Campaign
Taunton had been captured by the Parliamentarian army under the Earl of Essex in June 1644. After Essex's army was forced to surrender at Lostwithiel in Cornwall in September, the Royalists maintained a Siege of Taunton, although the town was briefly relieved by Sir William Waller in late November.
When determining strategy for 1645, King Charles I had despatched George, Lord Goring, the Lieutenant General of the Horse (cavalry), to the West Country along with orders to retake Taunton and other Parliamentarian outposts in the area. Although Goring briefly rejoined the King's main 'Oxford Army', tensions between him and Prince Rupert, the King's Captain General and chief adviser, resulted in Goring's force returning to the West.
Parliament had meanwhile sent a substantial detachment of one cavalry regiment and four infantry regiments from their New Model Army to relieve Taunton. They raised the siege on 11 May 1645, but were themselves besieged by Goring's returning army (although there was no longer any danger of the Royalists storming the town).
On 14 June 1645, the main body of the New Model Army under Sir Thomas Fairfax, with Oliver Cromwell as Lieutenant General of the Horse, won the decisive Battle of Naseby, destroying King Charles's main army. After the Royalist garrison of Leicester surrendered four days later, the New Model Army was free to march to the relief of Taunton.
The Army marched first south and then west, keeping near the coast so as to keep touch with Parliament's navy. On 4 July it reached Beaminster, where Fairfax learned that Goring had raised the siege and was retreating towards the Royalist stronghold at Bridgwater. To cover the retreat of the baggage, Goring's army was spread over a front of 12 miles (19 km) along the north of the River Yeo, from Langport to Yeovil. The Royalists were outnumbered by Fairfax's army, and their discipline was poor, mainly because a succession of lax Royalist commanders had allowed their men too much license to pillage (which also alienated many of the local people).
Fairfax was joined by the New Model detachment from Taunton, under Colonel Ralph Weldon, and started in pursuit. On 8 July, Fairfax captured Yeovil and crossed to the north side of the River Yeo. He sent another Parliamentarian force (part of the Army of the "Western Association" under Major General Edward Massie) to deal with an attempted diversion in the direction of Taunton by some of Goring's cavalry under George Porter, a notoriously unreliable officer. Porter's men failed to post proper sentries and outposts, and were taken by surprise by Massey and destroyed at Isle Abbots in the early hours of 9 July.
Fairfax had meanwhile advanced westward, and encountered Goring's main position at Langport late on 9 July.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Langport
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