Royalist forces under Prince Rupert attacked Parliamentarian troops at Camp Hill near Birmingham on 3 April 1643. The defenders were defeated, and parts of the town were burned or plundered. The incident became notorious because Birmingham had strongly supported Parliament and supplied weapons.

Parliamentarian pamphlets presented Birmingham's suffering as evidence of Royalist brutality towards civilians. The language of burning, plunder and violated households became a powerful instrument of wartime propaganda.