Sourton Down

25 April 1643. On this day the battle of Sourton Down was fought at Sourton Down, in Devon, during the British & Irish Civil Wars.

After a failed attack on Launceston, a Royalist stronghold, the Parliamentarians withdrew to Okehampton. They were pursued by a Royalist force led by Sir Ralph Hopton. He marched overnight, hoping to launch a surprise attack at dawn.

Unfortunately for him the Parliamentarian commander, Major-General James Chudleigh, was informed of the Royalist approach. He took a bold gamble and counterattacked, leading his men out to ambush Hopton on Sourton Down. He had just 108 cavalry against 3600 Royalists.

The risky attack went well, taking the Royalists completely by surprise. As they fled in panic, Chudleigh summoned his infantry from Okehampton. However, Royalist artillery spotted their approach and scattered them under fire. Chudleigh, who was still outnumbered, prudently chose to retreat. Hopton, who had no idea of the size of the enemy force, did the same.

Chudleigh had succeeded in capturing a great cache of arms and equipment, and some instructions from Charles I, ordering Hopton to join a Royalist army from Oxford. This discovery made the Parliamentarians oveconfident. At Stratton, just three weeks later, Hopton reversed his humiliation and won a decisive victory. Chudleigh was captured in the fight and chose to switch sides; he was killed just a few months later, leading a Royalist assault on Dartmouth.