John Gwynne, Military Memoirs of the Great Civil War (1822)

The very first day that five comrades of us repaired from the Court at Richmod to the King’s royal army which we met accidentally that morning upon  Hounslow Heath, we had no sooner put ourselves into rank and file, under the command of our worthy old acquaintance, Sir George Bunckley, (then Major to Sir Thomas Salusbury) but we marched up to the enemy, engaged them by Sir Richard Winn’s house, and the Thames side, beat them to retreat into Brainford, - beat them from one Brainford to the other, and from thence to the open field, with a resolute and expeditious fighting, that after firing suddenly to advance up to push of pikes and butt end of muskets, which proved so fatal to Holles his butchers and dyers that day, that abundance of them were killed and taken prisoners, besides those drowned in their attempts to escape by leaping into the river.  – And at that very time were come a great recruit of men to the enemy, both by land and water from Windsor and Kingston: And it happened that Sir Charles Lloyd, or some other engineer, to blow up a barge laden with men and ammunition, which, as the fearful crack it gave, and the sad aspect upon’t struck such a terror into the rest of the recruits, that they all vanisht, and we better satisfied with their room than their company.  Nor can any thing of a souldiar or an impartial man say, that we might have advanced any further to the purpose towards London than we did, in regard of the thick inclosures, with strong hedges and ditches, so lined with men as they could well stand one by another; and on the common road and other passes, were planted their artillery, with defencible works about them, that there was no coming at them any nearer, upon so great a disadvantage, to do any more than we did, and withal considering that they were more than double our number: therefore the King withdrew, and marched for Hampton Court, where, for my farther incouragement, I had the coulours conferred upon me, to go on as I had begun.  I cannot omit observing, that had Essex his right wing of horse, which stood upon more ground than the King had horse to face them, wheeled to the left to join the foot that came from Windsor and Kingston, and falled on the King’s rear, he might have gone to London nolens volens.  

By kind permission of the British Library