March 2nd 1643 Lord Brooke a General of the Parliament forces, preparing to besiege the close of Lichfield, then garrisoned for King Charles the First, received his death wound on the spot beneath this inscription by a shot in the forehead, from Mr Dyott. A gentleman who had placed himself on the battlements of the great steeple to annoy the besiegers

During the Civil War, Robert Greville, 2nd Baron Brooke commanded Parliament forces in Warwickshire and Staffordshire. Many consider Greville to be the first victim of sniper fire.