LAUGHARNE
,
ROWLAND
(d.
1676?
),
Parliamentary major-general
;
the son of
John
Laugharne
of
S. Brides, Pembs.
, and his wife,
Janet
, daughter of
Sir
Hugh
Owen
of
Orielton
(see the article on the family) in that county. In his youth he was
page
to
Robert
Devereux
,
third earl of Essex
, and he may have accompanied him on
military service
in the
Low Countries
. When the
Civil War
broke out in
Aug. 1642
, some of the leading
gentry
in
south Pembrokeshire
, supported by
merchants
who had close associations with
Bristol
,
garrisoned
Haverfordwest
,
Pembroke
, and
Tenby
for the
Parliament
. The
king
entrusted his cause in
west Wales
to
Richard
Vaughan
,
second earl of Carbery
(q.v.)
.
Carbery
did not make any definite move until after the capture of
Bristol
by
prince
Rupert
(
26 July 1643
). He then entered
Pembrokeshire
and occupied
Haverfordwest
and
Tenby
.
Pembroke
held out, under its
mayor
,
John
Poyer
(q.v.)
, and at this juncture
Rowland
Laugharne
and
Rice
Powell
(q.v.)
seem to have joined him.
Laugharne
was no doubt influenced by the fact that the
earl of Essex
was now
commander-in-chief of the Parliamentary forces
.
Essex
, it should also be added, was a local
landowner
with an estate at
Lamphey
, near
Pembroke
. With the assistance of
Parliamentary ships
which were driven into
Milford Haven
by stress of weather,
Laugharne
took the offensive, and, having forced small Royalist garrisons at
Stackpole
and
Trefloyne
to surrender, he crossed
Milford Haven
and in a combined sea and land assault captured a fort which the
Royalists
were constructing at
Pill
(
23 Feb. 1644
). He followed up this success by recovering
Haverfordwest
and
Tenby
.
Carbery
then withdrew from
Pembrokeshire
and
Sir
Charles
Gerard
was despatched there by
prince
Rupert
to check
Laugharne
's advance. He forced
Laugharne
to retire to
Pembroke
and
Tenby
; but the defeat of the
Royalists
at
Marston Moor
(
2 July 1644
) relieved the situation, for
Rupert
recalled
Gerard
.
Laugharne
, again with the help of
seamen
, resumed the offensive. He captured the town and castle of
Laugharne
and threatened the
Royalist garrison
at
Carmarthen
.
Cardigan castle
was besieged, and capitulated on
29 Dec. 1644
. In the
spring of 1645
Gerard
was sent back to
west Wales
. He surprised and defeated
Laugharne
, who was engaged in besieging
Newcastle Emlyn
. This set-back compelled
Laugharne
to withdraw the remnant of his forces once more to
Pembroke
and
Tenby
.
Gerard
failed to reduce these and finally withdrew from
Wales
after the
king
's defeat at
Naseby
(
14 June 1645
). The forces he had left in the county were engaged by
Laugharne
on
Colby Moor
(
1 Aug. 1645
) and completely routed. He entered
Haverfordwest
on the following day. The smaller garrisons were easily reduced, and
Laugharne
was in a position to play a decisive part in a wider field. With the surrender of
Aberystwyth castle
(
12 April 1646
) all
west Wales
was in his hands. In
Feb. 1646
he had gone to the relief of
Cardiff castle
, where the
governor
,
Edward
Pritchard
, was threatened by a rising of the Royalist gentry of the
Vale of Glamorgan
. In recognition of his services
Laugharne
was appointed
commander-in-chief
in the counties of
Pembroke
,
Cardigan
,
Carmarthen
, and
Glamorgan
. He was also awarded the forfeited estates of
John
Barlow
of
Slebech
. There was further trouble in the
Vale of Glamorgan
in
June 1647
, but by his prompt action
Laugharne
successfully suppressed an incipient rising. As the war reached a conclusion the differences between
the
military leaders
and the
county gentry
came to a head. There were charges that excessive exactions had been made in money and in kind. It was even rumoured, apparently maliciously, that
Laugharne
was in touch with
Royalist agents
. To meet these allegations he was summoned to
London
and was there ‘en parole’ when a series of events in
west Wales
led to the renewal of the war. The decision to disband supernumeraries provoked resistance.
John
Poyer
refused to surrender
Pembroke
to
colonel
Fleming
, the
Parliamentary commissioner
sent down to supervise the disbanding. His action encouraged some of
Laugharne
's men to follow his lead.
Rice
Powell
assumed command of the dissentients and rapidly advanced towards
Cardiff
, having been joined by
Royalists
in his march. To counter this move
colonel
Thomas
Horton
, of the
New Model army
, threw his forces between him and
Cardiff
and
S. Fagans
. There
Laugharne
, having left
London
, found
Powell
on
4 May
. He disputed
Horton
's authority to enter within his command; but he must have realised that he was now in rebellion against the
Parliament
. Battle was joined on
8 May
and
Laugharne
's forces were routed, he himself being wounded. He took refuge once more in
Pembroke
, where he organised a stubborn resistance to the siege conducted by
Oliver
Cromwell
in person, in the vain hope of help from the exiled
prince
Charles
. The garrison was so reduced that at length
Laugharne
was forced to surrender on
11 July 1648
. He was tried with
Poyer
and
Powell
by court martial and sentenced to death. The penalty was inflicted on
Poyer
only;
Laugharne
was subsequently pardoned. On
6 Nov. 1649
, he was allowed to compound for his delinquency at a fine of £712. This was remitted on
25 Dec. 1655
, in view of the debts he had incurred for the Parliamentary cause. At the
Restoration
he was elected
member of Parliament
for
Pembroke borough
and granted a small pension. He stated in a petition of
19 March 1662
that he had lost £37,650 during the war.
Laugharne
m.
Anne
, daughter of
Sir
Thomas
Button
(q.v.)
of
Cottrell
,
S. Nicholas, Glam.
She survived him, and on
4 Aug. 1677
sought help from the
king
on the ground of her straitened circumstances.
Bibliography:
-
J. R. Phillips
,
Memoirs of the Civil War in Wales and the Marches, 1642–1649
,
1874
,
1874
;
-
A. L. Leach
,
History of the Civil War (1642-49) in Pembrokeshire and on its borders
,
London, 1937
,
1937
;
-
J. F. Rees
,
Studies in Welsh History: collected papers, lectures and reviews
, Cardiff,
1947
,
1947.
Author:
Emeritus Professor Sir James Frederick Rees, Ll.D., (1883-1967), Tenby
/ Cardiff.
