Battle of Lansdowne The English Civil War battle of Lansdowne ( or Lansdown ) was fought on 5 July 1643 , near Bath , Somerset , southwest England . Although the Royalists under Lord Hopton forced the Parliamentarians under Sir William Waller to retreat from their hilltop position , they suffered so many casualties themselves and were left so disordered and short of ammunition that an injured Hopton was forced to retire . Campaign and Battle . By late May 1643 , Lord Hopton ' s royalist army had captured most of the south west of England . Joined by the Earl of Hertford , he then advanced eastward into Parliamentarian - held territory . Sir William Waller ' s army held Bath , to obstruct their further advance . On 2 July 1643 the Royalists seized the bridge at Bradford on Avon . On 3 July , skirmishes took place at Claverton and at Waller ' s positions south and east of Bath . Waller retired to a strong position on Lansdown Hill , northwest of Bath while the main Royalist force moved north through Batheaston to Marshfield . Hopton ' s forces encountered this position on 4 July and were unpleasantly surprised at its strength . They withdrew north - east to Marshfield , while their rearguard repulsed an attempt by Waller ' s cavalry to pursue . Early on 5 July , Waller moved to the north end of Lansdown Hill , where he built crude breastworks for his infantry , and sent some of his cavalry against Hopton ' s outposts . They put to flight some badly - led Royalist cavalry , and the alarm caused all of Hopton ' s army to form up and began advancing west , till they came in sight of Waller ' s position . There was indecisive skirmishing for two hours , and Hopton again tried to withdraw . Waller once again sent his horse and dragoons against the enemy rearguard , and this time they routed the Royalist cavalry , although the infantry stood firm . Hopton ' s army turned about , and defeated the Roundhead cavalry in a confused action . With his Cornish foot regiments already advancing without orders , Hopton at last attacked Lansdown Hill . As they charged up the steep slopes towards the Parliamentarian position on the crest , Hopton ' s cavalry suffered badly , and many panicked . 1 , 400 of them fled , some as far as Oxford . Under Sir Bevil Grenville , Hopton ' s Cornish pikemen stormed Waller ' s breastworks , while Royalist musketeers outflanked Waller through the woods on each side of his position . Grenville was mortally wounded in hand - to - hand combat as Parliamentarian horse counter - attacked and were driven off . Waller ' s infantry fell back to a wall across the crest of the hill from where they kept up musket fire until dark fell . During the night , they withdrew silently , leaving burning matches on the wall to deceive the Royalists that they still held the position . Aftermath . The day after the battle , a Royalist ammunition cart exploded . Hopton was injured and temporarily blinded . The loss of the powder and the absence of most of their horses meant the Royalists could not fight another action . Meanwhile , Waller had retired to Bath , where he had been reinforced and was ready to attack again . Hopton ' s army retreated in low spirits to Devizes . Hopton ' s army was in such a poor situation before their retreat that Hopton ' s military opponent but old friend Waller offered him hospitality in Bath , though he refused it . A Cornish officer describing the battle wrote that Waller was " " . . . the best shifter and chooser of ground when hee was not Master of the field that ever I saw " " ( sic ) . The site of the battle is marked by a monument to Sir Bevil Grenville , who died after the battle in Cold Ashton Rectory .