Lord Hopton’s Regiment of Horse

Flag Illustration	1)
Active	1642-1646
Country	England
Allegiance	Royalist
Conflicts	First Civil War
Type	Horse
Colonel	Lord Hopton
Area Raised	Somerset
Flag Colour	Red
Flag Design	Two known
Field Armies	Hopton 1642-6

West Country cavalry regiment serving with Lord Hopton throughout the First Civil War

• July: Raised in Somerset
• August: Fracas at Shepton Mallet
• August: Skirmish at Wells
• September: Besieged at Sherborne Castle
• September: Skirmish at Babylon Hill
• October: Taking of Launceston
• December: Skirmish at Modbury
• December: Skirmish at Torrington?

• January: Battle of Braddock Down
• January: Storm of Saltash?
• April: Battle of Beacon Hill
• April: Battle of Sourton Down
• May: Battle of Stratton
• July: Battle of Lansdown
• July: Besieged in Devizes
• July: Storm of Bristol
• August: Garrison of Bristol
• September: First Battle of Newbury
• December: Skirmish at Westbourne

• March: Battle of Cheriton
• October: Second Battle of Newbury
• November: Skirmish at Buckingham (det)
• November: Relief of Donnington Castle

• February: Taking of Rowden House
• July: Battle of Langport
• August: Skirmish at Chalfield?

• February: Battle of Torrington
• March: Surrender at Truro

Lord Hopton’s cavalry troop standard in 1644 was noted by Symonds as red, fringed red and white, with a cannon discharging in gold and a motto in gold letters above Et sacris compescuit ignibus ignes (He extinguished fires with sacred fires), depicted in the Illustration above. At that time Hopton was General of Artillery to Prince Maurice. At Torrington in 1646 another cornet, said to be Hopton’s, was captured. It bore the motto I will strive to serve my Sovereign King.

A list of the regiment's officers is shown in Officers and Regiments of the Royalist Army by Stuart Reid (Partizan Press).

Ralph, Lord Hopton of Stratton

Lieutenant Colonel of Hopton's horse and dragoons

• Originally a single troop, expanded to a full regiment after the storm of Bristol.
• At least 4 troops by Cheriton