Cromwell Page #4

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You must get one and wear it.

It's a mark of rank, captain.

- Yes.

- God bless thee!

Hallelujah, hallelujah, brethren.

It is the Lord's work we do this day!

- The Lord's work...

- This is no place for you, Hugh...

...though you be welcome.

- I've consulted God on this matter.

I asked him,

"Lord, whose side are you on?"

And he answered me, saying,

"On the side of truth and justice."

So here I am.

Company, forward!

Lift up your heads ye gates of brass

Ye bars of iron yield

And let the king of glory

Pass the crosses in the field

That banner brighter

Than the star that leaves a trail of light

Greetings, Uncle.

'Tis a fair day for a fight.

Where be the enemy?

My lords, I present my nephew.

His Highness, Prince Rupert,

Count Palatine of the Rhine.

- My lords, I give you greetings.

- Your Highness.

And good Cousin Charles,

most noble Prince of Wales.

- How fare you, young sir?

- I'm well, thank you, cousin.

So, let us to action.

For I do swear by this sword...

...within a week we'll have severed

every round head from its shoulders!

- Well said, Your Highness.

- Let the standard be raised.

Get those guns moving!

Thou shalt proclaim his life

Though granted...

Halt!

Halt!

- Where the devil are we?

- Edgehill, my lord, over there.

- Morning, Robert.

- Morning, Edward.

Damn me,

they've got a lot of fellows there.

- Where's Cromwell?

- Approaching now, my lord.

- Morning, Cromwell.

- Morning, my lord.

- Your men fit, colonel?

- My men are ready, my lord.

You seem eager to get

into this business, Cromwell.

We all enter this reluctantly,

but the die is cast.

- Is that not so, Lord Essex?

- You are right.

Well, to your position. Let no man

move except upon my signal.

- May God look kindly upon us this day.

- Amen to that.

Missed my breakfast.

Damned tricky things, stomachs.

- God be with you, men.

- God bless you.

- God be with you.

- Take care of yourself, William.

- The Lord'll take care of me.

- Have faith, John.

I have, squire. Come on, lads.

Look to your muskets.

Have your muskets at the ready.

Come on, now.

- Father.

- May God take care of you, Richard.

- And be with you, Oliver.

- And with you too, Father.

"O Lord, defend our cause

against the face of the enemy.

Save us from the violence of the

enemy. O Lord of hope...

...fight for us

that we may glorify thee."

O Lord, God of mercy.

Put thy strength in our hands this day.

Give not the battle to the strong,

but to the righteous.

And be thou, O merciful God,

our saviour and mighty deliverer.

Defend me from them that rise up

against me.

- In the name of Jesus Christ.

- Amen.

Amen.

- Amen.

- Amen.

Father, look. It's Lord Essex.

Come, cousin.

Let's take a good look

at these Roundheads. Your Majesty.

God's teeth, have we not parleyed

enough these past months?

- Well, Essex, are you prepared?

- We are. Shall we begin at 10?

Make it 9, my lord.

I'm positively starving.

Then in God's name, let's to it.

- It's agreed then, 9:00.

- And by my faith, which I have not...

...I swear that within the hour, this field

will be strewn with English dead.

If this be so, they will have

been killed by Englishmen.

For we have not seen fit to import

foreign mercenaries into our ranks.

I will mark you well for that insult, sir.

Be on your guard!

Colours to the rear!

Colours to the rear!

The Lord is our strength.

Praise the Lord!

What in the name of God

are we waiting for?

Ireton!

- I thought we came here to do battle.

- We're waiting for the appointed time.

The appointed time?

- Colonel Hampden, commence firing!

- Fire!

What the devil is that fool doing?

Artillery, commence firing!

Fire!

O Lord, thou knowest how busy

I must be this day.

If I forget thee, do not thou forget me.

Fire!

Fire!

You'd better send Fairfax in.

Bugler, sound the charge.

Troop at the gallop.

Advance!

- Signal Astley to advance.

- Bugler, sound the advance.

The sport begins.

Tallyho!

Troops rear left. At a gallop, charge!

Give fire!

Advance!

Advance!

Fire!

Advance pike!

Charge pike!

Fire! Second rank forward!

At the gallop!

It's getting too damned close

for my liking.

- Sound general retreat.

- Sound general retreat.

Why in the name of Christ

did you sound the retreat?

You've countermined my orders

once today. You'll do as you're told, sir.

Hold your ground, in the name of God!

Hold your ground!

Well, Uncle, did you ever see a quarry

so swiftly put to flight?

The king will forever keep this field

and this day's service...

...in grateful remembrance.

Come nightfall, we shall bury our dead.

And then, by God,

we shall bury this army.

With pitiful men in our ranks, it were

better this war were never fought.

Not a drop of English blood

soiled this land.

It's a bad officer who blames his men,

Cromwell.

I blame them not, my lord,

for they are simple men.

But what match are farmer's boys

against gentlemen's sons?

The battle is not yet lost, Cromwell.

This battle were lost before it began.

And in like manner, so will this war.

In the morning,

I'm returning to Cambridge.

If you desert the field,

I'll have you arrested.

This war will not be won

with untrained ploughmen...

...apprentices,

old, decaying serving men.

We need men with fire in their bowels

who fear the Lord, but not the enemy!

As God is my witness, I am

resolved that this battle will be won.

Therefore, it's my intention

to return to Cambridge...

...and handpick an army...

...the like of which this nation

has never seen!

With or without your permission,

my Lord Manchester.

Bristol will not be permitted to fall.

It's our only seaport in the west.

If General Goring's

incapable of holding it...

...I'll dispatch someone who can.

I've a mind to see Bristol, my lord.

'Tis a fair city, I hear.

Then I place Bristol in your command,

nephew. Should our forces...

- Your Majesty.

- Yes?

News of Cromwell's army,

Your Majesty.

- Come forward.

- At last, Old Ironsides ventures forth.

- Well, speak, man.

- They're six miles away, Your Majesty.

Just south of Naseby.

By my reckoning, there be

about 1000 horse and 2000 afoot.

- And what news of Manchester's army?

- I saw no other army, Your Majesty.

Was not Cromwell to join

Manchester's forces at Naseby?

- That was our intelligence.

- Manchester's still in Lincoln.

So Cromwell comes

with his army of 3000 to our 7000.

- By your leave, Uncle. Your Highness.

- General Astley, sound the alert.

I want every man in full battle order

at once.

By God, we have him!

Manchester!

Where in the name of Christ is he?

Know you not we are at war?

In God's name I do swear

we fight this war single-handed.

Oliver.

What bloody treachery is this?

We came to meet Manchester

and instead we find the king's army.

Well, I shall take on the king.

And after that if needs must,

I'll take on Manchester as well!

Before you stands the enemy,

his three to every one of us.

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