ABSTRACT
Possessing the contents of the arsenal at the Tower and sustained by the regular taxation and wealth of London, the Parliamentarians were at a tremendous advantage. Not only could they train and arm their men, but as a bonus they also had the services of the London Trained Bands, the territorial militia trained and paid by the local authorities for home defence. The commanders on land were, with equal craft, commandeering the magazines of the local trained bands and searching the houses of suspected Parliamentarian sympathisers for arms. It is a popular misconception that there was no uniform worn in the Civil War. While the notion of an army dressed in uniforms of a single national colour with regimental facings and other sartorial elegances was still in the future, at least the soldier was issued for the most part with sufficient articles of clothing to give him an appearance uniform with that of his comrades.
