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Part of the Edgehill battlefield site lies on the Upton Estate and is managed as undisturbed grassland to protect the underlying archaeology. The Estate is managed under a Higher Level Stewardship agreement, funded by Natural England, to maximize the wildlife value of the farmland.
On 23rd October 1642 the first major battle of the English Civil War was fought on the plains, between Kineton and Radway. King Charles I had fallen out irrevocably with Parliament following his refusal to accept an increase in Parliament’s powers that would have left him as a mere figurehead. He marched towards London from York, via Chester and the Welsh Marches, gathering support along the way. The Parliamentarian Army gathered at Northampton and, as the Royal Army moved south, they marched west towards Banbury to confront them.
On the afternoon of the 23rd the Royal Army marched down the steep slope from Edgehill to face the Parliamentarians who had lined up in a defensive formation on the plains. The bloody battle continued into the evening, but as light faded and troops ran short of ammunition, first the Royal Army withdrew, followed shortly by the Parliamentarian Army. The battle ended in stalemate, partly due to tactical mistakes by the leaders of both armies and the inexperience and ill-discipline of their troops. A decisive win by either side could have avoided the long and bloody Civil War battles that followed.
The royalist left wing may have been made up of 10 troops of cavalry, supported by dragoons (mounted infantry who rode into battle for speed but fought on foot) and musketeers. The rest of the army was made up of infantry (musketeers and pikemen) and artillery in the centre of the battle formation, with the majority of the Royal cavalry on the right wing, under the command of Prince Rupert
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