Sir Edmund Verney (1616 – 11 September 1649) was an English soldier who fought on the Royalist side during the

English Civil War The English Civil War (1642–1651) was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Parliamentarians (" Roundheads") and Royalists led by Charles I ("Cavaliers"), mainly over the manner of England's governance and issues of re ...

Education

Verney was born in 1616, was third son of Sir Edmund Verney and his wife, Margaret (died 1641), daughter of Sir Thomas Denton of Hillesden. Edmund was educated at a private school at

Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...

, at

Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of the ...

(1634), and then at

Magdalen Hall Hertford College ( ), previously known as Magdalen Hall, is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on Catte Street in the centre of Oxford, directly opposite the main gate to the Bodleian Library. The colleg ...

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, where he matriculated on 22 January 1636, learnt little and got into debt and into disgrace with his tutor, Henry Wilkinson. Thence he was removed to the care of Mr. Crowther, rector of

Newton Blossomville Newton Blossomville is a village in the unitary authority area of the City of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. It is a civil parish, sharing a joint parish council with Clifton Reynes. At the 2011 census, the population of the parish was ...

, formerly his elder brother Ralph's Oxford tutor, who found him "devoid of the first grounds of logicke or other

University A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

learning", but "willing and capable".

Military service

Verney entered the army as a volunteer in 1639, joined his father in the army of King

Charles I Charles I may refer to: Kings and emperors * Charlemagne (742–814), numbered Charles I in the lists of Holy Roman Emperors and French kings * Charles I of Anjou (1226–1285), also king of Albania, Jerusalem, Naples and Sicily * Charles I of ...

on the

Scottish border The Anglo-Scottish border () is a border separating Scotland and England which runs for between Marshall Meadows Bay on the east coast and the Solway Firth in the west. The surrounding area is sometimes referred to as "the Borderlands". The ...

, and from that time proved himself a first-rate soldier, enduring hardships cheerfully, and winning the confidence of his men. With the first money he earned he paid off his Oxford creditors, and, when the

First Bishops' War First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

with

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

was over, joined the army of the states in

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

in Sir Thomas Culpepper's company. In winter quarters at

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...

he studied

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

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, and history seven or eight hours a day at the university, and did much to repair the time wasted at Oxford. He had many disappointments about promotion, though

Elizabeth, Queen of Bohemia Elizabeth Stuart (19 August 159613 February 1662) was Electress of the Palatinate and briefly Queen of Bohemia as the wife of Frederick V of the Palatinate. Since her husband's reign in Bohemia lasted for just one winter, she is called the Wi ...

(sister of Charles I) did her best to help him. In 1640 he served again in the English army against the Scots in the

Second Bishops' War The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds eac ...

. Verney sided with the king in the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, and suffered heavily for his loyalty; his pay as well as that of his men was constantly in arrears; the grief of his father's death at the

Battle of Edgehill The Battle of Edgehill (or Edge Hill) was a pitched battle of the First English Civil War. It was fought near Edge Hill and Kineton in southern Warwickshire on Sunday, 23 October 1642. All attempts at constitutional compromise between K ...

was embittered by the sorrow and indignation he felt that his eldest brother, Ralph, should support the Parliamentary cause; his portion invested in the

aulnage Alnage, or aulnage (from Old French ''aune'', ell; parallel to " yardage") was the official supervision of the shape and quality of manufactured woolen cloth. Origins The alnage was first ordered in 1196, during the reign of Richard I, that "woo ...

was practically forfeited, and he suffered most of all from the mistakes he witnessed daily in the conduct of his own leaders. In 1642 Verney served with James, Duke of Ormonde in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, during the

Irish Confederate Wars The Irish Confederate Wars, also called the Eleven Years' War (from ga, Cogadh na hAon-déag mBliana), took place in Ireland between 1641 and 1653. It was the Irish theatre of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, a series of civil wars in the kin ...

in the savage fighting against unarmed and untrained peasants. "Nobler spirit never was", wrote S.R. Gardiner in his ''History of England'', "than that of Edmund Verney, a younger son of Charles's knight-marshal, yet even his temper was lowered by the element in which he worked". "The enemy runs from us wheresoever we meet them", he writes, "but if we chance to overtake them, we give no quarter, but put all to the sword". He sent the same report after the taking of Trim; he saw much fighting, and was wounded at the

Battle of Rathconnell A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

. He was knighted in 1644, and made lieutenant-governor of

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

; he served during the two sieges, and was highly valued by

Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and Peerage of the United Kingdom, peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and h ...

and other commanders. After the surrender of Chester, Sir Edmund rejoined Ormonde, to whom he was devotedly attached; and their portraits were painted in

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

Justus van Egmont Justus van Egmont or Joost van Egmont (1601 – 8 January 1674) was a painter and a tapestry designer during the 17th century.Arthur Aston to reinforce the defenders of Drogheda. Sir Edmund wrote thence (9 September 1649) earnestly begging Ormonde to fall on the enemy's camp to make a diversion. He survived the horrors of the assault and Cromwell's massacre of the inhabitants, but the few who had escaped were "sought out and killed in cold blood". Among these was Verney, who was enticed, even from the presence of Cromwell, by a certain Roper, who then "ran him thro' with a

tuck Tuck may refer to: People * Tuck (surname), including a list of people * Tuck (nickname), a list of people * Tuck (footballer), Portuguese football player and coach João Carlos Novo de Araújo Gonçalves (born 1969) * Hillary Tuck (born 1978), A ...

In Fiction

Verney has a love affair (unconsummated) with Mary Powell, before she becomes the first wife of the poet

John Milton John Milton (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an English poet and intellectual. His 1667 epic poem '' Paradise Lost'', written in blank verse and including over ten chapters, was written in a time of immense religious flux and political ...

, in the historical novel by

Robert Graves Captain Robert von Ranke Graves (24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985) was a British poet, historical novelist and critic. His father was Alfred Perceval Graves, a celebrated Irish poet and figure in the Gaelic revival; they were both Celtic ...

, '' Wife to Mr. Milton''. It is unclear whether Graves had any factual evidence on which to base this part of his story.

Notes

References

* Endnotes: **''Verney Memoirs'', vols. i. and ii., ''Verney Papers'', ed. Bruce (Camd. Soc.); ** Gardiner's ''History of England'' x. 175, and ''History of the Commonwealth, i. 124, 128, 135; ** Traill's ''Social England'' iv. 92; **Clarendon's ''Hist of the Rebellion'', fol. edit. iii. 264; **''Manuscripts'' at

Claydon House Claydon House is a English country house, country house in the Aylesbury Vale, Buckinghamshire, England, near the village of Middle Claydon. It was built between 1757 and 1771 and is now owned by the National Trust for Places of Historic Interes ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Verney, Edmund 1616 births 1649 deaths English army officers Royalist military personnel of the English Civil War People educated at Winchester College Alumni of Magdalen Hall, Oxford English military personnel killed in action People of the Irish Confederate Wars