King Charles II accepted the Scottish throne which led to an invasion of Scotland by the New Model Army under the command of Oliver Cromwell. Although Cromwell defeated a Scottish army at the Battle of Dunbar, Cromwell could not prevent Charles II from marching from Scotland deep into England at the head of another Royalist army. The Royalists marched to the west of England where Royalist sympathies were strongest arriving at Worcester on 22 August 1651. He planned to rest his predominantly Scottish army there and await English reinforcements before pressing on to London. One Royalist contingent from the Isle of Man and Lancashire under the command of Earl of Derby, was heading towards Worcester, and it was the duty of Colonel Robert Lilburne to stop them.