Battle of Naseby Battle of Naseby The Battle of Naseby was a decisive engagement of the English Civil War, fought on 14 June 1645 between the main Royalist army of King Charles I and the Parliamentarian New Model Army, commanded by Sir Thomas Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell. It was fought near the village of Naseby in Northamptonshire. After the Royalists stormed the Parliamentarian town of Leicester on 31st May 1645, Fairfax was ordered to lift his siege of Oxford, the Royalist capital, and engage the King's main army. Eager to bring the Royalists to battle, Fairfax set off in pursuit of the Royalist
Francis Windebank (Royalist soldier) forces in April 1645, Walters speculates that this was done to protect the lives of his wife and friends even though the Parliamentarian forces had little chance of taking the house by force. Returning to Oxford he was consequently tried by a Royalist court-martial which took just three hours to sentence him to death by firing squad. According to Walters the execution took place against the length of town wall abutting Merton College, where Windebank bared his chest to the muskets and exclaimed "God Save the King." He was survived by his wife and a daughter, Frances. Windebank's ghost was