jesties being taken out of his bed, if the Rebels should make a brisk
attempt to that purpose.” And it was evident, all the Strength he had
to depend upon was his Horse, which were under the Command of
Prince
Rupert at Leicester, and were not at that time in Number
above
eight hundred, few better arm’d than with Swords; whilst the
Enemy
had, within less than twenty Miles of that place, double the Number
of Horse excellently arm’d and appointed, and a Body of five thousand
Foot well train’d, and disciplin’d, so that, no doubt, if they
had ad-
vanced, they might at least have dispersed those few Troops of the
Kings,
and driven his Majesty to a greater distance, and exposed him to
nota-
ble hazards and inconveniencies.
When Men were allmost confounded with this prospect, his Ma-
jesty
receiv’d Intelligence, that Portsmouth was so streightly besieged
by
Sea and Land, that it would be reduced in very few days, except it were
reliev’d. For the truth is, Colonel Goring, though he had
sufficient
warning; and sufficient supplies of Money to put that place
into a po-
sture, had relied too much upon probable and casual assistance,
and
neglected to do that Himself which a vigilant Officer would have done:
and albeit his chief dependence was both for money and provisions from
the Isle of Wight, yet he was careless to secure those small
Castles and
Block-houses, that guarded the passage; which, revolting to
the Parlia-
ment assoon [sic] as he declared for the King, cut off all
those dependences;
so that he had neither Men enough to do ordinary duty,
nor provisions
enough for those few, for any considerable time. And at the
same time
with this news of Portsmouth, arrived certain
Advertisements, that
the Marquis of Hertford, and all his Forces
in the West, from whom
only the King hoped that Portsmouth should
be reliev’d, was driven
out of Somerset-shire, where his
power and interest was believ’d un-
questionable, into
Dorset-shire; and there besieged in Sherborne Castle.
The Marquis, after he left the King at Beverly, by ordinary
jour-
neys, and without making any long stay by the way, came to
Bath,
upon the very edge of Somerset-shire, at the time
when the General As-
sizes were there held; where, meeting all the
considerable Gentlemen
of that great County, and finding them well
affected to the King’s Ser-
vice, except very few who were
sufficiently known, he enter’d into con-
sultation with them from whom
he was to expect assistance, in what
place he should most conveniently fix
himself for the better disposing
the Affections of the People, and to
raise a strength for the resistance of
any attempt which the Parliament
might make, either against them or
to disturb the Peace of the Country by
their Ordinance of the Militia,
which was the first power they were like
to hear of. Some were of opi-
nion, “that Bristol would be
the fittest place, being a great, rich, and
populous City; of which being
once possessed, they should be easily
able to give the Law to
Somerset and Gloucester-shire; and could not
receive any
Affront by a suddain or tumultuary Insurrection of the
People”. And
if this advice had been followed, it would, probably,
have proved very
prosperous. But, on the contrary, it was objected,
“that it was not
evident, that his Lordships reception into the City
would be such as was
expected; Mr Hollis being Lieutenant thereof,
and
having exercised the Militia there; and there being visibly many
disaffected people in it, and some of Eminent Quality; and if he should
attempt to go thither and be disappointed, it would break the whole
Design
: Then that it was out of the County of Somerset, and therefore
