WHY DID PARLIAMENT WIN THE CIVIL WARS? THE EARLY BATTLES: The early battles of the Civil War were very disorganized. No one expected the war to last long and so nobody had thought about how to feed and pay a large army. Many of the Parliamentary commanders like the Earl of Essex were experienced commanders, but didn’t really believe that they could win. Lord Manchester said: “If we beat the King ninety-nine times, he will still be our King and we his subjects, but if he beats us but once, we will all be hanged!”

The leaders – The Royalists After losing the Battle of Edge Hill in 1642, Charles gave up command of the Royalist armies to his nephew, the dashing Prince Rupert. Although he was only 23, Prince Rupert had fought in wars in Germany and was an experienced cavalry commander. Rupert might have had royal blood and some experience, but he often made poor decisions and allowed his cavalry to charge out of control. Prince Rupert

The Leaders – Parliamentarians. Later on in the war, Parliament decided that they had to appoint some new commanders. Sir Thomas Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell were put in charge of the Parliamentarian army. Before the war Cromwell had been a country landowner and farmer. However, he led several very daring attacks which made him famous and he was soon promoted. In 1645, they helped to form the New Model Army from the existing Parliamentary forces. The New Model Army was: well disciplined highly motivated regularly paid well equipped. The Royalists on the other hand began running out of money, so many of their soldiers were poorly equipped, paid and trained. Oliver Cromwell

Fighting For A Cause At the start of the war, Charles had the advantage as most of his supporters were rich and owned their own horses and guns. These men were keen, but sometimes not very talented. Some say that they might have been nobility, but they didn’t have much ability. Cromwell promoted and recruited men who had ability and believed in what they were fighting for. He wasn’t afraid to give some of the top jobs to ordinary men. He preferred men who shared his strict Puritan views and believed that God was on their side

The Battle of Naseby 1645 In 1645, in a field in Northamptonshire near the small village of Naseby, the Royalists and the Parliamentarians met for a final battle. Sir Thomas Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell commanded the New Model Army, who had defeated another Royalist army the previous year at Marston Moor near York. By the end of the Battle of Naseby, the Royalist Army had been completely wiped out. It was a turning point in the war. Shortly afterwards, Charles I surrendered to the Scots.