News

A Civil War hike - following the footsteps of the Earl of Essex's parliamentarian army

13 July 2026

Luke Cairns, a history graduate based in Swindon with a fascination for the British Civil Wars is planning to walk the route taken by the Earl of Essex’s parliamentarian army to the first major battle of the Civil War at Edgehill in October 1642.

He will start his walk in Northampton on 27 July 2026 and hike via Ravensthorpe, Rugby, Aston Cantlow, Inkberrow to Worcester. He will then follow a route to Pershore, Evesham, Chipping Campden before arriving at Kineton on 10 August; a distance of over 130 miles.

He is backpacking and camping along his route and plans to record his travels, visiting Civil War related sites en route as well as 21 pubs and several churches. He has also promised to undertake a fish and chips survey on the way!

Luke said ‘I wanted to go on an adventure, and this is all purely recreational. I wanted to do something interesting during the summertime and help promote interest in the Civil War and the Battlefields Trust’.

Gregg Archer, joint chair of the Battlefields Trust’s Mercia region said ‘we applaud Luke’s efforts to recreate the route taken by the Earl of Essex’s army and experience the long marches it covered’.

‘We hope it might inspire others to investigate this period of the Civil War or attempt the Trust’s much shorter Edgcote–Cropredy Bridge– Edgehill battlefields trail’.    

Luke will be sending photos and updates of his walk which the Battlefields Trust will publish on its social media feeds at https://x.com/battleftrust?lang=en and https://www.facebook.com/battlefieldstrust.