Sir Marmaduke Rawdons Regiment of Foote
Sir Marmaduke Rawdon
History
Rawdon was a successful merchant from Hoddesdon in Hertfordshire, who had commanded the Red Regiment of the London Trayned-Bandes before the outbreak of war. After a failed attempt to seize the armoury at the Tower of London, Rawdon fled to the King’s new capital at Oxford in early 1643. Once there, he used his wealth to raise a Regiment of Foote for the Royalist cause, receiving a Commission from King Charles for his efforts. As Rawdon and many of his Officers were exiles from London, it was unofficially known as the “London Regiment”, and soon despatched to hold Basing House, a major Royalist stronghold in the middle of Parliament-held Hampshire.
Rawdons defended Basing with great success through two major sieges in 1643 and 1644, defeating the London Trayned-Bandes and the famous Roundhead General, Sir William Waller. In 1645 the Regiment was despatched to Faringdon in Oxfordshire which it defended against all comers until finally agreeing to peace terms in 1646 after the death of Sir Marmaduke, and when all the King’s Armies in the field had already been vanquished. Rawdon’s Regiment was allowed to march forth from Faringdon with all its weapons and Colours (Flags), as would befit an undefeated regiment. When the Regiment was disbanded, the remaining Officers cut up the Regiment’s Colours, and divided them up among themselves in memory of their fallen Commander...
Major Alistair North
Sir Marmaduke Rawdon’s Regiment of Foote was resurrected as a group of Re-enactors and part of the English Civil War Society in the mid 1970s. The first commanding Officer was Roger Bailey, to be followed by Bob Aldridge, Andrew Stone, Sharon Johansson, and Richard Wright. I became acting-C.O. in 2007 and Commanding Officer of Rawdon’s at the beginning of 2009 – a role I have continued to fill ever since!
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I first joined Rawdon’s Regiment in 1987 at the ‘Siege of Littlecote House’, after being badgered to give it a go by a friend of mine called Derrick Bradfield and I was quickly enveloped into the Pike Division. After a few years out, I was persuaded to return to the fold by another friend, Ian Skinner, who I happened to bump into at a Newsagent in Enfield.
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I became Pike Sergeant in 2004, which as any Pikeman will tell you is the ideal role in a Civil War Re-enactment Regiment. Not only do you still take part in all the physicality of mock-combat, but you can take charge of a body of soldiers aiming to wreak havoc against your enemies, which is incredibly exhilarating. And then two years later the C.O.(Richard Wright) in his wisdom decided to make me an Officer – a Lieutenant, no less. Two years further on and the same C.O. decided to promote me to Captain and 2nd in Command......