The Genesis

Sir George Lisle’s Regiment of Foote

The Genesis

Writing now in September 2024, I am minded that it is pretty well exactly 52 years since what was to be Lisle’s first came to be. I was so glad to see the regiment was still in existence, having been out of touch with the re-enactors world for many years. I contacted the regiment and Aimee. She indulgently thought current members may be interested in knowing something of the early days.

Most current members were not even born when the regiment began as No. 9 Company Kings Guard in September 1972, and many of the early members are no longer with us. I was then 26; now I am 78, an elderly artist living in the Orkney Islands. This recollection is entirely from memory, so forgive any mistakes in names and dates.

It all began by seeing a Sealed Knot battle at Pershore in late summer 1972, which I attended with my then wife Anne, a friend Paul Dooling, and his girlfriend Monika. Having seen the event, I realised I wanted to be part of that! My friend Paul and my wife were vaguely interested but not enthusiastic; indeed, my wife never liked it. The Civil War had always interested me. I wrote to the Sealed Knot, asking if I could form a regiment no less, the cheek and ignorance of the young. By return post, I received a commission signed by Peter Young. I was now Ensign commanding, well, not a regiment, but No. 9 Company Kings Lifeguard of Foote. Well! How good I felt! I was in command of a company! Well! A company of 1.

Those were the days before social media, mobile phones, computers, the internet, CDs, DVDs, or videos to today’s youth, the stone age’.

A very different world. Ted Heath was Prime Minister; it had been the year of the first Miners’ Strike, the Vietnam War was still raging, and the IRA were bombing targets in England. In music, it was the time of The Eagles, Moody Blues, Don McLean, and The Who.

I was living in Lichfield in a tiny flat on Conduit Street, at the time teaching art at Pelsall Comprehensive School. I did not even have a phone!

There followed newspaper ads, a rather embarrassing feature in the Lichfield Mercury. A trickle of people contacted me.

The inaugural meeting of No. 9 Company Kings Guard took place in September 1972 at the Bluebell pub, Rotten Row Lichfield, now defunct. As far as I can remember, there was Nick Larkin, the late Tony Lanchester, Brian Taylor, who remained in the society for many years, the late Barbara Mart and her sister Leslie Whelan, the eccentric but entertaining Roland Rotherham, and several others I cannot remember.

Some of the individual personalities of the early days

Nick Larkin

Nick ran a military model shop opposite the Friary in Lichfield; he was a military modeller of some distinction and an enthusiast for military history. His family had a large toy shop.

Nick was with us from the beginning and succeeded me as CO. He eventually became Captain General of the Sealed Knot. He later became a teacher; I last saw him in Chester in 2004.

Tony Lanchester

Tony was an early enthusiast, a committed socialist; he worked, I recall, at GKN Bound Brook in Lichfield. He later commanded a company and troop of dragoons in Lisle’s, moving to Bagot's regiment after my time. I heard Tony sadly died in the 1990’s. He was a hard-working member of the unit.

Barbara Mart MA

Barbara, a history graduate of Oxford, taught history at King Edwards in Lichfield. A remarkable lady, always beautifully dressed. She was a talented costumer and gifted historian. She had worked for the BBC in the 60’s on ‘The Three Musketeers’ and had known many in the music and theatre world, including the Walker Brothers, Dave Dee, Jimi Hendrix, and Oliver Reed. She did much to help us try to get authenticity. I lost touch with her. Barbara, I learnt, sadly died in October 2003.

Roland Rotherham

Roland was an interesting character; he had been a footman at Buckingham Palace, which I know is true. He later, after my time, became Chaplain General to the SK. Wonderful raconteur with a theatrical bent. Over the years, he has reinvented himself as Professor Roland Rotherham, PhD, an authority on King Arthur, and has appeared on radio and TV. This is naughty, as far as I know, and I stand to be corrected; he has no formal qualifications? Still he could be, and hopefully still is entertaining.

Brian Taylor

A Lichfield native through and through, at the time a bin man,'salt of the earth’, he became sergeant and was immensely strong and useful in a pike push. He met and married his wife Kathy in the society.

At that first meeting we discussed how we were to proceed; we had no access to any clothing or equipment, and there was no Original Reenactors Market in those days. We had to do it ourselves.

Clothing and Equipment

The sealed knot gave a few guidelines, not very useful. The Kings Guard then dressed in red corduroy, not very authentic; I trust they have progressed since then. We were advised to adapt a pyjama pattern as doublets and breeches. We had no idea where to get pikes, helmets, or other accessories. The SK advised two suppliers of theatrical clothing for hats, boots, etc., Gamba, Annello, and Davide. We had a treasure in Barbara Mart, who was a great help. The research was fun. Gradually, we cobbled together something approximating 17th-century clothing. By today’s standards, we were rather ‘pantomime cavaliers’.

The Sealed Knot in 1972

Founded in 1967 by the late Brigadier Peter Young as a promotion for his Edgehill book. Many of the core members were ex-military, indeed WW2 veterans. The adjutant general was Lt Col. Hastings Read. The Kings Guard was commanded by the late Sir Peter Agnew, a charming ex-naval gentleman. The adjutant was Tony Talents, also ex-military. All communication was by post.

There was a definite whiff of Sandhurst and WW2 military practice.

Regiments were all over the country; in those days there was no English Civil War Society. The Roundhead Association then existed within the SK.

Early on, we made friends with our enemy in the form of Col. Foxes under Tony Merchant.

Tony Merchant

Then commander of Colonel Foxes Foote, based in Wednesbury. Tony was also a committed socialist, as many parliamentarians were. He and his people attended most of our social events, and we became good drinking companions. Tony became a personal friend. He became commander of all SK Parliament Forces, and I heard he ended up with the title of Lord Protector. After the society, I lost touch with him. If he is still with us, he will be in his eighties; I hope so. He is a really nice fellow.

Early Outings

After a couple of months, we had quite a few members, mainly from around Lichfield, Rugeley, and Stafford. We made our first public appearance in December 1972. As with several of our early activities, often ill advised, this first one had a flavour of an episode of ‘Father Ted’. Along with members of Foxes, we escorted Father Christmas around Lichfield as a promotion for Nick Larkin’s father’s toy shop. I am afraid to say the event was photographed for the Lichfield Mercury, and unfortunately the image does from time to time reappear. Any embarrassment was soon washed away, with considerable consumption of Marston’s Pedigree in the Earl of Lichfield, which was our unofficial meeting place for ale.

The company received its introduction to battle in January 1973 with a battle re-enactment at the Holly Holy Day event at Nantwich. This was run by Kings Guard, I think no. 3 company under the late Major Andy Gillot, another WW2 veteran and old India hand, a little like Captain Mannering but charming. As far as I remember, there were eleven of us; we borrowed pikes from the Worcester Kings Guard Company under Roger Owen, a nice chap.

I remember the introduction to a pike push was educative, a lot rougher than I had anticipated.

1973

After Nantwich, our numbers grew; Nick Larkin was my sergeant, and new members joined. There was Ian Taverner from Stafford who ended up in the Heralds, and David Blackmore, who eventually worked in the Royal Armoury, got a Ph.D., and has published several books. He became Lord General of the Roundhead Association. Last I heard he was in the American Civil War Society, although he must now be 70. Other characters were John Pearson, always called ‘Po’, Colin Bailey, and Tom Wardroper from Wolverhampton. I heard John Pearson bought a tank. I do remember Tom being arrested outside Buckingham Palace in full costume with a matchlock on the way to a muster in Maidstone. They let him go.

We attended a training weekend at Sudely Castle in spring 1973, which gave us an opportunity to see other SK people.

The big events in 1973 were a trip to Scotland, which I did not attend, for the Battle of Killiecrankie. Here our people had a rough time as Highlanders, where they were literally run over by a regiment made up largely of serving Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders.

Then there was the epic Battle of Naseby; this took place a long way from Naseby, at Castle Ashby, Northamptonshire. Around 5000 were on the field. We put out around 30; I was promoted to Lieutenant, and Nick Larkin to Ensign.

In those days, there were some strange sights. Occasionally you would see Dunlop ‘Toetector’ wellies; one regiment wore old miners helmets with bits of lino as lobstertails. The northern regiments could be especially physical. I do remember Wakefield Lamberts as one such.

At some events, free beer was available, or in the West Country, free cider. I do not know if things have changed, but Ale was ever our daily companion at musters.

Also in 1973, we mounted a guard of honour for the opening of the Ancient High House. Adjourning to the Bear, we met the poet Adrian Henry, and he bought us wine.

We also did guard at Warwick Castle, hosted by the Earl of Northampton’s green coats. With free beer and food.

Summer saw a sizeable battle at Maidstone and a major event at Newbury, where we were briefly filmed for the Everyman TV series.

We ended the 1973 season at Nunney Castle, a really rough event. I remember there was an assault on the castle with scaling ladders, which were pushed away with people falling in the moat.

We also that weekend discovered a wonderful pub, the George at Norton St. Phillip, where I remember Colin Bailey in the half-timbered gallery yard proclaiming John Donne’s sermon on sin and death.

At the end of 1973, the company was well established; we now had musketeers of a sort, albeit then with repro matchlocks that did not fire but were operated by dropping a bird scarer down the barrel. I was now a captain, Nick Lieutenant, and Tony Lanchester Ensign commanding musketeers.

The high spot of the end of 1973 was our banquet, held at the Swan in Lichfield. Peter Young himself was guest of honour, and we performed a masque by Orlando Gibbons, with me rather pretentiously as Charles I and Barbara Mart as Henrietta Maria.

1974

By the opening of 1974, we felt well established, we had proved ourselves in battle, and we were constantly seeking to make the whole thing authentic. Whatever you do in this or any re-enactment, society is only ever creating a pastiche. Gradually, we became more aware of the realities of the period. We could all go home; we did not have lice or really face the horror of being maimed or killed. Professor Ronald Hutton estimates that up to a quarter of the population of England have been killed, seriously injured, or displaced by the Civil War. Yes, we learnt more about the realities of ‘…This war without an enemy...’

We used to go to Ripple in Gloucestershire, the home of Peter Young, for a regimental weekend. Drilling from a little drill book published by the SK. On one occasion, we were invited to do a small display for the village and appeared at the village hall, where we did a pike drill and Tony Moreton, then commander of SK artillery, fired a mortar in the lane. The local vicar and villagers plied us with free local cider. The results were authentic; members the following morning were found comatose in the field at Peter Young’s house, slumped across straw bales, in various states of a post-inebriate condition.

At Easter we had the siege of Warwick Castle; here the Roundhead Association ran rings around the SK Royalists, and the seeds of political machinations began. The Roundhead Association said they were going to storm the castle, and they did.

Battles then were very vaguely scripted; it was not unknown for one side or the other to change the outcome and go for a victory even if not scripted.

Internal Politics

By early 1974, as in all organisations, internal politics manifested; we, or rather I, became involved.

A number of Royalist west country regiments had essentially been expelled from the SK under the late Count Nikolai Tolstoy, {great grandson of Leo Tolstoy}. They were doing events with The Roundhead Association, which really had something of a hint of contempt for the established SK organisation. The latter was run by the charismatic figure of Doctor Charles Kightly, a York-based historian. Many of the Roundhead Association were socialists and radicals; they found the old-school military conservative ways of the SK frankly ridiculous. After Warwick, the Roundhead Association was out of the SK. Only a few regiments on the Parliament side remained.

This may be a moment to look at some of the leading characters of the time in the re-enactment scene we were interacting with.

Brigadier Peter Young, 1915–1988,

A remarkable, highly intelligent character, soldier and academic, MA, DSO, MC. An ex-commando, D-Day veteran, and later Reader in Military History at Sandhurst.

I liked him, even though he tried to kill me once. He had a lovely wife, Joan, and my early encounters were friendly. He was a man of his time, uncompromising; he felt, with some justification, that the SK was his private army; he created it. Like all organisations, the SK took on a life of its own, and members did not always fit his vision. He is still the definitive source for a number of works covering major battles of the civil war.

He was, however, reactionary; I heard him ask if he had actually killed anyone in battle—a silly question to a WW2 ex-commando. His answer was, "Oh yes, but they were only Germans.”.

He had a great liking for whisky, which became a problem.

Sadly, he lost his wonderful house and wife, and I think he died in Tewkesbury in reduced circumstances.

Charles Kightly

Charles is a mediaeval historian and, in the 1970s, became a personal friend. He was responsible for the formation of the Roundhead Association. He became a friend of our unit. He left the Roundhead Association in 1976. He has continued to write and broadcast on historical subjects. He also organises living history events.

We were not happy with the expulsion of the Roundhead Association, wanting reconciliation. In 1974 we decided to organise an event of our own and bring together the Kings Army of the West, Roundhead Association, and SK. Probably not a great idea. It was meant to be small, but it became major muster.

Freeford Manor, July 1974

Freeford Manor is situated between Lichfield and Whittington. It is the home of the Dyott family, one of whom, ‘Dumb Dyott’, shot Lord Brook at the 1643 siege of Lichfield. The gun is still in the house.

Ostensibly to help with the roof repair of Whittington Church, we managed to get permission to run an event in July 1974. Our budget was £105. Richard Dyott was really helpful, and his elderly aunt was charming. We built embrasures for artillery and set out camping space. The family let us have use of the kitchen; Barbara Mart supplied excellent food, and we had ale and cider.

I cannot remember the actual date; I know it was July 1974.

By this time we were larger than some SK regiments; we had several companies; officially, we were called the Second Division of the Kings Lifeguard of Foote.

So at Freeford, we fielded the SK, the Roundhead Association, and the Kings Army, several thousand on the field. Peter Young on his horse in front of the Bishop of Lichfield, local dignitaries, and Richard Dyott. The SK hierarchy was not happy with me, and I was considered disruptive. However, the event was a success; in my time, we never did anything like that again.

The Genesis of a Regiment

Bank holiday 1974 saw us at a major event at Sudely Castle.

Increasingly, we felt we wanted to be a regiment in our own right.

That happened in October 1974. We were taking part in an event at Rushmoor Arena Aldershot with the real military. Nick Larkin was not with us; he was living a rock and roll life, touring as a roadie with the Climax Blues Band in Germany. Tony Lanchester was then acting second in command.

At the end of the event, I was promoted to Lt Col. I then took a deep breath and asked Peter Young if we could become an independent regiment.

I did not expect him to agree, but he did.

Sir George Lisle’s Regiment of Foote

We had achieved what we wanted but were not the SK’s favourite people, seen as disruptive. The winter was busy; we had to design new costumes, discarding the hated corduroy. We debated on coat colour; we were not sure if we should be blue or ellow. It is possible white was the correct colour, but we agreed on blue.

Sourcing woollen fabric was near impossible then, so we compromised.

We now had real muskets; Tony wanted to form a Dragoon troop, something I restricted allowing; they were armed with modified shotguns. Helmets were still fibreglass, as good steel cabasets, pots, or indeed lobster pots, had not yet proved available; those that did appear were horrible.

Barbara Mart produced a beautiful colour. We had around 120 members, companies in Lichfield, Stafford, Stoke, and Tamworth.

1975

The main events I recall from 1975 were Andover, Sedgemoor, and Brill.

At Andover, we fielded over 60 men, a good muster.

Brill was a singular event that did not endear us to the SK. This was organised with the Kings Army and Roundhead Association; we were the only SK regiment present.

I will here diverge and mention discipline and conduct. I was conscious that the behaviour of some regiments in pubs resembled English Saturday nights in Majorca. Many of us disliked that. That was especially true at Brill, where locals really were ‘pissed off’ with drunken 17th century soldiers.

By 1975, off the field, we tended not to go out in costume.

On the whole, while drink was often taken, I rarely had cause to remonstrate with our members about behaviour. I remember I went to local pubs to see which would be happy to accept our people, guaranteeing their behaviour. At Brill, we went a little out of the village. Gradually we started to stay in camp; sometimes there was a beer tent, and after my time, authentic camps began to happen.

At Brill were probably the worst latrines ever. Hessian screens, about four feet high, no shelter, a trench or for seated needs, a bucket, you could chat to male or female companions as it happened over the hessian. Latrines were often awful or even nonexistent; I hope that they have improved.

At Brill, we marched through the village in perfect stride, about 60 strong, watching disapprovingly Peter Young. We were not supposed to be there. However, the battle was very good. I was presented with a medallion of a golden duck by the regiment.

Sedgemoor

The battle of Sedgemoor was out of period, happening in July 1685. The Monmouth rebellion. This was when Charles II bastard son the Duke of Monmouth tried to seize the throne from his uncle James II. The actual battle was near Western Zoyland; our version was just outside Bridgewater.

We were to be part of Monmouth’s army with our friends from the Roundhead Association in the Red Regiment, under Charles Kightly.

Great effort was made to get the costume correct, obviously long coats. I really liked the style. Ordinary soldiers could wear rural smocks,

We camped separately from the Sealed Knot in a rugby field on the edge of Bridgewater. As we marched through the town to the site of the event, singing, ‘He who would true valiant be...’ Locals came out of their houses to cheer us. Gave us cider, and I remember one old man saying, “My ancestors fought wi’ e'." A few of our people opted to be on the James II side.

It was a spectacular battle, quite rough. Peter Young rode his horse directly at me, wielding his sword, and shouted, "Die damn you!” Oh dear, I thought.

In camp, to misquote Lord Fairfax, “I have never seen so many men so drunk in one place.” Soldiers were buying cider from local farms for 50p a gallon in buckets. I recall, I think it was one of the Russell brothers unconscious in a chair, oblivious to his comrades piling chairs on him. The following morning, it looked like the aftermath of a battle, with bodies all over the rugby field. Hangovers were ever with us then.

By this time Jim Culbert was with us; he and his wife Maz became friends; they married in 17th-century costume.

The Royalist Army

Following the rift between the SK and the Roundhead association, many of us wanted to engineer a reconciliation. The SK did not want members attending RA and KA events.

The SK losing the RA had left few Parliamentarians as opposition.

Those in the SK who thought this was ridiculous decided to form a challenge by organising ‘The Royalist Army’. If I recall as well as me, the activists were Lisle’s officers, Barbara Mart, Roger Owen of the Kings Guard, Tony Merchant, and a few others. The regiment voted to support this effort. We even had a broadsheet, Pro Regis, which outlined our aims; however, only my name appeared; others did not wish to be known as in support. As expected, the SK, especially Peter Young, were not pleased. It was something of a failed gesture.

The End of My Command

Some members of the regiment wanted to join the Kings Army; others, led by Tony Lanchester, wanted to change sides and join the RA. I had some sympathy with this. Yet others wanted to stay with the SK. I wanted the regiment we had created together to go on, not break up. It was clear that the SK would not allow me to remain if we were to stay there.

I was pleased with what we had achieved; we had over 140 members, and we looked for the time pretty good. I have to admit I was rather weary. Throughout, I had members coming to me with relationship problems and other grumbles. I also wanted to devote more time to painting. So, in, I think, July 1975, I tendered my resignation to the SK and to the regiment.

It had been nearly three years of collective work, good friendships, much fulfilment, and indeed fun, not to mention much ale. Sadly, I have no photographs of those days to share with current members.

As the present continued existence of Sir George Lisle’s Regiment is witness, it was worth it. I hope the regiment will continue to give pleasure to members through historic research, public entertainment, and education.

After my resignation, I was invited on to the staff of the Roundhead Association under Charles Kightly and subsequently as Chief of Staff under the late Paul Thorpe. I ceased to be active in September 1980.

Ian Lowe MA

July 2024

Orkney

This is Ian at Ness of Brodgar.

I attach the illustration I did years ago for a magazine. It is loosely based on Stoksey Castle. I am the one in the red cassock holding a matross with the hat turned up at the front. The soldier rubbing his brow was based on Jim Culbert, who was in the regiment for many years.