GOOD NEWS OUT OF CHESHIRE.  
Being a certain Relation of the late Passages of that great Malignant, JAMES Earl of DERBY; How he raised Forces against the PARLIAMENT.  
With which drawing towards the KING'S Army near Brumicham in WARWICKSHIRE, He was set upon and defeated by the Trained Bands of that County, losing in the fight six hundred of his CAVALIERS.  
novemb .23. LONDON, Printed for john Davis. 1642   

DOCTRINA PARIT VIRTUTEM  device, an open book with a sword, scepter, and surrounding motto  
Good News out of Cheshire.  
AMongst all our factious English Nobility none has declared himself of a more perverse malignant disposition to the proceed of the Honourable the High Court of Parliament, than james Lord Strange, by the decease of his father now Earl of Derby, declaring himself utterly against their just endeavours for the Commonwealth, not only by striving to put the Commission of Array in execution in the Counties of Chester and Lancaster; but also by beleaguring the good Town of Manchester, because they refused to be assistant to his mischievous purposes, and continued resolute to defend their Liberties, and obey the Ordinances of Parliament, but being shamefully repulsed thence with the loss of some hundred of his Cavaliers. He has often attempted the loyalty of those Manchestrians, which he could no ways violate, and so has ever since laboured all the Gentry and Yeomanry in those Counties to his part, which was no hard matter for him to do, by reason of his power in those parts, most of them being his Tenants; Besides, on the other side of Dee he has large Revenues in Derbyshire and Denbighshire in North-Wales, where he likewise used all means possible by his Agents to levy men, taking up money of all the able men of his acquaintance to pay his soldiers, which 〈◊〉 is cre●●●●y reported of Welsh men and others completed the number of it least seven thousand, of which five thousand five hundred were Foot, and the rest Horse, with which Forces he would feign have had another fling at Manchester, the disgrace he received before in that Town sticking in his stomach, and in the hearts of his Cavaliers; but upon maturer advice and wiser deliberations, being certified of the preparations made in that Town for their defence, he waved his revenge and thought it fit to pass, if it were possible, into these Southern parts, and unite his Army to the body of His Majesty's Army, Fortune seeming to smile upon his intentions, being that His Excellence the Earl of Essex was retired from those parts with his Forces towards the City of London, so that he verily imagined none would impeach his passage; to the City of Chester therefore about the midst of this present Month he drew forth all his Regiments, and billeting them thereabouts some two days, he marched from thence towards Shrewsbury, and so by way of Newport through the County of Salop towards Warwickshire, plundering and destroying the Countries, his soldiers robbing and spoiling all the Inhabitants thereabouts, as well Malignants of their own faction as those that were true sons to their Mother the Commonwealth.  
Upon Thursday last entering into Warwickshire, where the well affected Trained Bands of that County, with some of the Parliament Forces left there to secure the Country, prepared themselves to give him a welcome into those parts, and to give him battle, rather than to permit their lands and possessions, their wives and children to become a prey to those devouring Harpies.  
On Friday Morning therefore in a well composed Body they advanced to the edge of the County as far as Bramicham, being some four thousand men, four hundred of which were Horse.  
The Earl being then quartered some three miles off, understanding of the approach of these Regiments, by the advice of his Cavaliers those pernicious Counsellors marched with all speed toward them, who were nothing afraid of his numbers: about twelve of clock they were in view one of another in the broad highway about one mile on this side Brumicham; our men having two pieces of Cannon they had from Warwick Castle, planted them privately behind a thick quickset hedge, placing some two hundred Musquetiers in ambush, that lay close without noise by the said pieces; the Earl had placed his horsemen in the front of his forces, being most part Cavaliers, who vowed with all desperateness to revenge the disgrace they had received at Manchester, on those Roundheads, and so galloping in apace, they were stayed by our horsemen, who demeaned themselves very resolutely, charging into their troops, and with their Carabines and Petronels, tumbling divers of them from their horses never to rise again, till the Earl himself with his own troop coming in, they did so overly our horsemen with their numbers, they had much ado to keep their ranks, some of them falling their Country's sacrifice; but our foot not unmindful to perform their duties, sent a lusty volley of shot into the thickest of those malignants, which made them at a stand: our Musquetiers charging and discharging, with much discretion and dexterity, the Cavaliers were not so hasty as at first, but wheeling about gave licence to the leaders of their foot, to bring them on, which they did, in as broad a body as the narrowness of the place would permit; so that now they were at it with much violence, sometime our footmen, and sometimes theirs getting ground, their horse & ours upon all occasions seconding their foot. It was not discernible to which side the better of the battle inclined, our forces, cause smallest in number (though the better experienced and more courageous) appearing to the Enemy to be half vanquished; but there was no such matter, though many of them fell, the rest were not disheartened, rather excited to revenge their fellow's losses on those bloodsuckers; and so being now come, as it were, to handiblowes, the valiant Pike-men at the push, showed their cunning in martial discipline, and undaunted resolutions, goring their horses, and killing their foot, while the Musquetiers incessantly poured out their flaming bullets.  
My Lord of Derby seeing his men fall thus on every side, and that it was impossible for his horsemen (in whom he reposed his chiefest confidence) to break through our well ordered squadrons, commanded his reserve to be brought up, which our men performing politicly, gave ground at least some two hundred paces, so giving opportunity to our ambush to charge them in the backs. The Cavaliers perceiving them to give ground, swore many lusty oaths, that the Roundheads fled, and so pressed on in great multitudes upon them when the two pieces of Cannon, which, as we related, was planted behind the quickset hedge, were discharged into the very thickest of them, with the sudden noise, and more sudden shot, amazing and overthrowing them by heaps, so that they had now no mind to pursue our men, who having now their purpose, and seeing them in that confusion at that unexpected salute, valiantly came in again upon them with joyful outcries, encouraging one another to assured victory. The Earl of Derby seeing this disaster, wished himself further off, but it was in vain; and therefore to make the best of that bad matter, he heartened on his Cavaliers, telling them, our forces now were at the last cast, and that if they once more did charge them but home, they would quickly be in rout.  
The Cavaliers knowing it was but in vain to turn their backs, desperately fell on again, and were as valiantly received, our men standing close, were not to be driven from their stations by all the fury of those devils, but drive bacl, force by force, opposing man to man, and horse to horse, our Cannon by this time being charged, through the hedge played upon their flanks, so that the footmen of Cheshire and North-Wales began to think of flight, when behold with a sudden and fearful outcry those two hundred Musquetiers appeared in the lane at their backs, discharging their pieces with good aim, and then falling in with the butt end of their muskets and swords, they made a bloody masacre among those malignants, who now would have fled, if they had known which way, esteeming those forces that had so on the sudden, charged them on the rear to be double their numbers: many of them therefore threw away their Arms, and strived to leap the hedge on one side of the way; which being low, was propitious to their purpose; some escaping that way, many others cried out for quarter, and yielded themselves: the Earl of Derby with his Cavaliers being in the Van, and hearing this strange hurly-burly in his rear, turned faces about, beholding the sudden destruction of his men, which he was no way able to remedy, was ready to run mad for anger, and so with his Cavaliers betook themselves to open flight, some of them leaping the hedge with their horses, and the rest with the Earl, taking down the lane, and running over their own foot as well as our musquetiers, made bacl to Brumicham, our men to the very twnes end, and in the town doing execution on thm; the poor townsmen rejoicing to see those villain's fall, that had so lately used them with all hostility. There fell in the fight and in the flight, six hundred men and upwards, and were full as many taken prisoners. Of our side there was lost some seven score persons, our men giving thanks to God the giver of all victories for that conquest stayed at Brumicham that night and the next day, to see if the Earl would rally his forces, and again give them battle, but he had enough of that afternoon's entertainment, and had no mind to any more such welcomes; and therefore as fast as his horse would carry him, he made away to Shrewesbury, scarce thinking himself in safety, till he was within the walls, such an impression of fear had that conflict put into him, from thence, as is reported, he is stolen down, ashamed to be seen at Westchester, to his Manor of Lathum in Lancashire, to reinforce his beaten Regiments: for our parts, with our prisoners, and some Ensigns that were taken from the Enemy, we are retired to our houses, resolving on all occasions, to venture our lives for the Honourable, the high Court of Parliament, which Heaven preserve in safety.   
FINIS.