English Civil War: Operations Manual

The period of the English Civil War began in 1640 and lasted until the restoration of the monarchy some twenty years later. It was a divisive and disruptive episode in English history, when loyalties were tested and saw family set against family, brother against brother, and neighbour against neighbour.
 
Its causes lay in attitudes towards religion, the authority of the King, and a belief among many that Parliament should have more say in how the country was governed. In time, these tensions grew and escalated into armed conflict that saw the abolition of the monarchy and the House of Lords, the beheading of King Charles I and the subjugation of the nation under a military protectorate headed by Oliver Cromwell. When the monarchy was finally restored in 1660 and King Charles II returned to the throne, the war was brought to an end, but the untold suffering it had heaped on the ordinary citizens of England continued for years after. It took generations for the scars of the Civil War to heal.

English Civil War specialist Stephen Bull opens the English Civil War Operations Manual with a chapter outlining the course of the conflict, including accounts of the main battles and notable events in the war. He then reviews the organisation and structure of the two opposing forces, their commanders and their armies – the Royalists (also known as Cavaliers) and the Parliamentarians (the Roundheads). He goes on to describe their weapons and how they were used – mortar, cannon, musket (matchlock and flintlock), swords and pike; equipment, uniforms and armour; battlefield tactics involving musketeers, pikemen and cavalry.. Finally, the aftermath of the Civil War and the insights we can gain today into the period through archaeology are discussed. 

Jonathan Falconer is the author of more than 35 books on aspects of aviation and military history, including the Haynes Handley Page Halifax Manual, Short Stirling Manual, D-Day Operations Manual, and co-author (with Brian Rivas) of the de Havilland Mosquito Manual.  He was commissioning editor of the 14-volume Battle Zone Normandy series in 2004 for Sutton Publishing, and is now a senior commissioning editor with Haynes. He lives in Wiltshire.

Dr Stephen Bull is the Curator of the Museum of Lancashire in Preston. He has written two major volumes on arms and armour and bestselling volumes on Trench Warfare and World War II Infantry Tactics. He is the author of An Officer's Manual of the Western Front (2007).