Political choice, as well as religious zeal, no doubt prompted Scotland to take this side in a quarrel, in which the success of parliament threatened much less evil to their nation, than the success of the king ; quarrel too, in which neutrality was as difficult as unsafe. But Charles had, in the mean time, endeavoured to atone for his recent rejection of their mediation, by offers to bribe their loyalty, which, if insincere, were at least magnificent. Among many things, he promised to reannex Northumberland, Cumberland, and West moreland, to the ancient kingdom of Scotland. But these offers were counteracted, by the discovery of intrigues, by which the non-covenanting Highland clans under Montrose, were engaged to desolate the Lowlands in the royal cause.
The earl of Antrim, who was to bring the Irish to co-operate in this design, attempted to land at Knock fergus, but was surprised by the Scotch ; and the dis covery of correspondence found on his person, first revealed the king's intentions to procure a cessation of arms with the Irish Catholics, and to introduce their arms into England. This discovery spread horror and alarm, and more firmly united the English and Scotch. A massacre of the chief Covenanters was projected by Montrose, and was to have taken place at the Countess of Roxburgh's funeral ; but the royalists were happily too few to attempt it.
The discovery of the king's intentions to make a truce with the Irish insurgents, and to convert those ferocious enemies into auxiliaries, quickened the military pre parations of the Scotch, and impelled them to take the field in the depth of winter, (1643-4). By the victories of Ormond, all the forts which had been either besieged or blockaded by the native Irish had been relieved ; and by Ormond's influence chiefly, the justices and council in Ireland had fallen into an entire dependence on the king ; so that, excepting a body of Scottish forces, who, for some time, were allowed, by agreement with the English parliament, to defend the British planters in the north of Ireland, it was to Charles's troops that the honour of preserving the British name in the sister island was due.
The king, that he might make preparations during the winter for the ensuing campaign, summoned to Oxford all the members of either house who adhered to his interests, and availed himself of the name of a par liament, so passionately cherished by the English. His house of commons amounted only to 140, half of the number at Westminster : his house of peers was twice as numerous as that of his opponents. Such a spectacle of double legislation, was a token of calamity to the nation, which reminds us of CEdipus, when he beheld two suns in the firmament. The parliament at West minster voted the first excise that was ever introduced in England. That at Oxford imitated the example, and granted the king 100,0001., to be levied by loans upon their subjects within his quarters. It was the interest of Charles to declare himself, (whether sincere or not,) continually anxious for peace : it. was the interest of the commons rather to be sure of an advantageous peace, than to risk any thing by an unequal treaty. The negotiations, therefore, which Charles preferred before the commencing campaign, were thwarted in the first instance, by his applying to Essex, who refused to assist towards treating, unless the communication were directly opened with parliament ; and in the next instance, by the king refusing to acknowledge the houses at \Vestminis ter an entire parliament without including those at Oxford. Twenty-one thousand Scotch, commanded by
Lesly, earl of Leven, and guided by a committee of the two nations, marched to support the parliamentary cause, in the depth of winter ; and crossing the Tweed amidst severe frost and deep snows, sent an ineffectual sum mons to the town of Newcastle. Then passing the Tyne, they faced the Marquis of Newcastle, who lay at Dur ham with 14,000 men. The regiments which Charles had procured from Ireland, reduced some fortified places in Cheshire, and invested Namptwich ; but young Fair fax advanced to relieve it, and totally ruined and dis persed the Irish auxiliaries. Ile then joined his father, Lord Fairfax ; and their joint forces defeated Colonel Bellasis at Selby, whom Newcastle had left to protect one approach to his army ; so that the ?Marquis, for fear of being inclosed, was obliged to retire to the defence of York, and to permit a junction of Fairfax with the Scotch. Their united arms seemed insufficient to reduct: York, till the arrival of Manchester (lately Kimbolton) with a third parliamentary army. Even then, the three armies contented themselves with a slight blockade ; but on the approach of Prince Rupert with 18,000 roy alists, Manchester, Leven, and Fairfax, abandoned the siege, and prepared for battle on Marston Moor. By a most dextrous movement, or rather concealment of his movements, Rupert crossed the Ouse, threw his military stores and provisions into York, and joined his forces with those of the Marquis of Newcastle. If contented with this exploit, he had listened to the advice of New castle, and remained on the defensive till another ex pected reinforcement arrived, the triple army would have probably much diminished ; the king's army, at all events, would have been saved ; but impelled by a rash spirit, Rupert gave orders for battle. His forces occupied Marston Moor, those of his opponents extend ed along the adjacent fields ; both sides were nearly equal in number ; and it was observed, that, for the first time in the 17th century, 50,000 British subjects were drawn up for _mutual destiaiction. The signal for close combat was given in the evening, alter an ineffectual cannonade across a bank and ditch that intervened be tween the armies, and after a silence of suspense which succeeded on both sides, in expectation of mutual attack. Qromwell and David Lesly surmounting the mound, broke the right wing of Rupert, dispersed his own cavalry, and destroyed part of his centre. Fairfax the younger was beat on the other wing of the parliamentary army, by the irresistible charge of General Hurry, who also cut up a reserve of the Scotch infantry. But while the royalists were pushing on to the baggage of their opponents, Cromwell and Lesly wheeled round, and the battle was restored, after both armies had reversed their front, and exchanged their ground. The shock was short, bloody, and decisive ; the royalists were entirely routed. By Lesly's three Scottish regiments, and Cromwell's iron brigade, this eventful victory was won.