Battle of Dunbar (1650)
Battle of Dunbar (1650) . The Battle of Dunbar was fought between the English New Model Army, under Oliver Cromwell, and a Scottish army, commanded by David Leslie, on 3 September 1650 near Dunbar, Scotland. The first major battle of the Third English Civil War, it was decisively won by the English. The English crossed into Scotland in July, and Cromwell attempted to draw the Scots into a set-piece battle, but the Scots resisted. At the end of August Cromwell withdrew to the port of Dunbar. The Scottish army followed, and before dawn the English launched a surprise attack on the Scots, who were poorly prepared. The fighting was restricted to the north-eastern flank. Lesley was unable to reinforce those fighting, while Cromwell used his last reserve to outflank the Scots. The Scottish cavalry broke and routed; the Scottish infantry made a fighting retreat but suffered heavily. Between 300 and 500 Scots were killed, with approximately 1,000 wounded and about 6,000 or more taken prisoner