CRAVEN, WILLIAM [SSNE 1339]
- Surname
- CRAVEN
- First name
- WILLIAM
- Title/rank
- EARL OF CRAVEN
- Nationality
- ENGLISH
- Social status
- NOBILITY
Text source
William Craven entered the service of Maurice of Orange in 1623. He was knighted in England in 1627. He commanded English troops fighting for Gustav II Adolf of Sweden in 1631 and was noted in the Swedish Intelligencer for his valour. Craven was first to the top of the ramps at Creuznach along with several other English volunteers. He engaged in push of pike with the enemy and was wounded in the thigh. He managed still to offer quarter to some Imperialist officers resulting in the parly which led to the surrender of the castle. Lord Craven supported John Hepburn [SSNE 2660] in his asault of Donaworth and Harburg Bridge in 1631. Craven later contributed £30,000 to the cause of the Palatinate in 1637 and took a small force into Germany the following year. He fought alongside Prince Rupert and was taken prisoner by the Imperial army at Vlotho Bridge [Lemgo] on 17 October 1638. The ramifications of this episode were vigorously contested with Craven, James King [SSNE 2814] and the princes themselves variously being blamed for the defeat. Craven later bought his freedom and aided Charles I financially during the British Civil Wars. In 1651 he was deprived of his estates for loyalty to Charles II. He moved to the Dutch Republic where he spent most of his exile. In 1666 and 1681 Craven served as an English Privy Councillor.
Sources: The Swedish Intelligencer: The Second Part (London, 1632), pp.81-82, 138; Swedish Riksarkiv, Adolf Johans Arkiv i Stegeborgssamlingen, 2 letters from Craven to Duke Adolf Johan, June 1657 and January 1658, The Hague; DNB.
Dr Bernd Warlich kindly provided this additional references: ENGELBERT, Günther (ed.): Das Kriegsarchiv des kaiserlichen Feldmarschalls Melchior von Hatzfeldt (1593-1658). Analytisches Inventar. Publikationen der Gesellschaft für Rheinische Geschichtskunde 61 (Düsseldorf 1993), no N 153; WEISS, John Gustav: Lord Craven und die Familie des Winterkönigs, in: Zeitschrift für die Geschichte des Oberrheins 82 NF 43 (1930), pp. 591-598; REBITSCH, Robert, Rupert von der Pfalz (1619 – 1682). Ein deutscher Fürstensohn im Dienst der Stuarts (Innsbruck/Wien/Bozen 2005), p. 24.
Service record
- STUART KINGDOMS, THE DUTCH REPUBLIC
- Arrived 1623-01-01
- Departed 1623-12-31
- Capacity OFFICER, purpose MILITARY
- STUART KINGDOMS, SWEDEN
- Arrived 1631-01-01, as COMMANDER
- Departed 1631-12-31
- Capacity OFFICER, purpose MILITARY
- STUART KINGDOMS, NORTH WEST GERMANY, VLOTHO
- Arrived 1638-09-01, as COLONEL
- Departed 1638-10-17, as PRISONER
- Capacity OFFICER, PRISONER, purpose MILITARY
- STUART KINGDOMS, THE DUTCH REPUBLIC, THE HAGUE
- Arrived 1657-06-01
- Departed 1658-01-30
- Capacity AGENT, EXILE, purpose ROYAL SERVICE, DIPLOMACY