Then followed one of the most disastrous periods of our county's history. In 1642, the High Sheriff of Berkshire refused to obey the king's command; the town of Reading was fortified, and King Charles passed through the town on his way to Oxford, his headquarters. Garrisons for the king were established at Farringdon, Abingdon, Wallingford, Greenwell House, Reading, Newbury, Donnington, and Hungerford. Windsor was held by the Parliamentarians. Many of the people of Reading espoused the cause of the parliament, and left the town because the mayor and other chief men supported the king. The war in Berkshire began, in 1643, with an attack on Reading by the Roundheads under Major Vavasour. The Royalists attempted to relieve the siege, but were beaten back at Caversham Bridge, and retired to Oxford. The town was captured by the enemy, and the West of England became the seat of war. Then followed the first battle of Newbury, which will be hereafter described. The Royalists were practically beaten, and the gallant Lord Falkland slain. Essex, the leader of the Parliamentarian forces, marched on London, harrassed by Prince Rupert's horse near Aldermaston. Reading was abandoned to the King, and placed under the command of Sir Jacob Astley. In 1644, the war at first raged chiefly in the North of England. Then Reading and Abingdon were captured by Essex, and all Berkshire, except the castles of Donnington and Farringdon, were in his hands. The cause of the Parliament in the West was not so prosperous; the King's plans had been successful. The garrisons of Donnington, Newbury, and Basing had been relieved; but then followed the second battle of Newbury, which ended in the retreat of the Royalists. Then several marches through the county were made, and the royal forces, after going to Bath and Oxford, came again to Donnington, and thence went by Lambourne to Wantage and Farringdon, and finally to Oxford. The whole of Berkshire was in a deplorable condition; the necessities of war were so great; the supplies needed for the victualling of such large armies were so heavy, that scarcely "a sheep, hen, hog, oats, hay, wheat, or any other thing for man to eat" were left. Soldiers on both sides foraged for supplies, and seized with ruthless hand everything they could find. Peaceful citizens were captured for the sake of ransom, and no goods could be conveyed safely along the roads without their owners paying large sums to the leaders of foraging parties who intercepted them. Numerous skirmishes took place in the campaign of 1645 without much advantage to either side. At last the skill of Fairfax and Cromwell proved too strong for the Royalists, and Bristol and Oxford fell. Donnington Castle, under the gallant Sir John Boys, was the last fortress in Berkshire to yield, and he and his brave soldiers marched out with all the honours of war, having earned the admiration of both friend and foe.