Battle of Chesterfield
Background
The leader of the baronial forces, Simon de Montfort, was killed at the Battle of Evesham, which was won in a rout by the royalists under Prince Edward, future King Edward I.
All those who had taken part in the rebellion against the King were disinherited, their lands and titles taken by the crown. Despite this, pockets of resistance remained, and several barons continued to rebel against the King.
Nine months after Evesham, Robert de Ferrers, 6th Earl of Derby, Baldwin Wake, Lord of Chesterfield, and John d'Eiville, Lord of Egmanton, were now in the crosshairs of Henry III, who was mopping up the baronial opposition that remained.
Robert de Ferrers returned to his castle at Duffield, where Baldwin Wake joined him with his army of Lincolnshire men. John d'Eiville had a much larger force with him in North Yorkshire, and he started south to join the other barons.
At the same time, royalist forces marched north to Tutbury Castle, with a force of as many as 1,000 men-at-arms. Hearing of d'Eiville moving south, the royalists moved further north to try to intercept them before they could combine their forces with de Ferrers and Wake, who now left Duffield Castle and also headed north.
Royalist forces arrived in Derbyshire, led by Henry of Almain, Son of Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall, 4th creation, and John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey. De Warenne had previously defended Rochester Castle, along with Roger de Leybourne, against a siege carried out by Simon de Montfort.
Baronial forces under de Ferrers and Wake made it to Chesterfield around midday on May 15th. D'Eiville and his men were approaching Chesterfield from the north.
Battle
On May 15th, 1266, the Battle of Chesterfield began.
As d'Eiville and his men approached the town, they were attacked by royalist forces. Suspecting a possible attack, the baronial forces were in armor as d'Eiville knew if the royalists engaged his foot soldiers, there would be heavy losses. He rode out to meet the attack and was knocked from his horse by Sir Gilbert Hansard, a royalist knight. D'Eiville's men rushed in and rescued him during a vicious skirmish and dragged him to safety. But his forces began to retreat north.
The royalists then made a sweeping move south to Chesterfield. As night set in, Almain's men attacked the town's Northern defenses. The rebels were taken by surprise, and Baldwin Wake's forces were routed; he escaped to the north. As darkness fell, armed men fought in the streets, and Henry of Almain searched the town for Robert de Ferrers. The royalists secured the town within an hour, but they had still failed to capture any of the baron leaders.
Baldwin Wake joined with d'Eiville, who had now made a flanking maneuver to the east, hoping to join with de Ferrers. They also were unable to locate de Ferrers, and by midnight, they began a counterattack against the royalists. The royalist army began to set fire to buildings near the market square and pushed the rebels back through the cobblestone streets of Chesterfield. The rebels were again routed, and Baldwin Wake and d'Eiville fled north.
The next morning, Henry of Almain still believed the Earl of Derby was close by and gathered the town's dignitaries, offered a reward for de Ferrers, and threatened to burn the entire town to the ground if he wasn't found.
Legends say a young woman came forward who worked at the town surgery beside the church and led the soldiers to where de Ferrers was hiding. The Earl of Derby had been suffering from gout and had been at the surgery when the royalists first attacked, and was in hiding in storage sheds next to the church. The Robert de Ferrers was captured, and the Battle of Chesterfield was over.
Thomas Wykes, a chronicler from the time, states that the men of Brampton rushed to the church during the battle to defend the part of the wall for which they were responsible, presumably because they would be responsible for repairing any damage done to the wall during the battle and wanted to minimize that cost.
Aftermath
Robert de Ferrers was taken prisoner and sent to Windsor Castle in irons, where he would stand trial for high treason. He was disinherited of his title and lands at the Westminster parliament later that year and held prisoner in the Tower of London for three years.
John d'Eiville managed to escape the battle and would go on to be involved in the Siege of Kenilworth before finally surrendering to Prince Edward. Balwin Wake would later be pardoned for his involvement.
