History of Chester - Tudor and Stuart Times

Tudor and Stuart Times

Originally the port was located to the north of the Watergate just below the city wall. To the south of the Watergate the Roodee existed in smaller form than today. The map sequence shows the river moving its course from against the wall north of the Watergate out to its current location between 1580 and approximately the 1830s. By the first edition OS map the river had reached its current position. However, it is apparent that some rivulets and inlets have been lost since, although some have been identified in archaeological work on the site of the former House of Industry and Gasworks.

In September 1642 tension between King Charles I and Parliament was growing and civil war looked like it might be a possibility. Charles visited Chester and ensured the election of pro-royalist mayor William Ince. In March 1643, leading Chester royalist Francis Gamull was commissioned to raise a regiment of foot to defend the city. Colonel Robert Ellis, an experienced soldier, was asked to construct outer defences to the city. A series of earthworks were constructed around the city from Boughton through Hoole and Newton to the Water Tower. The earthworks consisted of a ditch and mud wall with a series of 'mounts' or gun platforms were added along with turnpike gates on incoming roads.

Parliamentary forces began to lay siege to the city of Chester. In the early morning of the 20th of September 1645, parliamentary forces overran the eastern earthworks at the Boughton turnpike and captured the east suburbs of the city up to the walls. They began to construct cannon batteries within range of the city.

A cannon battery placed in St John's churchyard breached the city walls on the 22nd of September near the Roman amphitheatre. A hole some 25 feet wide was made with thirty-two cannon shots. Following the breach an attempt was made to storm the city, but the defenders repelled the charge. According to an account at the time by Lord Byron, the breach was stopped up with woolpacks and featherbeds from all parts of the town. One can see to this day the repairs made to the wall, the section of which is next to the Roman Gardens (see photo below).

On the evening of the 23rd of September, 1645, King Charles I entered the City of Chester with 600 men via the Old Dee Bridge. He stayed the night at Sir Francis Gamull's house on Bridge Street. Also during the evening Sydenham Poyntz, a Parliamentarian in pursuit of the King's forces, entered Whitchurch (15 miles to the south) with 3000 horse. A battle looked likely.

Later that evening the King became aware of Poyntz's movements, as a messenger was intercepted at Holt. A decision was made to send out Lord Gerrard's horse troops and five hundred foot soldiers in the morning.

On the morning of the 24 September 1645 the Battle of Rowton Heath occurred in moor land called Miller's Heath near the village of Rowton, two miles to the south east of Chester on the modern A41 road. Parliamentary forces crushed the Royalist loyal Cavaliers. The city was under siege at the time by the Parliamentary army. Royalist forces were coming to lift the siege and join up with Scottish allies, but were intercepted by Parliamentary Forces outside Chester.

The engagement lasted all day starting at 9am and continued throughout the day in three stages as Royalists were pushed back towards the City and its walls. The battle was mainly conducted on horseback with musketeers supporting the cavalry's flanks. As the battle went on into the afternoon, more troops were ordered to march out of the Northgate in support of the Royalists on Rowton Moor, but this decision was too late—the battle was already lost.

As the fighting reached the suburbs it was watched by King Charles I and Sir Francis Gamull from Chester's Phoenix Tower (now also called King Charles' Tower) on the city walls. The King quickly withdrew to the Cathedral tower, but even this was not safe, as the captain standing next to him was shot in the head by musket fire from the victorious Parliamentarians who took residence in the St John's Church tower.

The battle cost the lives of 600 Royalists and an unknown number of Parliamentarians. Among the Royalist dead was Lord Bernard Stuart (1622–1645) Earl of Lichfield, the king's cousin. His portrait is displayed in the National Gallery.

Also slain at the same time was William Lawes (1602–1645) a noted English composer and musician. He was buried in Chester Cathedral without a memorial. He was remembered by the king as the 'Father of Musick' and his portrait as a cavalier hangs in the Faculty of Music at Oxford.

Today there is a small memorial to the battle in the village of Rowton. It consists of a brief history and a battle plan of field at the time.

The next day the king slipped out of Chester and crossed the Old Dee Bridge on route to Denbigh. He left instructions for the city to hold out for 10 days more.

By 1646, after having refused to surrender nine times and with Lord Byron at the head of the city's defences, having only spring water and boiled wheat for lunch — the citizens (17,000) had already eaten their dogs — a treaty was signed. The mills and the waterworks lay in ruins, and not one house from the Eastgate to the middle of Watergate Street had escaped bombardment. When the exultant Puritan forces were let loose on the city, despite the treaty, they destroyed religious icons including the high cross, which was not erected again for over 3rd centuries. In 1646 King Charles I was proclaimed a traitor beside its base.

Worse was to come. The starved citizens then bore the full brunt of the plague, with 2099 people dead from the summer of 1647 to the following spring.

In 1643 Sir Richard Grosvenor petitioned the Assembly to enclose the Row which ran through the front of his town house on Lower Bridge Street, and his request was granted. At the time he was employed in the Royalist army as a Commander. Some speculate that perhaps the room was being used to organise the Royalist Resistance in Chester. In the years after the war, people further down the street also asked for the Row to be enclosed. Eventually Lower Bridge Street lost its rows. The only trace can now be found at number 11.

Most of Chester was rebuilt after the Civil War. There are many fine half-timbered houses dating from this time still standing today.

Chester port declined with most of the ships going from the colonies now going to Liverpool, although it was still the major port of passenger embarkation for Ireland until the early 19th century. A new port was established on the Wirral called Parkgate, but this also fell out of use. The road to the port of Chester was called the 'Great Irish Road' and ran from Bristol to Chester.