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formed. Corfe soon surrendered, and received a A.D. 1644.

strong garrison for the parliament; and, for the

better preservation of the place, Sir Anthony

threw a troop of horse, with a body of foot, into Lulworth.

at Abbots

On the 25th of October 1644, he was ap- His exploit pointed commander-in-chief for the county of bury. Dorset; and, with a brigade of horse and foot, which he drew out from the garrisons of Ware'ham, Poole, and Weymouth, he marched to Abbotsbury, a place at that time of importance, situated on the sea-coast. Upon his approach, Colonel Strangeways, who was governor of the town, and had a considerable force, garrisoned his house. Sir Anthony came before it at night, and sent a summons to the colonel, who returned a slighting answer; and the garrison hung out a bloody flag. A party of the garrison having entered into the church, which flanked the house, Sir Anthony ordered a body of musketeers to attack them. After a smart skirmish, they surrendered, and were all made prisoners. Then Sir Anthony sent a second summons, offering under his hand fair quarter to the garrison, which he declared they must not expect if they should oblige him to storm. They resolved to admit of

A.D. 1644. no treaty, and added some expressions of contempt to the second answer. Upon this, Sir Anthony, who had only fire-arms and hand-granadoes, but no cannon for a regular siege, and who was desirous of intimidating other garrisons by the vigour of his proceedings, began to storm the house. The action was very hot during six hours, and he was forced to burn down an outgate to a court before he could get up to the house. His men presently rushed through the fire close to the hall porch, and plied the windows so hard with their muskets, that the enemy durst not appear in the lower rooms; and whilst, with his scaling ladders and granadoes, he attacked the upper apartments, some of his troops wrenched open the windows of the lower with iron bars, and, by firing into it, the house was soon in a flame. He then offered the enemy quarter again, which they thought proper to accept. Notwithstanding the fire, his men immediately fell to plundering the house, and could not, either by commands or entreaties, be induced to leave it; though it was represented to them that the enemy's magazine was near the fire, and, if they stayed, would prove their destruction. It happened so soon afterwards; for the powder taking

fire, blew up all who were in the house, and, by A.D. 1644. the violence of its explosion, threw up fourscore, who were in the court, some distance from the ground; but of these only two were much hurt. He lost but fifteen men in the action, and above sixty by this accident; among others, Captain Heathcock, and two or three officers, who were sent into the house to get out the soldiers. The house was burnt, notwithstanding all Sir Anthony's endeavours to the contrary. Colonel Strangeways, the major, and three captains of his regiment, were taken prisoners, with about one hundred foot and thirty horse. Sir Anthony sent a letter to the committee of parliament, to acquaint them with his success. He gave great encomiums to the several officers under him, and particularly to some who went as volunteers. From hence he marched to Dorchester, to refresh his men, who were fatigued with the action. But his active temper not allowing him to continue idle, he successfully attacked the remaining garrisons in Dorsetshire, and reduced them to an obedience to the parliament.

Taunton.

Sir Anthony, after this, marched to the relief Relieves of Taunton town and castle, where Blake, (whose name became afterwards so illustrious as an ad

A.D. 1644. miral,) was governor. Blake had held it out with great obstinacy and success, notwithstanding the great want of ammunition and provisions, and the weakness of the works. Colonel Wyndham commanded the siege, and Sir Lewis Dives was marching with a considerable force to support him; but Sir Anthony meeting this body, attacked and routed it, obliged the colonel to raise the siege, and immediately acquainted the parliament with the relief of the town.36

Quits his military employ

ments.

Sir Anthony acted not long in a military capacity; and as he accepted these employments with no view to private advantage, but from a sense of honour and the impulse of his courage, he was guilty of no oppressions on the people of the country or those under his command. He was beloved by the soldiers, and respected by the officers. These were so far from being jealous or envious of him, that though he was so young, and had so lately entered into the service, yet the colonels of those regiments under his command were afterwards much attached to him; and one of them, Colonel Popham, went with him through

36 It appears from Whitlocke that Sir Anthony had in this expedition fifteen hundred men under his command.

most of his after attempts to bring about the A.D. 1644. Restoration.

In the year 1645," he was made high sheriff of A.D. 1645. the county of Norfolk, and in the following year high sheriff of the county of Wilts, with a particular ordinance of parliament for liberty to reside in Dorsetshire, where he lived in retirement, acting only as a justice of peace; in which office, so useful at a time when such animosities prevailed, he was of great service to the county, as he was an active magistrate.

About this time, affairs bore a different appearance from what they had done at the beginning of the parliament, and were under other guidance.

* Whitlocke.

At this time Whitlocke says of him: "he professed his great affection to the parliament, and his enmity to the king's party, from whom he had revolted, and was now in great favour and trust with the parliament." This was probably a formal declaration upon receiving some appointment.

38 This is an error: Sir Anthony never was sheriff of Norfolk. Sir Jacob Astley held the office during this year, and hence probably has arisen the mistake; neither was he ever sheriff of Dorsetshire. He has been often spoken of as sheriff of that county, but the rolls of Dorsetshire do not contain his name. These mistakes have been corrected by a note in Kippis's Biographia Britannica, tit. Cooper, which article appeared, after the Doctor had completed his labours upon this work.

A.D. 1644.

Rise of the

Independ

ents.

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