Her ladyship was likewise accompanied by Don Fortunio, who had come to bid his daughter adieu, preparatory to his departure to Spain.
As the countess was attended by a guard of twenty men, the deserted mansion seemed peopled at once. Its quietude was gone.
The change, however, mattered little to Standish. His brief season of felicity was ended.
On the same day came an order from Prince Rupert requiring him to join the army immediately at Liverpool.
He felt most unwilling to obey. His bride sought to detain him, but he broke from her arms, and set forth.
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XII
The Siege of Liverpool
ON approaching Liverpool, Standish found that Prince Rupert had fixed his camp round the Beacon, which was situated on the top of a hill about a mile from the town.
At the period in question, the great and wealthy town, now the chief commercial port in the kingdom, and the abode of merchant princes, was then almost in its infancy. But its inhabitants were remarkably active and enterprising, the position of the port on the Mersey was admirably chosen, and even then there were indications of the future greatness and importance of the town.
Viewed from the Beacon Hill, Liverpool did not look very strongly fortified, and Prince Rupert persuaded himself he should easily take it, but he found the task more difficult than he expected.
The town possessed a large garrison, commanded by Colonel Moore, who had previously assisted at the Leaguer of Lathom. The governor had fifteen hundred men with him, of whom a third were cavalry, and fresh supplies derived from Manchester, were sent by water from Warrington. Thus he was enabled to make a formidable defence.
Like Bolton and all the other towns in Lancashire garrisoned by the Parliament, Liverpool was surrounded by high mud walls and a deep ditch.
These fortifications formed a semicircle, commencing with the river, inclosing Dale-street, and continuing to some low marshy ground, on the edge of which batteries were erected.
At the entrances to all the streets were gates protected by cannon.
On the south there was a strong castle containing the garrison, surrounded by a deep fosse, by means of which stores could be brought in.
Heavy ordnance were placed on the walls commanding the river, and the port was further protected by a battery mounting eight guns.
The ships in the harbour were likewise fitted up to defend the town on thè river side.
Thus, it will be seen that Liverpool, owing to its situation on the Mersey, had advantages possessed by no other town in Lancashire, but it was somewhat exposed on the land side.
As an additional protection from the shot of the besiegers, the walls were covered with large bags of wool, brought by the fugitive Protestants from Ireland after the massacres.
When Standish joined the prince, the siege had already begun.
Expecting to take the place by a coup de main, and not anticipating such vigorous resistance as he found from Governor Moore, Rupert made a furious assault on the gate at the end of Dale-street, while another gate was attacked with equal fury by Lord Derby.
Both leaders were repulsed, and with considerable loss, and the prince was still burning with rage at the defeat, when Standish arrived.
Rupert rarely held a council of war, but formed his own judgment, and acted upon it.
However, he consulted Lord Derby as to the prudence of a second assault, and found him exceedingly averse to it. His lordship recommended a regular siege with intrenchments and batteries as at Lathom.
“’Sdeath! that will occupy a month!” cried Rupert; “and then we shall have to storm the town.”
“We shall not take it otherwise,” said the earl. “We must batter down the walls. Only by repeated attacks shall we succeed.”
Evidently dissatisfied with the advice, Rupert was unwilling to adopt it. He was all impatience to wipe out the disgrace of the defeat.
“This is not the advice you gave me at Bolton, my lord,” he said. “Then you urged a second assault without delay. No talk of siege works.”
“Nor were they needed, your highness, because we knew a gate would be opened to us.”