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Thomas Fairfax was born at Denton Hall, halfway between Ilkley and Otley in the West Riding of Yorkshire, on 17 January 1612, the eldest son of Ferdinando Fairfax, 2nd Lord Fairfax of Cameron.
- Early Career
- The First Years of The Civil War
- Marston Moor
- The Debacle at Newbury
- The New Model Army
- The Fall of Bristol & Final Victory
- The Second Civil War
- Distancing from Cromwell
Thomas Fairfax was born in Denton, North Yorkshire on 17 January 1612, his father being the military commander Ferdinando Fairfax, 2nd Baron Fairfax of Cameron. Thomas was educated at the University of Cambridge, and he gained military experience in the Netherlands fighting against the Spanish from 1629 to 1631. He then returned home and became a c...
When king Charles wrangled with Parliament over money and religious reforms, a civil war broke out in 1641. Fairfax sided with the Parliamentarians and continued to command his cavalry within the Northern army. Successes of 1643 included the capture of Leeds and Wakefield, but under the command of his father Lord Fairfax, the Parliamentarians suffe...
Fairfax led a cavalry unit at the Battle of Marston Moor near York on 2 July 1644. It was one of the largest battles of the war and likely involved over 45,000 men. The Royalists were commanded by Prince Rupert, Count Palatine of the Rhine and Duke of Bavaria (l. 1619-1682), Charles' nephew, and he rashly decided to attack three Parliamentarian arm...
Fairfax's military career was going well, but it really took off following the indecisive Second Battle of Newburyon 27 October 1644. Despite the Parliamentarians enjoying a 2:1 numerical superiority over the Royalist army led in person by Charles, they could not press their advantage, and the king retreated to fight another day. The Parliamentaria...
Fairfax could call upon 24 regiments of the New Model Army as well as smaller additional forces from elsewhere. The Commander-in-Chief was assisted by the Lieutenant-General of the Horse, the Sergeant-Major-General of the Foot, and the Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance, who commanded respectively the cavalry, infantry, and artillery regiments. Bel...
In July 1645, Fairfax faced and defeated an army led by Lord Goring near Langport in Somerset. The Parliamentary army had an advantage of 10,000 v. 7,000 men, and Fairfax made it count. Next, Fairfax set his sights on Bristol, a vital Royalist stronghold and second only to London as England's most important port. The siege of Bristol in 1645 began ...
The First English Civil War (1642-1646) was over, but King Charles, now in Scotland, refused to give up. With promises to promote the Presbyterian Church in England, he persuaded a Scottish army to invade in what became known as the Second English Civil War (Feb-Aug 1648). Fairfax commanded the Parliamentarian troops in Kent and Essex, where Englis...
Charles II then persuaded the Scots to invade England in a second restoration attempt, just as they had with his father two years before. Fairfax refused to lead the Parliamentarian army against Scotland. Not only did he not agree with the regicide but he had, after all, recently inherited his family title, a Scottish peerage. General Fairfax resig...
- Mark Cartwright
Thomas Fairfax, 3rd Baron Fairfax (born Jan. 17, 1612, Denton, Yorkshire, Eng.—died Nov. 12, 1671, Nun Appleton, Yorkshire) was the commander in chief of the Parliamentary army during the English Civil Wars between the Royalists and Parliamentarians.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Thomas Fairfax, Lord Fairfax of Cameron, was born into an aristocratic family at Denton in North Yorkshire on 17 January 1612. He studied at Cambridge University and then volunteered for an...
Jan 17, 2022 · Thomas Fairfax was born at Denton Hall, near Otley, Yorkshire, on 17 January 1612, the eldest son of Ferdinando, 2nd Lord Fairfax. He studied at St John’s College, Cambridge, and Gray’s Inn (1626-28), then volunteered to join Sir Horace Vere’s expedition to fight for the Protestant cause in the Netherlands. Fairfax married Vere’s ...
Thomas was descended from a rich Yorkshire family and was born on 17 January 1612. He acquired the nickname “Black Tom” after his dark features and complexion. Fairfax started in the military in the Thirty Years War where he joined Sir Horace Vere's force in The Netherlands in 1629.
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Thomas Fairfax. Born: 17 January 1612; Died: 12 November 1671; Roundhead or Cavalier? Roundhead; Role in the Civil War. When the British Civil Wars broke out in 1642, Thomas Fairfax fought on the side of Parliament.
