August 21 – September 2, 1644 · West Theater
August 21 – September 2, 1644
King Charles I cornered the Earl of Essex's Parliamentary army in Cornwall, surrounding it in the Fowey River estuary area. Essex escaped by boat to Plymouth, leaving his infantry to surrender — approximately 6,000 men marched out stripped of their weapons and equipment. The Parliamentary cavalry fought their way out through Royalist lines. It was the worst Parliamentary defeat of the war.
Commanders