During the English Civil War, Newark held immense strategic value as a crossing over the River Trent before the Humber estuary. Dubbed the 'Key to the North', it stands at the intersection of two major highways. This new military history, incorporating fresh research, marks the town's first comprehensive account in a century. The Duke of Newcastle sent Sir John Henderson, an experienced soldier, with 4,000 Horse to secure the town for the King in December 1642 and turn the town into a secure royalist garrison. It was to remain under royalist control, in spite of three sieges through until May 1646, when it was ordered by Charles I to surrender on terms. Over the period of the first Civil War it was visited separately by Charles and his Queen, Henrietta Marie with their substantial accompanying armies, tripling the population of the town. During the second siege (1644) Prince Rupert achieved one of his greatest victories of the war by not only breaking the siege, but also inflicting a crushing defeat upon the parliamentarian forces besieging the town. AUTHOR: Stuart Jennings is an Early Modern Historian and a Methodist Minister. He completed an MA in history at Nottingham University and a PhD at Nottingham Trent University. He has published a number of peer reviewed academic papers, three chapters in books of academic essays and two books as sole author. His book 'These Uncertaine tymes' won the Alan Ball Local History prize in 2010. He lectures in history at the Centre for Lifelong Learning, University of Warwick and serves as part of s team of academic advisors to the National Civil War Centre at Newark upon Trent. 27 b/w illustrations, 25 b/w photos, 3 colour maps, 1 table