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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
death_n	die_v	good_a	let_v	4,185	5	4.2812	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A89795	A narration of the expedition to Taunton; the raising the siege before it, and the condition of our forces, and the enemies, at this present in the west. / Sent from a commander in the army, and dated at Chard, May 18. 1645. Published by authoritie.	Commander in the army.	1645 (1645)	Wing N158; Thomason E285_10; ESTC R200069	5,492	8

A NARRATION OF THE EXPEDITION TO TAUNTON The Raising the Siege before it and the Condition of our Forces and the Enemies at this present in the WEST Sent from a Commander in the Army and dated at Chard May 18. 1645. Published by Authoritie LONDON Printed for Samuel Gellibrand May 23. 1645. A brief Narration of the relief of TAVNTON GOOD Friend would I could perform my promise with as much profit to you as delight to my self But in brief Since my Apologie would but stigmatize as much your candid construction as be a further declaration of my own weaknesse you shall understand by these few lines our progresse from Stanes our first advance on the last of April by severall stages untill we came to our generall Randevouz at Newbery-Wash May the 4. From whence by twelve or one of the clock we advanced toward Andover and in the Villages adjacent with seven Regiments of Foot to the number I suppose of 10 or 12000. Foot for the Horse most of them not then as yet come in I would write no more then what I am able to testifie either by my own or from the hands of good Authors From Andover on May the fifth we drew up our severall Regiments a mile from the Town and staid two or three hours called a Councell of War where were cast five or six one a Renegado and four more authours of the mutiny in Kent who cast dice for their lives one of them and the Renegado a Parsons son were executed in a Village on a Tree in the High-way in Terrorem the Parsons son as was said in the same Town where he was born both of them died as they lived like Sotts But how the great Judge past his sentence on them I have not to say Next day May the sixth was Proclamation made That it should be death for any man to plunder at which our old Horse-Dragoons somewhat guilty made answer If the Parliament would pay truely let them hang duely Which hath caused so much good order in our march that to my best inquiry I have not heard of any man to complain to loose an Ox Sheep Lamb Hen no nor an Egg save in our hard march hot-dayes vacancy of Towns or Houses over the Plain made them inordinately desire drink or covet for water in the Villages we past To give you the particular of our severall Stages would be as difficult as needlesse Since for the most part we took Barnes and Hedges for our nights repose after our hard and hot-dayes marches untill within the compasse of eight dayes We came on the second of this instant within the sight of Taunton where upon the Hills when we came within ten miles of it having the advantage of ground we gave them a peal of our Artillary ten of our peeces being discharged to give them notice of our approach which yet did them no good by reason that on the Thursday before which was the eighth of this instant Moneth the enemy drew out a party of their Horse and Foot with some peeces of Cannon and skirmisht in sight of the Town but onely with Powder in fine they made the Town beleeve that Fairfax who was coming to relieve them was there beaten hoping by this stratagem to have drawn a party of them out to their succour and to have cut them off by an Ambuscado But God withheld them they kept close to their works and when the enemy returned they fell to firing of the Town and told them you Roundheaded Rogues you look for relief but we have relieved them and Goring is coming on and we will not leave one House standing if you will not yeeld then they played with their Granadoes and Morter peeces so hot and so long that they fired the Town So that I beleeve the one half of the Town which was two long streets of the Subburbs be both burnt down to the ground and the mean while they stormed most furiously but they met with a Gallant Commander in chief Colonell Blake and his stout Souldiers that gave them such showres of lead that from good hands it is reported 1200. at least there sacrificed their filthy lives and left their carkasses The Town in all from the beginning to the raising of the siedge hath lost 200. men On Friday they had work enough to bury their dead and bethink themselves of saving their living Hopton sent a parly to resign the Town upon conditions Blake returned him answer he had four pair of Boots yet left and he would eat three pair of them before he should have it On Saturday we came to Chard within eight miles of it on the Lords-day orders were given to beat our Drums by day light and accordingly drew up our whole Army Horse and Foot and allthough by command from the Parliament our noble General Fairfax Generall Major Skippon and that Regiment which formerly was Barkeleys were commanded back when we were at Blandford which was a sad breakfast to most both Officers and Souldiers were after sad salutes and watery eyes like the parting of Husbands from their Wives and dear friends yet we were a thinking of nothing more then resolution to obey and action to perform that great work for the which we were sent with four Regiments of Foot to wit Colonell Welden who as eldest Colonell a gallant wise and brave Gentleman Commander in cheif Colonell Fortescu Colonell Floyd and Colonell Englesby Regiments and as we past came in for our recrute and met us about Dorchester six Companies of the Skie-colour Regiment of Colonell Morrels and on Saturday as many Colours from Lime those old brave Blades We had a fine Body of Horse of some 1500. or 2000. and 4. or 5000 Foot where I never beheld men of all sorts of more promising courage resolution all as one man sweetly combined against the common enemies of mankinde such love amongst themselves Horse and Foot One passage I will relate though I hate prolixitie a brave gallant Fellow but a common Souldier cries out to the Horse as they marcht by O brave Horse go on shew them no more mercy then to a Louse Remember Cornwall To whom a brave Captain of the Plimmouth Troop replied O Fellow Souldier let us remember our God and not fight in malice but do his work and leave the successe to him and you shall see through Gods mercy we will stand close to you O you gallant Foot but I may not be tedious yet surely braver courage was never seen then even then when a party of the enemies Horse and ours faced each other our Forlorn Horses meet and exchange some Pistols put them quickly to the Tryall of their heels but after we were drawn up into Battalia expecting when to be charged and made choice of our ground no enemy appeared we went on to the very Brow of the Hill in Battalia and saw betwixt that and Taunton nothing but inclosures not minding to adventure all our Horse into a pitfold the

Lanes in many places from thence we could not march above four or six in brest The Agitant of the Horse surely a gallant man a Dutchman and some eight or nine others fall down to Pitmister and without his Dublet onely in his Shirt incountered a Troop of the enemies Horse being as is said Hoptons Lifeguard for they were commanded by his own Cornet one Brown an Irish man who furiously charges them and cries why do you not fier you cowardly Rogues spent one Pistoll charged them thorow and killed three or four with his own hands his Sword being all bloody up to the very Hilt they all run as fast as they could the Dutch Agitant wheels off and retreats lost not one man in the first Rout the Cornet and some twelve more faced about and on them the Agitant charges a fresh having killed two or three of them took four of them prisoners rides up to the Cornet and cries quarter he denies it but sets Spurs to his Horse to run away but he was soon overtaken by his Pistoll which ended his journey by a brace of Bullets in his back fell from his Horse he brought him of alive but he soon died and being demanded why he refused quarter made answer He could not in honour desire it seeing so many to be beaten and run away from so few But questionlesse the man thought of his Nation and dreading a halter chose a more honourable death All this while we have not one word from the Town whereupon we gave them two or three peeces of Cannon but they were cautious and perswaded we were the enemy who indeavoured to draw them forth for so the enemy suggested that Goring was come to relieve them and that their Rear might not be discovered toward Evening we sent a party of Horse who approacht to their very Works the enemy having drawn off their Guns and their Rear upon their march the Town never before having any notice of our Forces that they could confide on as friends there about six of the clock fell out upon their Rear killed some and took other prisoners We marcht with our whole Body to Pitmister and then within two miles of the Town took up our quarters in the Fields and on Munday morning our Colonels go to Taunton give order for our whole Army to retreat back to Chard where we quartered on Saturday and the fourteenth is the first dayes rest the Army hath had from our first dayes motion Westward which if you consider of is one of the greatest expeditions and gallantest marches that ever this unhappy War produced if you do but waigh the length of the way the incumbrances that attend an Army with their Train and Artillary many new Souldiers hard quarters exceeding cold nights and as hot dayes Let God have the Glory our Colonells and Officers the praise who of my knowledge have marcht two or three dayes on Foot and never took their Horse but still in the head of their Regiments gave good incouragement by their own examples and then God so ordering that not a man of us miscarried for my own Company I can say not a man sick after we left Newbery and few or none went from us but all stick close valiantly resolved to fight and die yet the Town was relieved without the losse of any mans blood and a terrour strook into the hearts of their enemies We may say God fought for us and of him we will make our boast all the day long To whom be all the praise who lives for ever and ever Amen Amen Thus far have I brought you to our own Armies expedition but now for the enemy one word and I have done though neither this nor future ages will beleeve nor should I my self who have formerly known these parts had not my own eies beheld it To see one or two Houses ruined in a place had been no great matter but all the way we marcht from Okingham to Taunton no place especially where Religion was most eminent but you might track the divell by his cloven Foot Such devastation of Houses nay depopulations in many places and those Fields Pastures Plains formerly beautified and inricht with Flocks and Herds You may passe ten miles and scarce discern any thing rich Pastures but no Cattle left to eat them You would suppose the great Turk his Janisaries and Armies rather then their Native Prince his Souldiers had been there Who would think a King who was so tender hearted as to charge Hotham so deeply in his Answer to the Parliament declared 1642. for drowning the Medows about Hull and was formerly so carefull for the good of the Subjects disabusing by the severall Manafactures of Sope Cards Dice Pinnes c. should now lay all desolate where he hath any footing O that those Counties of Kent Essex c. which complain of heavy Taxes would compare their Estates with the forlorn West His Majestie complains that the Flowers of his Crown the Prerogative Royall should be infringed and yet the Jewels of the ancient Crown fold to buy us such an unheard off misery by Walloons Irish French Dutch c. If all this will not please the Queen the Papists Jesuites yea the divell himself I know not how they can studie more to grive man and provoke God Let them palliat the Prince and tell him he is to give an account to none but God yet sure that will be found an hard reckoning at last A sad maxime that no way so sure to settle the King in his Throne as to Pave its way thorow the blood and ruine of his people and Kingdom We have heard of three or four Kings in four or five yeers and yet the Kingdom to flourish but we never heard that one King should destroy two or three Kingdoms rather then suffer the least affront or the least twing of the Toothack and cursed be those Councels of the Rabbies in Oxford and divels of Rome who so perswade If this be Regall Government I know not what to call Tyranny yet King James though none of the best Princes nor worst Politician hath written Basilicon Doron and shrewdly descanted on this Theam How ever Solomon could judge of the true mother by her affection rather to save her childes life though she lost her childe formerly Good Princes have been the sheilds and saviours not destroyers of their Countreys If the King should miscarry which we abhor to think or desire yet we may have many Kings hereafter But if three Kingdoms perish what is Monarchy without Majestie and what Majestie can be upheld with beggery misery and slavery If this be the Protestant Religion it s a strange one yet so it must be called yea Hopton when he saw he could not take yet cruelly burnt that distressed Town and when it was all in flames called and pulled out by the ears those distressed people adjacent to look and behold the flames with execration and scorn yet after he had two preachments no doubt but to give God thanks like the Duke de Alva who before Dinner gave a good Grace to his meat thanking God for his buchery of so many thousands in a few yeers This is that Hopton formerly accounted Religious Honest Noble so degenerate by the Councell of Tobi Matthews and old Cottington and his Uncle Sir Arthur Hopton Spanish compliance and all grounded upon his own beggerly estate so pitifully torn and out at heels that he is become the monster of mankinde In brief the poor people come from all parts rejoycing praising God and thanking us for delivering them from those Beasts of prey who before this time had no Trade Market Commerce or society with each others Now their faces begin to shut out the former wrinkles and smilingly tell us we have shrewdly galled the Cabballers shower and shower they be all ago The Lord keep them as safe as we have left them for we have orders to march away Eastward this day having had not one dayes rest this fourteen dayes before this time And now our men are cheerfully marching and we hope you are praying that you may never taste that in London which we have seen in the West O if Kent did know their happinesse they would not be so mad to purchase such misery at so dear a rate however they blesse themselves with hopes of their King these poor souls have found they have King enough Sir I have no more to say but desire three or four words how things go at Scarborough and in the North. Chard 18. of May 1645. FINIS