I cannot omit taking notice on all occasions how exceeding serviceable this method was of posting musketeers in the intervals, among the horse, in all this war.  I persuaded our generals to it as much as possible, and I never knew a body of horse beaten that did so:  yet I had great difficulty to prevail upon our people to believe it, though it was taught me by the greatest general in the world, viz., the King of Sweden.  Prince Rupert did it at the battle of Marston Moor; and had the Earl of Newcastle not been obstinate against it in his right wing, as I observed before, the day had not been lost.  In discoursing this with Sir Marmaduke Langdale, I had related several examples of the serviceableness of these small bodies of firemen, and with great difficulty brought him to agree, telling him I would be answerable for the success.  But after the fight, he told me plainly he saw the advantage of it, and would never fight otherwise again if he had any foot to place.  So having relieved these two places, we hastened by long marches through Derbyshire, to join Prince Rupert on the edge of Shropshire and Cheshire.  We found Colonel Rossiter had followed us at a distance ever since the business at Melton Mowbray, but never cared to attack us, and we found he did the like still.  Our general would fain have been doing with him again, but we found him too shy.  Once we laid a trap for him at Dovebridge, between Derby and Burton-upon-Trent, the body being marched two days before.  Three hundred dragoons were left to guard the bridge, as if we were afraid he should fall upon us.  Upon this we marched, as I said, on to Burton, and the next day, fetching a compass round, came to a village near Titbury Castle, whose name I forgot, where we lay still expecting our dragoons would be attacked.

Accordingly, the colonel, strengthened with some troops of horse from Yorkshire, comes up to the bridge, and finding some dragoons posted, advances to charge them.  The dragoons immediately get a-horseback, and run for it, as they were ordered.  But the old lad was not to be caught so, for he halts immediately at the bridge, and would not come over till he had sent three or four flying parties abroad to discover the country.  One of these parties fell into our hands, and received but coarse entertainment.  Finding the plot would not take, we appeared and drew up in view of the bridge, but he would not stir.  So we continued our march into Cheshire, where we joined Prince Rupert and Prince Maurice, making together a fine body, being above 8000 horse and dragoons.

This was the best and most successful expedition I was in during this war.  ’Twas well concerted, and executed with as much expedition and conduct as could be desired, and the success was answerable to it.  And indeed, considering the season of the year (for we set out from Oxford the latter end of February), the ways bad, and the season wet, it was a terrible march of above 200 miles, in continual action, and continually dodged and observed by a vigilant enemy, and at a time when the north was overrun by their armies, and the Scots wanting employment for their forces.  Yet in less than twenty-three days we marched 200 miles, fought the enemy in open field four times, relieved one garrison besieged, and raised the siege of another, and joined our friends at last in safety.