It’s rarely that a place has two battles to its name. There’s St Albans (Wars of the Roses), of course, but there’s also Newbury (English Civil War).

First Newbury (20 September 1643), contested in the town’s south-west by around 10,000 men each side, is a confusing heap of a battle, fought all day yet frustratingly inconclusive. It was King Charles I, full of hubris, who forced this battle, believing he could best the Parliamentarians in a full-on fight. The Royalists were slack though, first on the scene yet failing to secure the high ground of Round Hill which the Roundheads grabbed instead, it forming a central, key part of their north-south line, which extended some two miles. Royalist cavalry made repeated attempts to take this vital position, attacking from east and north-east, but numerous hedgerows offered excellent cover for Parliamentarian musketeers.