Soldiers, statesmen and scribblers: London newsbook reporting of the Marston Moor campaign, 1644

Abstract

London newsbook coverage of the Marston Moor campaign is the first example of regular extended military reporting in English journalism. This article demonstrates the value of early newsbooks as historical sources for giving a fresh perspective on previously well-researched events. It investigates the mechanics of the Marston Moor news coverage: its sources, the speed of relaying information to the public, and the accuracy of reporting. The article reveals an increasing awareness by the military of the value of the serial press for raising their public profile and it suggests that leaders of the parliamentary war party, already appreciative of the newsbooks as political tools, were using revelations of vital military intelligence in specific journals to exacerbate royalist divisions.

Mercurius Britanicus on Charles I: an exercise in civil war journalism and high politics, August 1643 to May 1646

“…104 Although this letter reached Rupert, others expressing similar sentiments fell into enemy hands, to the delight of the London press. 105 The extent of royalist factionalism and division over the issue of peace was now known at Westminster. 106 Britanicus's performance at this time undoubtedly generated anger among parliamentary moderates.…”