The Amazing Life of Prince Rupert of the Rhine (In Bullet Points)

When I sat down to write this blog post, it was originally going to a book review of of Charles Spencer's "Prince Rupert: The Last Cavalier". However as any followers of mine on twitter will attest to, when I finished the book yesterday I went on a rampage about how much I love the Rhineland Prince, and listed in a barrage of tweets WHY I love him so much. And I also warned people that this blog post may happen. I'm not sorry.

Anyway, I first of all wanted to thank Charles Spencer for providing me with lots of extra information about this fascinating man in the history of the Seventeenth Century. Oh don't get me wrong, I knew of Prince Rupert loooong before I picked up a book about him and that is all down to my days in the Sealed Knot, and plenty of beer tent drinking with Prince Rupert's Blewcoats! And in my reading around The English Civil War, the name of this exceptional military man just kept on popping up. Whether it be with fantastic military victories, Cavalry charges worthy of a song or the hateful propaganda poured out by Parliament; there was something incredibly special about Prince Rupert of the Rhine. And well...I guess you will all know already that I have one hell of a thing for Rupert because of the massive picture of him in the header image up there!

Reading Spencer's biography of Rupert was an eye opener for me, and has really peaked my interest. And so this post is going to talk about WHY I have such a thing for this dashing, Cavalier poster boy. And I'm going to do bullet points just because if I didn't then this post would end up being a million times longer. And each point, I hope, will show exactly how awesome (...oh god did I really just use the word awesome in a history blog post? I regret absolutely nothing) Prince Rupert was.

• He was the nephew of Charles I - what's not to like?
• Him and his family ended up in exile after his parents took over Bohemia where they ruled for just one season, which is why his parents Frederick V and Elizabeth of Bohemia are so often called the "Winter King & Queen". After the Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II began advancing on Prague in 1619 just a few months after Rupert's birth, the family were forced to flee. And poor baby Rupert was almost left behind! A court servant ending up throwing him into one of the carriages at the last minute!
• They escaped to The Hague, where Rupert grew up, earning himself the nickname "Rupert the Devil" due to being incredibly mischievous.
• By the age of 14, Rupert had become a soldier, fighting in the Siege of Rheinberg in 1633, and by 1635 had become a member of the Prince of Orange's lifeguards. And during these years he earned himself a reputation for fearlessness in battle!
• In 1638 Rupert was captured during the Invasion of Westphalia, and imprisoned in Linz where his captors tried to convert him to Catholicism - Rupert refused, he was Calvinist and proud, and kept on refusing even when he was told he could go free if he converted.
• His captors ended up liking him though, and gave him a white poodle which he named "Boye"
• He was released in 1641 after promising never to take up arms against the Emperor again and went to England.
• He was appointed General of the Horse in 1642 by his uncle King Charles and ended up recruiting over 3000 men by the September. He won an astounding success at Powick Bridge after leading a surprise Cavalry charge.
• He played a key role at Edgehill, but he ended up arguing with another commander, making a swift cavalry charge but a lack of discipline in the ranks meant that he was unable to bring the troops back to the field. Edgehill could have been won by the Royalist, but it ended up with no clear victor.
• In 1643, he took Bristol, which became one of his best victories.
• It was at this point that Parliament really feared him. And he became a big issue in potential peace negotiations. And the propaganda against him kept on coming, some said he could even dodge bullets!
• During his later years in the wars though, he managed to make enemies. He may have been a great military man but he was never able to grasp the ways of the courtier, and had a very quick temper. He managed to have a huge falling out with George Digby, a favourite of King Charles, and this would end up haunting him for many years.
• At the battle of Marston Moor, 1644, Rupert commanded much of the Royalist army which ended up being a huge defeat. Rupert, and lack of clear communication, were blamed.
• After the Battle of Naseby, Rupert was one of the few Royalists to realise that actually, the war would be Parliament's and he tried his best to make his uncle see that. He urged his uncle to vie for peace but Digby got in the way of this! In 1645, Rupert was back at Bristol and overwhelmed by Parliament - he surrendered it in the September. Charles (influenced by Digby?) dismissed Rupert from his service.
• But Rupert being Rupert managed to convince his Uncle to hold a court martial to see is he had in fact been negligent in letting go of Bristol. After meeting with the King, it was decided that actually, Rupert had been the one in the right. Yet, Charles and Rupert ended up arguing about the fate of the Governor of Newark. And so Rupert resigned. 
• He ended up in France where he ended up fighting for Louis XIV, although he was quite clear in the fact that if his uncle wanted him, he would go back to England. Now that's loyalty!
• The main problem that Rupert had while he was in France was that the French court was dominated by his Aunt, Queen Henrietta Maria (who had a bit of a dislike for her Nephew) and her favourite Digby. I can imagine Rupert seething as he first came into contact with Digby upon entering the French court. So Rupert moved on and accepted a commission from Anne of Austria to fight for Louis. From 1647 Rupert fought with De Gassion, taking the fortress of La Bassee after a three week siege. Sadly not long after, Rupert and De Gassion were taken unawares by the Spanish - Rupert was shot in the head and very badly injured. It was an injury that would affect him for the rest of his life. Whilst Rupert was recovering, De Gassion was killed in combat.
• After this Rupert returned to the service of his Uncle, where he joined the Navy. At the time, Charles was a prisoner on the Isle of Wight and Rupert argued that the fleet should be used to rescue Charles. In the fleet, discipline was lacking and many ships ended up turning tail and joining the other side!
• After a reconciliation with his uncle, Rupert took command of the naval fleet himself. His command took him many many places. It was in Ireland that he learned of the execution of his Uncle. But he sailed on, determined to keep on fighting for the Royalist cause and the new King Charles II. These years took him as far as the Caribbean as a privateer (pirate), though he was often pursued by Parliamentary ships under the command of Robert Blake. 
• During the trip, Rupert almost lost his life in a storm in which his ship The Constant Reformation was shipwrecked. He was determined to go down with his men, except they ended up pushing him into a lifeboat and sending him across to his brother Prince Maurice. 333 lives were lost on that ship as well as a lot of treasure. Not long afterwards, in another storm as they sailed for the Virgin Islands, a hurricane scattered the remaining ships. The Defiance which was captained by Prince Maurice went missing and was never found. Rupert refused for a long time to believe that his brother was dead, although it was certain. And Maurice's death left a hole in Rupert's heart that would never be filled.
• in 1653 Rupert returned to France and the court of the exiled Charles II. But his presence caused problems, as he apparently became involved in a plot to assassinate Oliver Cromwell in 1654 and many in the court including Clarendon saw Rupert as an obstacle to peace.
• in 1655 Rupert left for Germany, where he visited his brother Charles-Louis. Relations broke down though and they parted on bad terms in 1657 and he took up employment with Ferdinand III.
• However after Charles II's restoration, Rupert moved permanently to England (with lots of wine!) and was granted a large pension by his cousin and ended up being made Constable of Windsor Castle in 1668. He continued his work with the Navy, fighting in the Dutch Wars.
• His old head wound began to flare up again and Rupert ended up undergoing trephanning TWICE to sort the problem out. This surgery had changed little since it had first been used by people in prehistory, and the survival rate was low. But survive, he did. And after retiring from active naval service in the 1670's he began to work very closely with the Royal Society, having long had an interest in science. Much of his scientific work ended up being military, and he is credited with early versions of the machine gun, revolver and torpedo. He also became involved in the colonisation of North America, dealing in trade and also the slave trade, he was also made First Governor of "Rupert's Land", an absolutely huge expanse of North America, though he never set foot there.
• Towards the end of his life, Rupert became romantically involved with the actress Peg Hughes - he never married her but ended up falling so head over heels in love with her that he almost became the laughing stock of court. Despite never marrying Peg, Rupert openly acknowledged their daughter Ruperta (born 1673), and enjoyed the family lifestyle.
• In November 1682, Rupert died of pleurisy at his house in Westminster.  He was buried in the Henry VII Chapel at Westminster Abbey and given a magnificent state funeral.

Most people will think of the English Civil War when they hear Rupert's name and for a long time I was the same. But his life was absolutely remarkable and he ended up staying in the military well past his 50th year. Not only had he been part of the army and Navy, but he had been a pirate as well as taking part in science via the Royal Society and being hugely involved in the colonisation of America. And THAT is why I have such a thing for him.

Further Reading
Prince Rupert: The Last Cavalier - Charles Spencer

Prince Rupert's Reputation, And His Dog Boye

A couple of days ago I started reading "Prince Rupert: The Last Cavalier" by Charles Spencer (the very same Charles Spencer, brother of the amazing Princess Diana) and well...I think you may have all gathered from my post on Stuart crushes, and the fact that the blog header has a rather dashing portrait of the young man splashed across it...and the fact my new twitter user pic is the very same portrait as above, that I have a bit of a thing for the Prince from Prague. And I regret absolutely nothing. Anyway, as I was reading the book this evening during a particularly quiet period at work I came across a quote that really got me thinking (and also made me laugh out loud):

"There was a determination that the most eye-catching of the Royalist leaders should be characterised as wild, dangerous, and even devilish. He was portrayed as a deviant who enjoyed sex with his white poodle, Boy..."

At first glance the quote above seems rather shocking. How could this young man, a favourite of his Uncle Charles I's and a celebrated military man, enjoy such depravities? But then you read a little deeper and realise that this is all propaganda circulated by the Parliamentarian forces. Did Rupert do this with his little dog named Boye? The answer is, in my humble opinion, 100% not true - Rupert was a highly religious human being, and from what I've read so far exceptionally honourable. The likelihood of him getting friendly with his pet dog was therefore...well...not likely in the slightest.

So why did Parliament concoct such propaganda?

The answer is relatively simple. They were afraid of Rupert. Despite his youthful years, he was an accomplished military man, had fought from the age of 14 in warfare and during the early stages of the English Civil War had been placed in command of the Cavalry by Charles I. Despite the fact he had been a prisoner of war for many, many years, he was seen by the opposition to be a formidable foe, and a man who had taken part in some of the bloodiest atrocities during the early days of the Civil War, including his demands of £2000 from the City of Leicester to stop him and his troops from invading them. Charles I in the end sent apologies to the City, saying he had nothing to do with his behaviour.

Rupert's reputation never really recovered, especially with when it came to his little dog, Boye. Thanks to Parliamentarian propaganda Rupert faced numerous accusations of witchcraft and Boye was accused of being his familiar. Many accused Boye of being the devil in disguise, being able to find hidden treasure, being invulnerable to attack and having the ability to catch bullets fired at his master in his mouth.

Boye was sadly killed at the battle of Marston Moor. Despite having been tied up at the Royalist camp, he escaped and followed Rupert into battle, being killed in the fighting. What did Rupert think of the death of his faithful dog, an animal that had been given to him during his time as a prisoner of war? I have found very little to tell me of what he felt after this but I can imagine him being distraught. Not only that but those who produced the propaganda against Rupert and his apparently magical dog must have rejoiced. 

I have plans to write a series of posts on Prince Rupert, similar to what I have previously done on Nell Gwynne and Barbara Villiers, as there seems to be so much to learn about this interesting man. His dog however, grasped my imagination this afternoon!

Stuart Crushes...? Oh Go On Then.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. I have a huge obsession with the Stuart era. I can't help it, I just love it. I mean, it was an era full of rather dashing men, battlefield heroics and amazing beards. Not only that (and we're getting serious now) but it was a dark period of Civil War, followed by a totally unfun England (cheers for that Cromwell) and ended up as a much more fun England under Charles II - bawdy poetry, theatre, dancing...general fun! My problem is that I love the era so much, the WHOLE era from James I all the way up to the reign of Queen Anne, and I have ended up developing way too many crushes on some rather dashing young men from the period. So I thought I would present you all with some pictures of these rather dashing young men and a little bit about who they are, and why I love them so much.

Prince Rupert of the Rhine

Born in December of 1619, this rather handsome young man played a huge part in the English Civil War, fighting and commanding parts of the Royalist army. He was also nephew of the lovely Charles I (see below). Prince Rupert became the poster boy for the perfect Cavalier with his dashing good looks, arrogance and enthusiasm. As commander of the Royalist Cavalry, Rupert took part in many of the English Civil Wars biggest battles including Edgehill, Marston Moor and the Siege of Bristol. Despite being rather dashing and a competent military commander he realised that the Royalist cause was lost and in 1645 advised Charles to treat with Parliament. Charles, of course refused and Rupert surrendered Bristol to Parliament ending up in him being court marshaled. His name was cleared, but in 1646 Rupert was exiled from England by his uncle. He did however have a part to play in his cousin Charles II's exile, and became a part of the exiled court, and when Charles was restored to the throne Rupert was granted a pension and made a part of the Privy Council, and took an active role in the Naval pursuits of the time. Prince Rupert is just so fabulous he deserves a post all of his own, full of pictures of his handsome face. So this will be done. For sure. Because well...LOOK AT HIM!

John Wilmot - Earl of Rochester

Anyone who knows about Charles II and the Restoration should have heard the name of John Wilmot, 2nd Earl of Rochester. And if not, why not? This guy is famous for having his portrait painted with a monkey, wrote some of the best bawdy poetry and plays of his time as well as some of the most gorgeous love poems I have ever read, wrote a ton of hilarious seventeenth century pornography and loved booze and women a little bit too much. Also, if you haven't seen The Libertine with Johnny Depp starring as the lovely Rochester then you are missing out because it is rather amazing and Mr Depp makes a brilliant Rochester! My favourite little ditty of ole' Johnny's is the following:

Here lies a great and mighty King,
Whose promise none relied on;
He never said a foolish thing,
Nor ever did a wise one.

Poor Rochester kept falling out of favour with his friend Charles II, mainly because a lot of his work made fun of the King and made out he was obsessed with sex. So he was exiled, and then came back only to be exiled again after a midnight brawl ended up in the killing of one of his companions in 1676.  But poor Rochester was to die young, and it is said he died of a plethora of venereal diseases including Syphilis and alcoholism.

Charles II

I think you all know why I love this man. I MEAN LOOK AT HIM AND HIS FABULOUSNESS AND HIS SHOES AND JUST EVERYTHING ABOUT HIM. Ahem. Please see my previous posts on Charles and his mistresses Nell Gwynne and Barbara Villiers if you want serious information about this guy. For now I will leave you with more pictures.

James Duke of Monmouth

James Duke of Monmouth has long fascinated me, since driving through Norton St Phillip on the way home from a day of digging up a Roman Villa and being told all about the George Inn where the ill fated Monmouth stayed during the Monmouth Rebellion. Monmouth was the illegitimate son of Charles II and his first mistress Lucy Walter. Monmouth was doted on by his father but there were loads of rumours that he had married Lucy and so the boy was actually the heir to the throne. It didn't help that Monmouth had proven to be a military hero and the people loved him, and those who didn't want James Duke of York on the throne got ideas into their heads that Monmouth should be the next King because he was Protestant. In the end, and this is putting it simply because again this could be a post all of its own, Charles got a little bit fed up of Monmouth and his big head so exiled him. After Charles II died, Monmouth came back to England and started the Monmouth rebellion to kick his Uncle James off the throne. And it failed, badly. Monmouth ended up being executed for high treason - he was beheaded on Tower Hill by the famous executioner Jack Ketch. Before he died, Monmouth felt the axe and asked Ketch to dispatch him quickly, fearing the axe wasn't sharp enough, even going so far as to give Ketch a bag of coins to encourage him. It still took 5 blows to kill him, and Ketch ended up removing Monmouth's head with a butchers knife. Monmouth's story is fascinating and incredibly sad - all he wanted to do was please his father, but at the same time wanted desperately to believe that he was legitimate and his parents had been married. I'm currently reading a biography of him by J.N.P Watson which is proving to be a great read and I can tell that by the end of it, I will be sobbing into my cup of tea.

Charles I

Charles I was my first Stuart love. I mean, look at that beard and you will understand why! Poor Charlie, he made some bad choices when it came to running the country and arguing with Parliament but I really do believe he was in the right. Him and his Royalists fought for tradition, and he firmly believed in the Divine Right of Kings, that he was ordained by God and so he was the big dog and so, above Parliament. Parliament didn't like that idea and so we all know how the story goes...the English Civil War. And sadly we all know how it ends, with Charles I being tried in a kangaroo court and found guilty of treason (treason? How can a king be found guilty of treason when treason is a crime against the King?). He was beheaded upon a scaffold outside of Whitehall Palace, and the only part of that Palace that survives today - The Banqueting House. For more detail on Charles please see my previous post about him and his life.

Thomas Fairfax

This guy sadly fought on the wrong side during the English Civil War, and was a General of the Parliament Army. Despite this, I quite like Fairfax not only because he was a rather handsome devil, but he managed to see through the Civil War, fought for what he believed it and also had a hand in bringing Charles II back to England. He also loved literature (maybe that's why I love him so much!) and gave loads of manuscripts to the Bodleian library as well as writing his own poetry and translating Psalms. His nick name, quite adorably, was Black Tom due to his dark eyes and dark hair.

Edward Sexby

The picture above is of John Simm's portrayal of Edward Sexby in the Devil's Whore because I couldn't actually find a portrait of Sexby from the time. Which is rather annoying.  If anyone knows of any then please do email me. Anyway, the portrayal of Sexby in the Devil's Whore wasn't exactly the most accurate although he was ruggedly handsome! The REAL Sexby fought for Oliver Cromwell's Parliamentarian army during the English Civil War and was also a follower of the Leveller John Lilburne, and thus believed in government being left to the people rather than having to answer to King or Parliament. When Cromwell took up the Protectorship in 1653 Sexby opposed it hugely, as it went against everything that had been fought for in the Civil Wars - Cromwell would for all intents and purposes be a King. Sexby and other Levellers began plotting against the Protectorship, publishing pamphlets and Sexby himself even turned up at the exiled court of Charles II to tell them all about leading an uprising against Cromwell and bringing Charles II back. Edward Hyde (Clarendon) was of course sceptical, wondering how on earth the levellers and a reinstated monarchy could work together. Sexby was the author of a pamphlet named "Killing No Murder" in which he said that Cromwell was a tyrant and worse than Caligula, and in such circumstances Tyrannicide was justifiable. He then began to plot to assassinate Cromwell. He was arrested in 1657, locked up in the Tower of London and questioned where he admitted to writing the pamphlet and plotting to assassinate Cromwell, but he wouldn't name any of his accomplices. Good man. Poor Sexby died of a fever whilst locked in the Tower in 1658 before he could be tried.

John Donne

This guy was a poet, a satirist, a lawyer and eventually a priest. He didn't take part in the English Civil Wars, dying before they could even start. He was born in 1572 and died in 1631, and this the majority of his adult life was lived during the reign of James I. Whilst Donne didn't really do anything particularly exciting, he was a member of parliament and later became a priest, he did write a love poem involving a flea. And that therefore makes him awesome.

Mark but this flea, and mark in this,
How little that which thou deny'st me is;
It sucked me first, and now sucks thee,
And in this flea, our two bloods mingled be;
Thou knowest that this cannot be said
A sin, nor shame, nor loss of maidenhead.
Yet this enjoys before it woo,
And pampered, swells with one blood made of two,
And this, alas, is more than we would do.
Oh stay, three lives in one flea spare,
Where we almost, yea, more than married are.
This flea is you and I, and this
Our marriage bed, and marriage temple is;
Though parents grudge, and you, we are met
And cloistered in these living walls of jet.
Though use make you apt to kill me,
Let not to that self murder added be,
And sacrilege, three sins in killing three.
Cruel and sudden, hast thou since
Purpled thy nail in blood of innocence?
Wherein could this flea guilty be
Except in that drop which it sucked from thee?
Yet thou triumph'st, and sayest that thou
Find'st not thyself, nor me, the weaker now.
'Tis true, then learn how false fears be;
Just so much honor, when thou yieldst to me,
Will waste, as this flea's death took life from thee