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Battle of Naseby fans welcome country park plan

Getty Images Stone column with dome at the top surrounded by a fence in a fieldGetty Images
The Cromwell Monument at Naseby was unveiled in 1936

Enthusiasts of a key English battle have welcomed plans for a country park at the site.

The Naseby Battlefield Project (NBP) said it hoped the idea would "raise the profile of the battle and its importance to a wider audience".

The Battle of Naseby in Northamptonshire in 1645 was a turning point in the English Civil War and led to the overthrow of the monarchy.

Attempts to create a visitor centre at the site have not been successful.

Hulton Archive The Battle of Naseby showing Charles I on horsebackHulton Archive
Charles I suffered a humiliating and decisive defeat at the Battle of Naseby

The battle on 14 June 1645 saw King Charles I's army defeated by the parliamentarian forces of Oliver Cromwell.

It would lead to the King's execution two years later and the rule of Oliver Cromwell as lord protector from 1653 to 1658.

There are two monuments to the battle with interpretation boards in the village but no visitor centre or permanent exhibition.

The NBP had hoped to create a new museum overlooking the site of the battle, but could not raise the £300,000 funding it needed.

A plan was then developed for a visitor centre in the parish church, but, while the church supported the idea, it did not agree with the plans that were put forward.

Cromwell Museum/Simon Hill Oliver CromwellCromwell Museum/Simon Hill
Oliver Cromwell's army scored a major victory at Naseby

The NBP has, however, hosted public tours for thousands of visitors and provided education and training to the local community, schools and military units from the UK and US.

The latest development has been the inclusion of a Naseby Country Park in a strategy put forward by West Northamptonshire Council.

It said: "Currently there is no real way to appreciate the battle" and the park would be a "valuable addition to the area's attraction to tourists".

Google Stone obelisk with pointed top surrounded by treesGoogle
The Naseby Obelisk was erected in 1823 to commemorate the battle

The NBP said it welcomed the strategy as "much of our modern history can be traced back to the momentous events of the morning of 14 June 1645 - it is a place for learning and contemplation, and a legacy for a bloody battle where so many brave men fell.

"With our positive and long-standing relationship with the battlefield's landowners, and nearly two decades of dedicated research on Naseby, we believe the project stands well prepared to provide valuable insights for helping shape any future plans, and we hope these proposals will help us raise the profile of the battle and its importance to a wider audience."

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