The Battle of Marston Moor
John Lobban (1919-1996)
Category
Coins and medals
Date
1992
Materials
Silver
Measurements
517 mm (Diameter)
Place of origin
United Kingdom
Order this imageCollection
Osterley Park and House, London
NT 773252
Summary
Silver, The Battle of Marston Moor, medal designed by John Lobban (1919-1996) and Michael Harvey (1931-2013), struck Royal Mint, Llantrisant, 1992. A silver medal commemorating the Battle of Marston Moor on 2 July 1644. The fifth medal in a set of twelve issued by the Royal Mint in 1992 and 1993, to mark the 350th Anniversary of the English Civil War. The obverse, designed by John Lobban, depicts a melée during the battle, with the Parliamentary forces on the left, one pikeman in the foreground engaged in combat with his royalist counterpart. At right are the Royalist forces, including some cavalry and, in the far distance, lines of opposing soldiers marching towards one another. The artist’s monogram 'JL' at lower right. The reverse, designed by Michael Harvey, contains the legend 'THE BATTLE OF MARSTON MOOR. / 2 JULY 1644. / God made them as stubble to our swords'. The latter phrase is taken from a letter written on 5 July by Oliver Cromwell, the leader of the victorious Parliamentarian forces, to Colonel Valentine Walton.
Full description
The Civil War was fought, mainly in England, between 1642 and 1649, the result of a long struggle for power between King Charles I (1600-49) and Parliament. The Battle of Marston Moor, on 2 July 1643, marked a turning point in the war. One of the largest battles ever fought on British soil, it came after Prince Rupert had succeeded in dislodging the parliamentary forces from York and set out to pursue them, eventually meeting at Marston Moor. The royalist army under the command of Prince Rupert was much smaller than its opponent, made up of Parliamentarians and Scottish Covenanters. At first the battle was evenly balanced, but the Parliamentary cavalry under the command of Oliver Cromwell made a surprise attack, succeeding in routing Prince Rupert’s forces. The defeat not only dealt a mortal blow to the reputation of Prince Rupert as a military commander, but meant that the Royalists all but lost control of the whole of the north. In contrast, the hitherto little-known Oliver Cromwell came to wider attention, through his inspired leadership of his well-trained troops. This was the fifth in a series of twelve medals issued by the Royal Mint at monthly intervals from June 1992, to celebrate the 350th anniversary of the outbreak of the English Civil War. The twelve medals illustrate the significant points in the conflict, from the raising of Charles I’s standard at Nottingham on 22 August 1642, to his execution on 30 January 1649. The designs of the obverses of the medals were commissioned from three leading contemporary artists, John Lobban, Michael Rizzello and Avril Vaughan, whilst the reverses, each of which contains a quotation relating to the subject of the medal, were designed by the distinguished lettering artist Michael Harvey, best-known for the names of celebrated Renaissance artists carved into the stonework of the Sainsbury Wing of the National Gallery. Michael Harvey’s original artwork for the series is in the Library of the University of Reading (URL MS 5115, file 392). The selection of the twelve episodes and the accompanying legend was devised by the historian of Tudor coinage Dr Christopher Challis. The medals were issued in silver and in bronze, in editions of 2,500 and 5,000, retailing at £84.50 or £49.50 per medal respectively. It was possible to buy the medals singly or as a set of twelve, the latter housed in an African walnut case. The whole series is in the collection at Osterley, but without the wooden case (NT 773248-773258, NT 773623). Jeremy Warren 2019
Provenance
Given to the National Trust in 1993 by George Child Villiers, 9th Earl of Jersey (1910-1998).
Marks and inscriptions
Obverse, lower right: JL (John Lobban monogram) Reverse, legend: THE BATTLE OF MARSTON MOOR. / 2 JULY 1644. / God made them as stubble to our swords
Makers and roles
John Lobban (1919-1996), designer Michael Harvey (1931-2013), designer The Royal Mint, manufacturer