That I may give you an account of our pro­ceedings at Thurland, you may understood that Sir Iohn Girlington having drawn [...] into his Castle of Thurland, he began to pl [...] the Countrey, and to commit Robberie and Murthers, and thereupon for the suppression of him and his adherents, I repaired thither, and af­ter seven weeks straight siege of the Castle, it was delivered unto me, to be demolished upon agreement, to suffer him and all his in the Ca­stle, to passe away with their lives, and goods: Du­ring most part of the siege, the greatest part of the Forces of Westmerland lay within our view, and daily threatned us; but God confined them to their own County, and every day more, [Page 4] and more inclined the hearts of the Commons of Westmerland to decline any Attempt upon us, though we then lay in an Out Angle of our County, far from Sapplies, and whilest these things were in suspence, a Designe was set on foot by all the Malignant Gentry of Westmer­land and Cumberland, and by Roger Kirby, and Alexander Rigby of the Burghe, two Lancashire men, to raise all the Forces of Cartmell and Fournes, part of Lancashire, to joyn with Cum­berland and Westmerland, to surprise Lancaster and Hornby Castles, and to assault us on all sides, and to raise our Siege, and then to proceed fur­ther into Lancashire, and (as upon credible in­formation I beleeve) to joyn with Latham house, and all the ill affected in our County, to our ge­nerall devastation. And for this end, they drew together part of Cumberland forces into Fournes, and with them the Strength of that place, to a­bout the number of sixteen hundred, intending the next day to March into Cartmell towards us, and there to adde to their forces, and in their way, they took and imprisoned divers of the best affected, and caused the rest of them to flie out of the Country, who posting to us, I forth­with [Page 5] took five hundred foot, two Drakes and three small Troops of Horse, parcell of my Forces at Thurland, and with them in one day, I Marched almost thirty miles, over mountaines, and through Sea-sands, and waters, within two miles of the Enemie, and the next morning being the Lords day, we found the Enemy in the Field, standing with a Body of Horse, and ano­ther of Foot, in a posture to receive us, upon a ground chosen for their own advantage: & when we were within half a mile of them, we com­mitted our selves to Gods protection, and began our work with publike prayers for his blessing upon us: And those done, we speeded unto the Enemy, with such Resolution and Cou­rage in all the Captains, and Common Soul­diers, as by their deportment, I might have rather deemed, that they had made hast to have saluted their friends, then to have encoun­tred their enemies: the enemie, word was (In with Quecn Mary) ours was (God with us) and at our first appearance, God so struck the hearts of these our enemie, with terrour, that before a blow given, their Horse begun to retreat, our foot gave a great shout, our Horse pursued, theirs fled; [Page 6] their foot dispersed, and fled; they all trusted more to their feet, then their hands; they threw away their Arms and Colours, deserted their ma­gazin drawn with eight oxen, and were totally routed in one quarter of an hours time; our horse slew some few of them in the pursuit, and drave many of them into the Sea; wee took their Co­lonel Hudleston of Millam, two Captains, and an Ensign, and about foure hundred Prisoners, six foot Colours, and one horse Colour; and their Magazin, and some horses, and more arms then men: and all this without the losse of any one man of ours; wee had only one man hurt by the Enemy, and only another hurt by himselfe with his own Pistoll, but neither mortally; upon the close of the busines, all our men with a great shout cryed out, Glory be to God; and wee all, except one Troop of horse, and one foot Company, which I left to quiet the Countrey, returned forthwith towards our siege at Thur­land; most of our Horse-men without alight­ing from our horses, and most of us all, without eating or drinking; so that early the next day wee came again to Thurland, where we found our siege continued, within view of more then [Page 7] treble forces from Westmerland, this worke in Fournes had that influence upon all the Castlers, and all the Gentry of Westmerland, and Cum­berland, who then lay within our fight at Kirby-Loynsdale, that within two dayes after, the Ca­stle was by the Negotiation of Sir Philip Musgrave, then commanding in chiefe in Westmerland and Cumberland, agreed to be rendred unto me, to be demolished, which is accordingly done: And though I endeavoured to have preserved all the combustible materials therin from fire, yet I could not therein prevaile with the common souldiers without great displeasure.

My humble suit now is, to have the order of the House of Commons for my indemp [...]ity, for demolishing of the Castle: And because Colo­nel Hudleston (who yet hath a Regiment in York­shire, in or neer Hallifax) is as I heare Serjeant Major Generall of Cumberland; and the most considerable man in Cumberland, and our next neighbour to Lancashire, and one whom with­out further danger to the peace of our countie, I cannot conceive can be kept Prisoner here, I have therefore presumed to send him uno you, under the care and custody of Mr. Robert Fog, of [Page 8] whose industry and fidelity, both you and wee here have had much experience: Sir, that God may blesse, and prosper all your designs, and pro­ceedings for his glory, and the peace of this King­dom, is the daily prayer of