"Comprehensive books on ECW Flags" Topic

Can anyone point me some good, comprehensive books on the flags of the English Civil War?

First of all, please understand that information on a great many units (for all armies) is simply not known. That being said, there is information for a number of units. A good website with info is here:

link

There is a 1990 Partizan Press book by Stuart Peachey & Les Prince called "E.C.W. Flags and Colours 1: English Foot" that seems to have a great deal of information in it . . . although all of the illustrations are in black & white and not color.

The above is "digest-sized" and around 114 pages of rather small print.

I don't know if there has been anything closer to comprehensive in the quarter century since, but the above volume is probably still available from both Caliver in the U.K. and On Military Matters in North America as well as other possible sources.

I'll leave it to others to provide better sources, but I hope that this helps.

-- Jeff

PS, I don't know if there were further volumes (perhaps on the Scots?).

There isn't one.

Yes there are!

Peachey and Prince deal with what is known of English flags.
Stuart Reid did a Volume 2 on Scots flags. He also did a volume on Scots flags from the Restoration.

Go look thru Caliver books and you will find all the above still available from them in reprinted format.

There is nothing printed on Irish flags apart from what is mentioned in the above books and in Reids booklet on the Scots Royalist army.

For a great selection of free flags for printing out and using look here: link

Its a great pity ECW N+Q is no longer produced as there has been considerable historical research done in the years since it folded and there is nowhere for the kind of stuff that appeared there and was published by them to appear anymore. How about it Dave?

Peachey and Prince deal with what is known of English flags.
Stuart Reid did a Volume 2 on Scots flags. He also did a volume on Scots flags from the Restoration.

First of all, please understand that information on a great many units (for all armies) is simply not known.

The OP did ask for a "comprehensive" source. Given the fact that some information is simply unknown, no book can possibly be comprehensive.

I thought this was the question you were answering.

"PS, I don't know if there were further volumes (perhaps on the Scots?)."

"The OP did ask for a "comprehensive" source. Given the fact that some information is simply unknown, no book can possibly be comprehensive."

Very true but I hope your not "nitpicking" Major :D

Thanks for that info 1ngram – will I need a second mortgage to buy a copy?

I remember (just about) many years ago Military Modelling (including Battle) did a very good series of articles lavished with illustrations of the flags – I wonder if anyone still has copies.

link

The one book to rule them all. I have this and it's a proper doorstep, but contains what must be the most exhaustive listing of ECW flags, including mottos and translations of latin where reqd. Expensive but I get a lot of pleasure just browsing through this.

Ouch! Respect for your book collection elcid1066

Apart from a (very) few infantry standards the Emblematicus is all about cavalry standards. Certainly it illustrates hundreds of these and for that reason alone it is worth getting a hold of (try the local Uni Library) but it has hardly any infantry flags in it – and most of those have questionable elements to their descriptions since they almost all come from written descriptions not illos – unlike the cavalry ones which are contemporary illos.

Peachey and Prince remains the only "comprehensive" analysis of what we know about English infantry standards.

I agree with Gloria. You should do too.

This is probably the best thing bar non on English infantry colours:

ENSIGNES OF THE ENGLISH CIVIL WAR: ENGLISH CIVIL WAR FLAGS by S Ede-Borrett, Gosling Press 1997.

link

Essentially just out of print but I understand the Pike & Shot Society may print a revised 3rd edition. It deals with what was known c.1997 for both sides. The Peachey book pre-dates this by several years and is missing some important information.

For Scottish flags the various works of Stuart Reid on the Scots ECW armies published by Partizan Press are the first port of call. There is no equivalent for Irish flags. There is a manuscript book of cavalry cornets in the Dr Williams library but this is unpublished.

Thank you all! I'm going to look after those caliver books.