Tension between 

Parliament and King Charles escalated sharply during 1642 after the King had

attempted to arrest five members of Parliament. The King appointed the Marquess of Hertford as
commander of his forces in the West Country, supported by Sir Ralph Hopton, a local member of
Parliament (MP) and an experienced army officer. The county of Somerset was generally more
sympathetic towards Parliament than towards the King, [2] and after the Royalists established quarters
at Wells they were constantly under threat. They won a minor skirmish at Marshall's Elm, where their
superior cavalry and leadership helped them defeat a much larger Parliamentarian force, [3] but they
were forced to leave Wells on 6 August when the local population rose against them, wielding
makeshift weapons such as pitchforks.[1] Hertford retreated to Sherborne in Dorset, where he
garrisoned the castle,[4] with just under 1,500 men. Dorset was split in its sympathies: most of the
larger towns favoured Parliament; but in more rural areas, and to the north of the county generally,
[5]
 the Royalists had more support.