Edgehill to Naseby: The Military Conflict

Active learning works for this topic because military history thrives when students analyze cause and effect through simulation and debate. Tactics, leadership, and reforms become memorable when students experience them firsthand, not just read about them.

• Year 8
• History
• 4 activities
• 30 min–45 min

Learning Objectives

1. Compare the military advantages and disadvantages of the Royalist and Parliamentarian forces at the start of the English Civil War.
2. Analyze the key tactical and organizational innovations that made the New Model Army a revolutionary military force.
3. Explain how the 'Self-Denying Ordinance' impacted the command structure and effectiveness of Parliamentarian armies.
4. Evaluate the significance of the Battle of Naseby as a turning point in the First English Civil War.

Simulation Game

⏱ 45 min·Small Groups

Battle Simulation: Edgehill Tactics

Provide maps of Edgehill with counters for infantry, cavalry, and artillery. In small groups, students recreate Royalist and Parliamentarian moves, noting advantages like Royalist charges. Groups debrief on why it ended in stalemate, adjusting tactics for a second round.

Prepare & details

Compare the advantages and disadvantages of the Royalist and Parliamentarian forces.

Facilitation Tip: During Edgehill Tactics, provide each group with identical troop cards and terrain maps to emphasize how leadership and terrain shape outcomes, not just numbers.

Setup: Flexible space for group stations

Materials: Role cards with goals/resources, Game currency or tokens, Round tracker

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Decision-Making

Simulation Game

⏱ 35 min·Pairs

Debate Carousel: Army Comparisons

Assign pairs one side: Royalists or Parliamentarians. They prepare pros and cons on cards covering leadership, resources, morale. Pairs rotate to debate four stations, voting on key factors after each.

Prepare & details

Analyze why the New Model Army was a revolutionary military force.

Facilitation Tip: For Army Comparisons, assign roles in the debate carousel so every student defends a position using evidence from at least two battles.

Setup: Flexible space for group stations

Materials: Role cards with goals/resources, Game currency or tokens, Round tracker

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Decision-Making

Simulation Game

⏱ 40 min·Small Groups

Role-Play: Self-Denying Ordinance

Divide class into MPs favoring or opposing the ordinance. Groups script short arguments on excluding aristocrats for merit-based command. Perform in whole class, then vote and discuss war impact.

Prepare & details

Explain how the 'Self-Denying Ordinance' changed the leadership of the war.

Facilitation Tip: In the Self-Denying Ordinance role-play, give students conflicting letters from MPs to negotiate, forcing them to confront the ordinance’s practical limits.

Setup: Flexible space for group stations

Materials: Role cards with goals/resources, Game currency or tokens, Round tracker

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Decision-Making

Simulation Game

⏱ 30 min·Small Groups

Timeline Relay: Path to Naseby

Teams line up to add events, battles, and New Model Army milestones to a class timeline on the board. Each student justifies their placement with evidence from notes. Correct as a class.

Prepare & details

Compare the advantages and disadvantages of the Royalist and Parliamentarian forces.

Facilitation Tip: For the Timeline Relay, have students physically move battle markers across a large map while explaining shifts in advantage step-by-step.

Setup: Flexible space for group stations

Materials: Role cards with goals/resources, Game currency or tokens, Round tracker

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Social Awareness
• Decision-Making

Teaching This Topic

Teachers should anchor discussions in primary sources like drill manuals and pay records to show how innovations like the New Model Army worked in practice. Avoid over-relying on personalities; focus on systemic changes like training, logistics, and command structures. Research shows students grasp military history best when they simulate decisions under constraints similar to those faced by commanders.

What to Expect

Successful learning looks like students confidently explaining why Parliament won by 1645, supported by evidence from battles and the New Model Army’s structure. They should critique claims using specific examples from simulations or role-plays.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

During Army Comparisons, watch for students attributing Royalist losses solely to poor leadership.

What to Teach Instead

Use the debate carousel’s structure to have students rank factors like resources, terrain, and tactics using evidence from Marston Moor and Naseby. Force them to weigh leadership against systemic advantages.

Common Misconception

During Edgehill Tactics, watch for students assuming larger armies always win.

What to Teach Instead

In the simulation, provide identical troop counts but vary discipline and training levels. Students will see how drill manuals and cavalry charges decide battles, not numbers alone.

Common Misconception

During Self-Denying Ordinance role-play, watch for students believing the ordinance permanently removed MPs from military roles.

What to Teach Instead

Use the role-play’s negotiation letters to highlight temporary exemptions. Students must justify why the ordinance was a wartime measure, not a permanent purge.

Assessment Ideas

Discussion Prompt

After Army Comparisons, pose the question: 'Which had a greater impact on the outcome of the First English Civil War by 1645: the Royalist strengths or the Parliamentarian innovations?' Ask students to support their arguments with specific examples from troop types, leadership, and battlefield events discussed during the debate carousel.

Quick Check

During Timeline Relay, provide students with a simplified map of England showing key battle locations. Ask them to label the battles and briefly explain the outcome of each, noting any significant shifts in military advantage over time while moving markers.

Exit Ticket

After the New Model Army simulation, have students write one sentence explaining why the New Model Army was considered 'revolutionary' and one sentence explaining the purpose of the 'Self-Denying Ordinance' using evidence from their simulation experiences.

Extensions & Scaffolding

• Challenge: Have students design a propaganda pamphlet for one side after Naseby, using battle reports to justify their claims.
• Scaffolding: Provide sentence starters for debates, such as 'The New Model Army’s advantage was...' or 'Marston Moor’s outcome hinged on...'.
• Deeper: Ask students to compare the First English Civil War to another 17th-century conflict, identifying similar military innovations.

Key Vocabulary

Cavalry	Soldiers who fought on horseback, often used for shock tactics and reconnaissance. Royalist cavalry were initially considered superior.
Infantry	Soldiers who fought on foot. Parliamentarian forces often had larger numbers of infantry.
Artillery	Large mounted guns used in warfare. The development and effective use of artillery became crucial in later battles.
New Model Army	The professional, unified army formed by Parliament in 1645, characterized by strict discipline, religious motivation, and merit-based promotion.
Self-Denying Ordinance	Parliamentary legislation passed in 1645 that required members of Parliament to resign their military commands, paving the way for professional military leadership.