When the king's affairs were in the ascendant by the successes in the West, the taking of Bristol, and the defeat of Waller at Roundaway Hill, near Devizes, the Earls of Bedford, Northumberland, Holland, and Clare deserted the Parliament cause. Northumberland, being cautious, retired to Petworth, to see how the other lords who meant to go over to Charles should be received. Bedford, Clare, and Holland offered their services to the king, and went to Wallingford, where they were suffered to wait a great while, much to their chagrin. They then went to Oxford, whilst Charles was in the West, and were ordered to await his return. The queen and the courtiers, meanwhile, treated them not as valuable and influential allies, whose good reception would certainly bring over many more, but, with consummate folly, as renegades, who had forfeited all respect by taking part with the king's enemies. They followed the king to Gloucester, where they were coolly enough received, and afterwards fought on his side at Newbury; but nothing winning them that estimation which good policy would have granted them at once, they made their peace with Parliament and went back to London, where, however, they found they had sunk greatly in public opinion, and were not permitted to take their seats in the House of Peers or hold office. Their flight had lowered the public estimation of the Lords, and their reception at Oxford had seriously injured the king's cause. Whilst the king and queen retained their impolitic resentments, there was no hope of winning over friends from the ranks of their opponents. It was clear that neither time nor trouble had really taught them anything. Moreover we also learn from the pages of Clarendon that there existed great discord and division in the camp at Oxford. Every one was jealous of the slightest promotion or favour shown to another; and the Cavaliers, he says, had grown disorderly, and devoted to the plundering of the people, just as the Parliamentary army was growing orderly, zealous, and efficient. To such an extent was this the case that one side seemed to fight for monarchy with weapons of confusion, and the other to destroy the king and Government with all the principles and regularity of monarchy.