The true story of Lancashire’s Game of Thrones-style bloody battles

History is a long compilation of stories, tales, myths and legends, all ending in the same way: death.

Battles, war, usurpation and bloodshed are all prominent features of our past and the north west is no exception.

Some of Britain’s most prominent and decisive pitched battles have taken place across Lancashire and Cumbria, lands where rebellious Scottish armies would often roam across the border and rivals would stake their claim to England’s throne.

These are the bloodiest battles to take place across both counties, including Oliver Cromwell’s jaunts into Preston, the Jacobite engagement at Penrith, the Scottish invasion of Clitheroe and the American race riots at Bamber Bridge.

Battle of Ormskirk

The English Civil War, which drive a wedge between loyal monarchists and parliamentarians across the UK, witnessed an embarrassing episode for Charles I’s forces (also known as the Cavaliers or the Royalists) at Ormskirk in 1644.

The Royalist forces had just been defeated at the battle of Marston Moor in July and, thoroughly ruffled by their recent engagements, decided to abandon their position at York and retreat across the Pennines.

Ricard, Lord Molyneux and Sir Thomas Tyldesley of the Royalists, ventured into north Lancashire, hoping to find supporters of Charles I who could join their forces.

While they made their recruitment sweep through the county, their numbers swelled to 2,500 but they were soon tracked down by Roundhead Lancastrians under the command of Sir John Meldrum. 

They caught up with the Royalists at Aughton Moor, a hill to the south-west of Ormskirk, on August 20, forcing Charles I’s forces to make a stand.

The battle was short and bloody, the newly formed Royalists were peppered with musket fire and sent scurrying over Aughton Moor as the disciplined soldiers of Oliver Cromwell’s New Model Army routed them. 

Another prominent battle from the English Civil War; the battle at Preston in 1648, effectively ended Charles I as King of England and handed Oliver Cromwell victory in the conflict.

The battle pitted the Duke of Hamilton, ahead of a vast Scottish, royalist force of 20,000 men, against 9,000 soldiers of Cromwell’s New Model Army.

Cromwell’s armies caught up with Hamilton in mid-August, finding the Royalist with his trousers down and his forces strung out along more than a dozen miles of land in Lancashire. The Duke may have had the larger force but they were stretched over the Lancaster Road, through Preston and down towards Wigan, making them weak and disorganised.

In contrast Cromwell’s force was one, unified, able to move and follow instructions with ease. Cromwell crushed the Scottish Duke, killing 2,000 men and taking at least 9,000 captive.

Charles I was never again able to raise enough support to his cause and, within months of the battle, he was tried of high treason and beheaded , ending his reign and making England a republic for the first time ever.

Siege of Carlisle

Cumbria has a long and complicated relationship with its Scottish neighbours and even spent large swathes of the Medieval period under Scottish rule.

In 1315, the famous Scottish rebel King, Robert the Bruce, who sought independence from the English, drove down into England with an army at his back.

He had just enjoyed a famous victory at the Battle of Bannockburn and looked to take lands in Cumbria, which had once been held by his ancestors.

The sources are scant when it comes to the siege but, by all accounts, Robert used several methods to bring down the castle, coming unstuck several times.

Many of his siege ladders were knocked down and his siege tower got stuck in mud on the banks of the River Eden, which previously surrounded all parts of the castle not enclosed within the city walls.

Robert was forced to retreat with heavy losses, putting a stop to his invasion of England.

Battle of Clitheroe

A series of internal wars and baronial disputes, known as The Anarchy, ripped through England during the 12th century. The main dispute centred on King Stephen of England and, his challenger to the throne, Empress Matilda.

It transpired that many key players in European politics had a stake in the outcome of the war, including King David I of Scotland, who sided with his niece Matilda in the conflict.

David was keen to absorb lands in Northumberland into his kingdom and he invaded northern England in January 1138, careful to avoid Stephen’s forces until the monarch was forced to retire south to deal with other, more pressing, issues.

This left David free to cross into Northumberland on April 15 when he besieged Norham Castle. Command of the Scottish armies was then handed over to William Fitz Duncan and, in June 1138, he led a force down to the Bowland Fells near Clitheroe, to fight Stephen’s armies.

Sources are scant for the battle itself but the Scottish met a heavily armoured English force there that were well beaten on the banks of the River Ribble. Galloway soldiers played a key role in the battle. Though lightly armoured, these famous soldiers were renowned for their ferocious charges at the enemy.

The Detroit Race Riots of June 1943 would send shockwaves across the world and spill over into Britain, even coming to the small town of Bamber Bridge.

American troops stationed in Brig engaged in internal fire fights on the night of June 24, after an argument broke out at the famous Ye Olde Hob Inn.

Rumour and confusion caused widespread panic amongst the black American soldiers who feared that they were being targeted causing violent fights to break out between them and the military police.

Troops warned locals to stay in doors as they exchanged gun fire but the darkness ensured that the fighting had quelled by early morning and that there were few casualties.  

One solider, Private William Crossland, was killed whilst seven others were wounded. These events were later known as the Battle of Bamber Bridge.

Clifton Moor Skirmish (Battle of Penrith)

The Jacobite uprising of 1745 saw the exiled Stuart family attempt to return themselves to the throne, after their ancestors (Charles I and Charles II) badly squandered their position as Kings of Britain.

Charles Edward Stuart, grandson of James II, otherwise known as Bonnie Prince Charlie or the Young Pretender, led the uprising in 1745, gathering an army of Scottish loyalists and heading south into Cumbria.

The 24-year-old was marching towards London in the hope that a popular uprising would oust the Hanoverian King, George II, and restore his father as the rightful heir to the throne.

The impending Jacobite invasion had created panic in London and George II’s son, William, Duke of Cumberland, hurried north to suppress the uprising. At Clifton Moor (three miles south of Penrith) the Duke’s army caught up with the rearguard of the Jacobites.

Both sides were unprepared for a proper battle and the confrontation turned into a small scale skirmish. Only a few hundred men were really involved in the fight and less than 30 of them were killed or injured. The dead were buried in the nearby village of Clifton.

It was the last battle between English and Scottish forces to be fought in England.

Siege of Lathom House

Another key battle on the English Civil War, Lathom House was besieged by Parliamentarian forces twice during the course of the conflict; from February to May 1644 and then again in 1645 when it was captured by Oliver Cromwell.

The country house had excellent defence fortification including an embankment, an eight foot trench, thick outer walls and several towers laden with cannon. The Earl of Derby owned the house but left its defence in the care of his wife Charlotte, countess of Derby.

She held Lathom House with just 300 Royalist soldiers, facing off against 2,000 Roundheads. Eventually the first siege was broken by another Royalist army and Charlotte left to join her husband in the Isle of Man, leaving Lathom House in the care of Colonel Edward Rawstorne.

Cromwell’s troops returned to lay siege to Lathom in 1645 and Rawstorne was forced to surrender the house when famine struck his troops and it became clear that no Royalist relief force would be arriving to break the siege.

The Preston Fight

Also known as the Battle of Preston (but fought 70 years after the previous entry) the Preston Fight was part of the first Jacobite Uprising which took place in 1715.

James Francis Edward Stuart (The Old Pretender) had raised an army of Highlanders loyal to the Stuarts, and was bearing down on England, hoping to overthrow the ruling Hanoverian Kings.

Government troops dispatched the Jacobites after two days of fighting in November 1715, ending The Old Pretender’s hopes of making headway in England.

The Jacobite army had swelled to 4,000 men by the time they reached Preston, on the night of November 9 1715. Government troops from Manchester were then sent to confront them.

The Jacobite leader Thomas Forster, made the fatal mistake of withdrawing his troops from a strong defensive position at Ribble Bridge, outside the city, as the the government troops bore down on Preston.

The Jacobites won the first day, scoring heavy casualties against the government soldiers through musket fire from house windows. Dozens of houses were set on fire, in the hope that the Jacobites could be driven out by the flames, and during the night many Highland troops lost their nerve and deserted.

On the morning of Monday, November 14, Forster surrendered, learning that Preston was surrounded by the enemy. More than 1,400 Jacobites were taken prisoner and at least 300 men were killed in the battle.

Not one to keep a cool head, Henry sent raiding troops into Scotland, causing James V to retaliate with an army of his own, which advanced into into northern England.

The English, led by Sir Thomas Wharton, had just 3,000 men but the Scottish became trapped between the English and peat bog about the river which saw their uncoordinated attack come undone.

Historians believe that just 27 people were killed in the battle but some 1,200 Scots were taken prisoner and several Scottish field guns were also captured, putting an end to James V’s foray south.