The Battle of Preston The Battle of Preston (17–19 August 1648), fought largely at Walton-le-Dale near Preston in Lancashire, resulted in a victory for the New Model Army under the command of Oliver Cromwell over the Royalists and Scots commanded by the Duke of Hamilton. The Parliamentarian victory presaged the end of the Second English Civil War. Musket A musket is a muzzle-loaded long gun that appeared as a smoothbore weapon in the early 16th century, at first …