colonel Morgan and Colonel Birch join forces at Gloucester and march to intercept Lord Astley. |
| 17 | Jean de Montereul returns to Oxford to broker further negotiations between the King and the Scots. HGCW3 |
| Parliamentarians besiege Pendennis Castle in Cornwall. TCW | |
| 18 | The Earl of Glamorgan learns that the King has repudiated his commission. HGCW3 |
| 19 | Lord Astley marches from Worcester for Oxford with 3,000 troops. Brereton advances south from Lichfield. HGCW3 |
| 20 | The western Royalist army disbands. HGCW3 |
| 21 | Lord Astley and the last Royalist field army defeated by Sir William Brereton at Stow-on-the-Wold, Gloucestershire. HGCW3 |
| 23 | King Charles begins secret negotiations with the Scots through Jean de Montereul. HGCW3 |
| 25 | Fairfax and Cromwell lead a triumphal procession through Plymouth, which had remained a staunch Parliamentarian stronghold throughout the war. TCG |
| 28 | The Marquis of Ormond signs a peace treaty with the Confederate Supreme Council, the First Ormond Peace. 10,000 Confederate soldiers to be transported to England to fight for the King. HGCW3 |
| 31 | Fairfax calls upon Sir John Berkeley, governor of Exeter, to surrender the city. HGCW3 |
April
| 1 | Colonel John Boys surrenders Donnington Castle to Colonel Dalbier. Source: TCG |
| 3 | Jean de Montereul goes to the Scottish army at Newark to make preparations for the King's reception. HGCW3 |
| Viscount Muskerry informs Ormond that the Irish expedition to England cannot proceed because there are no Royalist ports available for a landing. HGCW3 | |
| 7 | Scottish commissioners in London urge a speedy settlement with the King. HGCW3 |
| 9 | Articles of surrender signed at Exeter. HGCW3 |
| Parliament commissions Viscount Lisle lord-lieutenant of Ireland. ODNB | |
| 10 | Lord Hopton and Lord Capel join the Prince of Wales on the Isles of Scilly. Around the same time, a messenger arrives from Sir Thomas Fairfax urging the Prince to surrender to Parliament. CHGR |
| 11 | The Scottish commissioners publish their proposals for a settlement, to the annoyance of Parliament which orders the public burning of the pamphlet. HGCW3 |
| 12 | Vice-Admiral Batten arrives off the Isles of Scilly with a fleet of twenty warships and surrounds St Mary's where the Prince of Wales is sheltering. ODNB, CII |
| 13 | Fairfax occupies Exeter, then marches for Barnstaple. HGCW3 |
| Batten's fleet scattered in a storm. CII | |
| 14 | Colonel Whitley surrenders Aberystwyth in Cardiganshire to Colonel Rice Powell after a siege of several months. NUS |
| 15 | The Scottish commissioners with the army at Newark insist that King Charles must agree to grant Presbyterian church government. HGCW3 |
| 16 | The Prince of Wales and his advisers escape to Jersey. CII |
| 17 | The House of Commons issues a counter-declaration to the proposals published by the Scots in which it is stressed that the Presbyterian church is to be subservient to Parliament and that moderate toleration of the Independent sects is to be allowed. HGCW3 |
| 20 | Barnstaple surrenders to Fairfax. HGCW3 |
| Dunster Castle in Somerset surrenders to Colonel Blake. HGCW3 | |
| 23 | Cromwell takes up his seat in the Westminster Parliament and receives the thanks of the House for his services. HGCW3 |
| Surrender of St Michael's Mount in Cornwall to Colonel Hammond. The Duke of Hamilton liberated. TCG, HGCW3 | |
| 27 | King Charles flees from Oxford disguised as a servant as the New Model Army approaches the city. HGCW3 |
| Lord Digby arrives on Jersey hoping to persuade the Prince of Wales to lead an attack on England from Ireland. CII | |
| 29 | After raising a new force in the Highlands, the Marquis of Montrose besieges Inverness. SA |
May
| 3 | Oxford besieged by the New Model Army. Source: TCW |
| 5 | King Charles surrenders to the Scottish army at Southwell, near Newark. HGCW3 |
| 6 | The King orders the surrender of Newark to the Scots. HGCW3 |
| The House of Commons votes that the disposal of the King is a matter for the English Parliament only and orders that he should be taken to Warwick Castle, though the Lords do not support the proposal. HGCW3 | |
| 7 | The Scottish army marches north from Newark with the King. HGCW3 |
| 8 | The Marquis of Montrose abandons the siege of Inverness at the approach of Covenanter forces under Major-General Middleton. SA |
| 9 | Banbury Castle near Oxford surrenders to Colonel Whalley. HGCW3 |
| 11 | General Fairfax summons Sir Thomas Glemham, governor of Oxford, to surrender. HGCW3 |
| 13 | The Scottish army arrives at Newcastle where the King is held in semi-captivity. HGCW3 |
| 14 | The Royalist Marquis of Huntly seizes Aberdeen but abandons it when he learns that Major-General Middleton's forces are returning to the region. TCW |
| 15 | The King's Privy Council at Oxford begins negotiations for surrender. HGCW3 |
| 18-19 | The King writes to both Houses of Parliament, the City of London and the Committee of Estates in Edinburgh apparently conceding that he is prepared to accept a Presbyterian settlement. HGCW3 |
| 19 | The House of Commons votes that the Scottish army is no longer needed and that it should be paid off and disbanded; the Presbyterian majority in the House of Lords prevents a crisis by declining to accept the vote. RCRS |
| 21 | Parliamentarians besiege Worcester. TCW |
| 23 | Marchamont Nedham, editor of the Parliamentarian newsbook Mercurius Britanicus, imprisoned by order of the House of Lords after criticising the King's motives for his apparent reconciliation with the Scots (released on bail 4 June). DNB |
| 28 | King Charles sends Jean de Montereul to France as his agent to plead for military help from Cardinal Mazarin. HGCW3 |
| 29 | The Marquis of Argyll attends the King at Newcastle and urges him to sign the Covenant. ODNB |
| The King orders Montrose to disband his forces and to leave Scotland. HGCW3 | |
| 31 | Owen Roe O'Neill's newly-mustered Ulster army marches north from the hill of Gallanagh near Lough Sheelin. IB |
June
| 4 | Lord Byron leaves Caernarfon and goes into exile. Source: ODNB |
| The Confederate Ulster army camped at Benburb; British forces advance from Armagh. IB | |
| 5 | Battle of Benburb: Irish Confederates under Owen Roe O'Neill defeat Major-General Robert Monro's British forces. IB |
| 7 | O'Neill advances towards Clones, forcing the Lagan army to retreat north to Londonderry and Enniskillen. IB |
| 8 | Intercepted letters read in Parliament revealing the extent of the King's secret negotiations with the Scots, to the embarrassment of Scottish leaders. Details of Royalist negotiations in France and Ireland also revealed. RCRS |
| 10 | John Lilburne summoned to appear before the House of Lords to answer for his criticisms of the Earl of Manchester. HGCW3 |
| 11 | The King writes to both Houses attempting to open peace negotiations directly with Parliament. HGCW3 |
| The King is obliged by the Scots to order the Marquis of Ormond to abandon his negotiations with the Irish Confederates, though he is aware that a treaty has already been concluded. HGCW3 | |
| Lilburne denies the authority of the House of Lords and is committed to Newgate Prison for contempt. HGCW3 | |
| 14 | Surrender of Anglesey to Welsh Parliamentarians. TCG |
| Embarrassed by the revelation of secret negotiations with the King, the Committee of Estates orders the Scottish commissioners in London to accept any proposals put forward by the English Parliament in the interests of achieving peace. RCRS | |
| 15 | The King renews his order for Montrose to disband his forces in Scotland, but Montrose demands guarantees from the Covenanters for the safety of his men. RCRS |
| The Marquis of Argyll leaves Newcastle for London to participate in peace negotiations. ODNB | |
| Marriage of Henry Ireton to Bridget Cromwell at Fairfax's headquarters before Oxford. HGCW3 | |
| 16 | Mutiny among Royalist soldiers defending Oxford. HGCW3 |
| 17 | The Committee of Estates authorises Major-General Middleton to open negotiations with the Marquis of Montrose. RCRS |
| 20 | Articles of capitulation signed at Oxford. HGCW3 |
| 24 | Surrender of Oxford. Ending of the English Civil War. Prince Rupert and Prince Maurice leave the country under terms. James, Duke of York, a prisoner of Parliament. HGCW3 |
| 25 | The Marquis of Argyll addresses representatives of both Houses at Westminster. On behalf of Scotland he accepts the peace proposals put forward by Parliament to be presented to the King and attempts to smooth the way for the acceptance of a Presbyterian religious settlement in England. HGCW3 |
| 26 | The Prince of Wales leaves Jersey and goes to join Queen Henrietta Maria in France against the wishes of his advisers Sir Edward Hyde, Lord Hopton and Lord Capel. HGCW3 |
July
| (First week of July) William Walwyn and Richard Overton publish the Remonstrance of Many Thousand Citizens in London. Source: ODNB | |
| 4 | Lord Digby joins the Marquis of Ormond in Ireland with instructions that he is to obey commands from the Queen or the Prince of Wales while the King is a virtual prisoner. HGCW3 |
| 10 | Roscommon Castle surrenders to Irish Confederates commanded by General Preston. HGCW3 |
| 11 | John Lilburne sentenced to imprisonment in the Tower, barred from holding civil or military office and fined two thousand pounds for his criticism of the Earl of Manchester and his repudiation of the authority of the House of Lords. HGCW3 |
| 12 | Bunratty Castle in County Clare surrenders to the Confederates. CCW |
| 13 | Parliament's peace proposals, known as the Newcastle Propositions, despatched to the King under the charge of two members of the House of Lords and four members of the Commons. HGCW3 |
| 20 | King Charles writes to the Earl of Glamorgan encouraging him to continue his secret negotiations for an Irish army. HGCW3 |
| 22 | Surrender of Worcester to Colonel Rainsborough. HGCW3, ODNB |
| The Marquis of Montrose agrees terms with Major-General John Middleton at the Water of Isla in Forfarshire. ODNB | |
| 29 | The Marquis of Ormond declares before the Privy Council in Dublin that his authority is sufficient for him to act in the King's name and that the Ormond Peace should be proclaimed without the King's direct command. HGCW3 |
| 30 | Proclamation of the First Ormond Peace in Dublin. CCW, HGCW3 |
| Montrose disbands his forces at Rattray near Blairgowrie. SA | |
| Parliament's commissioners arrive in Newcastle to negotiate with the King. HGCW3 | |
August
| 1 | In an evasive reply to the Newcastle Propositions, the King asks permission to come to London to discuss them in greater detail, which Parliament refuses. Source: HGCW3 |
| 3 | The Marquis of Ormond arrives at Kilkenny, where the Supreme Council relinquishes its power to him in accordance with the Ormond Peace. CCW |
| 4 | Parliament condemns An Alarum to the House of Lords by Richard Overton. ODNB |
| 6 | The papal nuncio Archbishop Rinuccini convenes a synod at Waterford to discuss the implications of the Ormond Peace. CCW |
| 11 | The Leveller Richard Overton arrested by order of Parliament. ODNB |
| 12 | The King's reply to the Newcastle Propositions read in the House of Lords. The Scottish commissioners offer to withdraw the Army of the Covenant from England in exchange for payment of their expenses. The fate of the King to be decided by further discussion between Scotland and England. HGCW3 |
| Archbishop Rinuccini and the Catholic clergy of Ireland denounce the Ormond Peace and declare that Confederates who accept it have broken the Oath of Association. CCW, TCW | |
| 14 | Parliament votes to pay the Scots £100,000. The Scots estimate their total expenses to be close to two million, but they would be content with £500,000. Extensive haggling begins. HGCW3 |
| 17 | Surrender of Pendennis Castle in Cornwall. TCW |
| The clergy at Waterford threaten to lay an interdict on every town that allows the Ormond Peace to be proclaimed. Confederate troops declare their opposition to the Peace. HGCW3 | |
| 19 | Surrender of Raglan Castle in Monmouthshire to Colonel Morgan. HGCW3, ODNB |
| 24 | Surrender of Flint Castle in north Wales. HGCW3 |
| 26 | The Irish clergy authorise the refusal of taxes to the Supreme Council. TCK |
| 28 | Archbishop Rinuccini recalls Owen Roe O'Neill and the Ulster army to Kilkenny. CCW |
| 31 | The Marquis of Ormond, accompanied by Lords Digby and Clanricarde arrives at Killkenny seeking support for the Ormond Peace. HGCW3 |
September
| 1 | Parliament and the Scots agree on a sum of £400,000 to be paid in reparation. Half is to be paid before the Scottish army leaves England, the remainder to be paid in instalments at fixed intervals. Source: HGCW3 |
| Archbishop Rinuccini and the Waterford synod pronounce a sentence of excommunication on all those in favour of the Ormond Peace. TCW | |
| 3 | The Marquis of Montrose leaves Scotland for Norway. RCRS |
| 4 | The Committee of Estates sends the Duke of Hamilton and a delegation of commissioners to the King in a further attempt to persuade him to accept the Newcastle Propositions. HGCW3 |
| 10 | The Marquis of Ormond summons a general assembly of the Irish nobility at Cashel but he is refused admittance to Cashel and Clonmel. HGCW3 |
| 14 | Ormond returns to Dublin. HGCW3 |
| Death of the Earl of Essex. DNB | |
| 18 | Archbishop Rinuccini arrives in Kilkenny at the head of an armed force; leaders of the Supreme Council arrested and Ormond's treaty declared to be void. TCW |
| 24 | The Westminster Assembly completes the first nineteen chapters of the Confession of Faith and sends them to the House of Commons. WWA |
| 26 | Archbishop Rinuccini and the Catholic clergy appoint a new Supreme Council at Killkenny. TCW |
| The Marquis of Ormond sends commissioners to Westminster to ask for help in the defence of Dublin. He offers to step down from office if required. HGCW3 | |
| 28 | Archbishop Rinuccini recognises the Earl of Glamorgan as the King's Lord Lieutenant in Ireland in place of Ormond. HGCW3 |
| (End of September) The combined Confederate armies of Leinster and Ulster march on Dublin. CCW | |
October
| 1 | The Westminster Assembly sends a copy of the first nineteen chapters of the Confession of Faith to the House of Lords. Source: WWA |
| 7 | Parliament votes that the New Model Army should be kept in pay for another six months. HGCW3 |
| 8 | O'Neill's Ulster army at Kilkea in south Kildare where it is joined by elements of the Leinster army including the Confederate artillery train. CCW |
| 9 | Parliamentary ordinance abolishes Episcopacy and authorises the sale of bishops' lands. The House of Commons orders the printing of the first nineteen chapters of the new Confession of Faith. HGCW3, WWA |
| 12 | Parliament asks the Marquis of Ormond to step down as Lord Lieutenant of Ireland. HGCW3 |
| (Mid-October) The Marquis of Ormond orders the destruction of all crops, mills and bridges within an eight-mile radius of Dublin. CCW | |
| 22 | Disbandment of the Western Association army commanded by the Presbyterian Edward Massie. HGCW3 |
| 26 | Surrender of Denbigh Castle in north Wales. HGCW3 |
November
| 2 | The Ulster and Leinster armies join forces near Naas. With the approval of the Supreme Council, the generals O'Neill and Preston continue negotiations with Ormond. Source: CCW |
| 3 | The Scottish Parliament assembles in Edinburgh. RCRS |
| 9 | The Ulster and Leinster armies advance to Leixlip and Lucan, nine miles west of Dublin. CCW |
| 11 | The Marquis of Clanricarde approaches General Preston and attempts to persuade him to bring the Leinster army over to Ormond. TCK |
| 14 | Commissioners from the English Parliament arrive in Dublin and open negotiations with Ormond. TCK |
| 15 | The Confederate Supreme Council orders the Ulster and Leinster armies to abandon the attempt to take Dublin and revert to a strategy of raiding British territory. CCW |
| 23 | Negotiations between Ormond and the parliamentary commissioners break down. TCK |
| 28 | The House of Commons asserts the claim of the English Parliament to control of the King's person. HGCW3 |
December
| 4 | The remaining fourteen chapters of the Confession of Faith completed; the Westminster Assembly resolves to present the whole Confession to both Houses of Parliament. Source: WWA |
| 10 | The House of Commons orders the printing of the completed Confession of Faith. WWA |
| 15 | Final details of the payment and withdrawal from England of the Scottish army agreed between Parliament and the Scottish commissioners. Scotland to receive a total of £400,000. HGCW3 |
| 16 | Parliament pays over a token £12,000 towards the departure of the Scottish army. HGCW3 |
| 18 | Surrender of Conway Castle in Wales. HGCW3 |
| 20 | King Charles issues a second evasive answer to the Newcastle Propositions. RCRS |
| 22 | The Confederate General Preston breaks off negotiations with the Marquis of Ormond and Lord Digby for an alliance with the English Royalists. HGCW4 |
| 24 | The Scottish Parliament declares that the King will not be allowed to come to Scotland or have any involvement in the settlement of the government of Scotland unless he accepts the Newcastle Propositions. RCRS |
| 31 | The Lords and Commons agree that the King should be taken to Holmby House in Northamptonshire while the English and Scottish Parliaments discuss how to proceed. HGCW3 |
Sources:
AOI: Acts and Ordinances of the Interregnum, C.H. Firth and R.S. Raitt (eds), 1911
ATKA: All the King's Armies, Stuart Reid (Staplehurst 1998)
CCW: Confederate Catholics at War 1641-49, Pádraig Lenihan (Cork 2001)
CHGR: Clarendon's History of the Great Rebellion, Roger Lockyer (ed) (Folio Society 1967)
CII: Charles II, King of England, Scotland and Ireland, Ronald Hutton (Oxford 1989)
DNB: Dictionary of National Biography
HGCW3: History of the Great Civil War vol. iii, S.R. Gardiner (London 1889)
HGCW4: History of the Great Civil War vol. iv, S.R. Gardiner (London 1894)
HCJ: House of Commons Journal www.british-history.ac.uk
HLJ: House of Lords Journal www.british-history.ac.uk
IB: Irish Battles, G.A. Hayes-MacCoy (London 1969)
NUS: A Nation Under Siege, the civil war in Wales 1642-48, Peter Gaunt (HMSO 1991)
ODNB: Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
RCRS: Revolution and Counter-Revolution in Scotland 1644-1651, David Stevenson (Newton Abbott 1977)
SA: Scots Armies of the English Civil Wars, Stuart Reid (Osprey 1999)
SGCW: Sieges of the Great Civil War, P. Young and W. Emberton (London 1978)
TCG: The Cromwellian Gazetteer, Peter Gaunt (Stroud 1987)
TGCW: The Great Civil War, A.H. Burne and P. Young (London 1958)
TCK: The Confederation of Kilkenny, C.P. Meehan (Dublin 1846)
TCW: The Civil Wars, a military history of England, Scotland & Ireland 1638-60, Kenyon and Ohlmeyer (eds) (Oxford 1998)
WWA: The Work of the Westminster Assembly, John Murray (Presbyterian Guardian 1942)
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