Battle of Piercebridge

The battle of Piercebridge was fought on 1 December 1642 in County Durham, England, during the First English Civil War. The Earl of Newcastle was advancing with an army of 6,000 from Newcastle upon Tyne to York to reinforce the local Royalists. Aware of his approach, the Parliamentarians defended the main crossing over the River Tees, at Piercebridge. Under the command of Captain John Hotham, around 580 troops had barricaded the bridge. Newcastle sent an advance guard under the command of Sir Thomas Howard to take the crossing. The Royalists placed their ten artillery pieces on a hill to the north east of the bridge, allowing them to soften up the Parliamentarian defences. Howard, who was killed during the engagement, led his dragoons in an assault on the bridge, and after three hours of heavy fighting, Hotham and his men retreated, allowing the Royalists to continue on to York. The introduction of Newcastle's army into Yorkshire gave the Royalists a numerical advantage in the county, and led the Parliamentarians to rely on Fabian tactics for the next eighteen months.