In 1646 the Prince gave Lord Hopton command of the Royalist forces, Hopton advanced from Stratton towards Exeter, reaching Torrington but was confronted by Fairfax’s men, and fell back to Stratton. The Parliamentarians proceeded into Cornwall, reaching Launceston on February 25, and Bodmin on March 2nd. Hopton’s army was in disarray but he refused to surrender. He camped for some nights at Castle-an-Dinas while considering the possibility of surrender. News at Bodmin of an imminent Irish invasion damaged the Royalist cause locally and Fairfax sent a summons of surrender to Hopton who replied on March 8th that he was willing to negotiate terms. Fairfax agreed and on March 15th 1646 both sides met at Tresillian Bridge. Hopton agreed to move his army to St Allen as a gesture of trust and goodwill allowing Fairfax to occupy Truro.
The Prince of Wales sailed from Falmouth to the Isles of Scilly, and from there he escaped to Jersey; the garrisons at Restormel, Falmouth, Little Dennis and St Michaels Mount fell in the following months. In May Charles surrendered to the Scots who handed him over to England. Pendennis Castle, on the 17th August 1646, was the last Royalist stronghold on the English mainland to fall.
