England's civil war Battle of Worcester artifacts unearthed

By Laura La Florent Wednesday, September 4, 2019

Yesterday in Worcester, England, archaeologists identified relics that are supposedly related to the last clash of the English Civil War have been found under layers of sediment in the base of a waterway valley in the West Midlands.

The antiquities incorporate rifle balls, gun shot, horse tackle fittings, belt clasps, a powder holder top, a black powder rifle trigger gatekeeper, and a bit of metal that may have been the cross grip of a sword. The opening clash of the war, battled by Royalists and Parliamentarians, occurred on horseback toward the north of Powick Bridge in 1642.

King Charles II  was vanquished on September 3, 1651, by Oliver Cromwell in a fight that struck the south of a similar extension. The ruler got away, in any case, and fled to Europe, where he lived in a state of banishment until he was reestablished to the position of royalty in 1660.

Lead excavator Richard Bradley said the dissemination of the relics, for example, gun shots discharged by the mounted force and black powder rifle shots discharged by infantry, mirror the various troops that had been facing in the last conflict, and show that it occurred considerably further south than recently suspected. "A large number of the lead black powder rifle and gun balls show proof of shooting or sway and these unmistakable indications of the contention offer a powerful association with the officers who battled and kicked the bucket here," he clarified. To find out about the outcome of the English Civil War's Battle of Dunbar, go to "After the Battle."

"We are just outside the registered battlefield area but this is still a nationally significant site, The construction work has given us the opportunity to investigate the floodplain across which thousands of infantry and cavalry engaged, and to get down to the level where artifacts were deposited. Many of the lead musket and pistol balls show evidence of firing or impact and these tangible signs of the conflict offer a poignant connection to the soldiers who fought and died here." -Richard Bradley

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