Wars of the Roses Weaponary and Tactics

The wars raged across 15th Century England made it essential for forces to be properly armed and protected.

ARMOUR

Men-at-arms in the thick of the action were fitted with heavy armour with a breast-plate underneath a leather brigandine or chain-mail hauberk. Attached to the breastplate were the plate armoured gorget around the neck, pauldron over the shoulders, couter over the elbows, vambraces over the forearms, tassets over the thighs and culet over the lower back. Added protection was found with plate-armoured gauntlet gloves and knights wore lance rests attached to the breast plate to steady their lances for a firmer blow.

Horses were also glad in plate armour

The main disadvantage of heavy armour was the lack of mobility and the quick-moving infantry wore a mail shirt over a padded aketonmail, with added munitions plate covering the most important body parts.  Light armour mostly consisted of padded cloth and leather with the archer's bracer providing a leather armguard to protect the fletching of an arrow. 

A Richard III re-enactor wears a crowed sallet helmet

Helmets also varied in design depending on how much protection was needed. Heavy helmets were made from steel plate, covered the head with visors on bascinets, armets, sallets and close helmets. Richard III was likely wearing a crowned sallet when he charged Henry Tudor at the Battle of Bosworth.

Medium helmets were made of steel, but didn't protect the entire head like the visor-less barbute helmet. Light helmets were usually caps made of cloth and leather but archers preferred the wide-brimmed steel kettle hats for greater field of vision and to shield their eyes from the sun. Helmets were often customised with different colours, plumes, coifs and bevors. 

Archers wore kettle helmets to shield their eyes from the sun

COMBAT WEAPONS

The advancements in protective armour led to the development of the longsword which allowed a double-handed grip with the sword's longer hilt. The finest swords of the era were stamped with a German Passau wolf and the unusually hard Toledo steel forged in Spain. Daggers were often used as a side-arm and the small, sharp bladed wound on top of Richard III's skull showed that they were used as execution weapons, with two hands likely used to push the pommel into Richard III's skull.

Other weapons used by men-at-arms included hammers, maces, axes, spears and pole arms like the halberd. The halberd was inexpensive to produce and very versatile in battle as the hook and axe head were able to pull horsemen to the ground. The large hole at the base of Richard III's skull shows that a halberd likely sliced the back of the king's head and struck the fatal blow. The bill hook was also effective at bringing down a horseman with the pronounced hook able to find a chink in the knight's armour. 

A halberd likely struck the fatal blow to Richard III

Men on horseback attacked in triangular formations, with the most heavily armored knights at the front. They defended themselves with shields and attacked with a wooden lance that would shatter upon impact. Richard III was the head of a triangular formation charging towards Henry Tudor and his lance shattered into the helmet of Tudor's standard bearer, Sir William Brandon.

RANGED WEAPONS

The longbow gained it's notoriety at the Battle of Agincourt with a fast reload, accurate archers, armour-piercing bodkin heads and light-weight bowstaves. Compulsory longbow training was enforced in 1470 and many of the fragile yew bowstaves would often break and needed replacing. This led to a shortage in yew and this was overcome by Richard III increasing the tax on ships arriving in English ports to 10 bowstaves per tun in cargo, up from 4 bowstaves decreed in the Statue of Westminster 1472.

Longbowmen in action at the Battle of Towton (Graham Turner)

An effective longbowman took years of strength and skill training whilst a crossbow could be used effectively after a week's training. The crossbow was more powerful than a longbow thanks to a greater release of kinetic energy but it was more inaccurate and had a slower shooting rate than an average longbow. The archers took central position in battle formations and usually engaged the enemy before a main assault of mounted knights. Crossbowmen were also utilised in counterattacks to protect their infantry.

Cannon fires at a Battle of Tewkesbury festival

Arrows would eventually be replaced by gunpowder and shot in the coming centuries. The Wars of the Roses saw artillery like culverins used to supplement infantry attacks and bombards brought siege to Bamburgh Castle in 1464. Transporting artillery from camp-to-camp provided to be cumbersome and firearms, such as hand culverins, hand bombards and hand cannons developed.

TACTICS

In the early 1450s the act of gathering troops and marching to battle didn't usually result in combat as Duke of York's standoff at Dartford showed. Henry VI may have been expecting the same when he garrisoned the wall-less town of St. Albans in 1455 but York decided to end hours of stalemate by launching the First Battle of St. Albans.

A commander would line his troops into three 'battles' - the vanguard leading the attack, the main in the middle, and the rearguard often holding back reserves. Archers had previously launched the opening salvo into opposing infantry but by the mid-1400s this had developed into a stalemate of opposing bowmen fighting each other. Men-at-arms would either lead the vanguard on foot (Battle of Northampton) or on horseback (Battle of Blore Heath). 

Lord Audley leads a cavalry charge at Blore Heath

Armies made best use of their terrain and would fortify their positions by using bodies of water and marshland, digging trenches and setting up wooden spikes to deter on-coming cavalry. Deception was used effectively by Earl of Salisbury at Blore Heath by removing his soldiers from the front line to give the impression of retreat to Lord Audley. Audley was lured into taking his cavalry over a stream and was unable to avoid Salisbury's returning men.

The rank-and-file troops were gathered by their lords or knights and served in all of their disputes wearing the lord's ‘livery’ and fought under their banner. In return, the lord ‘maintained’ their tenants' rights and claims. This ‘livery and maintenance’ soon developed into ‘bastard feudalism’ as cash rewards replaced traditional land gains. 

The level of professionalism varied amongst the troops who would often flee the battlefield or surrender unarmed when the fight was lost. The Wars of the Roses was mainly a dispute between noble families and the rank-and-file were spared the bloodshed of their noble commanders whose heavy armour would hinder them escaping a melee.  

Battle of Wakefield saw the end of chivalric ransoms

The Battle of Wakefield saw the conflict take a grisly turn when captured nobles were executed instead of being customarily ransomed and these deaths made the battles extremely personal. The Battle of Ludford Bridge was a rare occasion in the Wars of the Roses where battle commanders, facing defeat, fled the battlefield to fight another day. The move by York to withdraw should be seen as calculated as he was hugely outnumbered following a large defection. Cowardice at Ludford should be viewed with caution as most of those who fled the battlefield - York, his son, the Earl of Rutland, Rutland's uncle, Salisbury and Salisbury's son, the Earl of Warwick, would later die in, or shortly after, battle.

The other escapee of Ludford was York's eldest son, Edward, who would claim the throne in 1461 after fighting amongst 50,000 men at the Battle of Towton that left 26,000 dead. Richard III would also charge into battle and refused to withdraw from the Battle of Bosworth after he was dismounted. Bosworth would ultimately be decided by those fighting under livery and maintenance as Sir William Stanley led his men at the crucial moment to attack the king.

The 30 years between the First Battle of St. Albans and Bosworth had periods of uneasy rest but the brutal battles and the twisted machinations would ensure that blood would soon be spilt and the long vaunted days of chivalry were over

Profile - Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury 1400-1460

Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury, was a key Yorkist supporter in the beginning of the Wars of the Roses, and was also brother-in-law to Richard, Duke of York.

WARDEN OF THE NORTH

The Earl of Salisbury was born in 1400 at Raby Castle in County Durham and was the eldest son of Ralph de Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland, and Joan Beaufort, daughter of John of Gaunt and Katherine Swynford. Salisbury's father was responsible for the wardship of the orphaned Duke of York, and Ralph Neville betrothed the wealthy duke to his youngest daughter, Cecily.

Richard Neville was married to Alice Montacute, daughter and heiress of Thomas Montacute, the Earl of Salisbury, sometime before February 1421 when they attended the coronation of Queen Catherine of Valois as a married couple. Ralph Neville died in 1425 and Richard inherited the family residence of Middleham Castle with the Earldom of Salisbury coming three years later when Alice's father died.

Middleham Castle - Seat of Neville Power

Salisbury became a commander at the age of 20 when appointed Warden of the West March on the Scottish border and was rewarded by Henry V in his appointment of Justice of the Peace in Cumberland, Westmoreland, and Durham. Salisbury began to frequent the royal court and accompanied the young King Henry VI to France for his coronation in 1431 and his fealty was rewarded by becoming Warden of the East March on the Welsh border.

In 1436, Salisbury resigned from both posts and accompanied York, the newly appointed Lieutenant of France, with 1,300 men-at-arms and archers to protect English lands on the French domain. Salisbury returned the following year and was repaid with a seat on the King's Council whilst also resuming the Wardenship of the West March. The wardenship caused resentment with the Percy family, who had lands just south of the Scottish border in Northumberland.

The Percys were aggrieved when Salisbury recruited men in their Cumberland and Westmorland estates and the Percys flouted Salisbury's rule during the Battle of Sark against the Scots in 1448. Salisbury was to feel the wrath of the Percys up close on 24 August 1453 when Thomas Percy, Lord Egremont, attacked Salisbury at Heworth Moor, outside York, on the journey home to Sheriff Hutton. Salisbury was returning from the wedding of his son Thomas and he fought off Egremont's men unscathed.

YORKIST

Salisbury's eldest son became Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick when he married the Warwick heiress Anne Beauchamp in 1449. Warwick was to exceed his father in lands, wealth and titles but remained loyal and Salisbury would take a high place in the Privy Council after Henry VI's mental breakdown. 

During the king's illness, York was elected Protector of the Realm on 27 March 1454 and assigned his brother-in-law as Chancellor. Salisbury wasn't able to tackle government overspending for long as York's influence diminished when Henry VI regained his sense on Christmas Day 1454. York and Warwick's enemy, Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset, was released from the Tower of London and Salisbury resigned as Chancellor in 1455.

Henry VI's return to health saw Salisbury resign as Chancellor

English queen, Margaret of Anjou, focused her resentment on the Yorkists and requested the nobles to attend a Great Council meeting in Leicester on 21 May 1455. York, along with Salisbury and Warwick, saw the invitation as a ruse and took up arms to intercept the royal party before they reached Leicester.

Yorkist and royal forces clashed at the First Battle of St. Albans where Salisbury's and York's attempts to break the Lancastrian front line was assisted by Warwick's surprise attack from Lord Thomas Clifford's rear. The Lancastrian army was defeated and the king's lieutenants, including Henry Percy, 2nd Earl of Northumberland, were killed. Henry VI was discovered in a tanner's house and Salisbury bent the knee with York and Warwick to show their allegiance to the king. 

Salisbury rode alongside the king as he was escorted back to London and his son was appointed Captain of Calais after York was proclaimed Constable of England that was later relinquished when Henry VI returned to good health. Warwick kept his captaincy of Calais and Margaret convinced the king to move the royal court to Coventry in Lancastrian heartland. York and Salisbury retired to their estates of Ludlow and Middleham but Salisbury was soon aggravated by the Percys.

Henry VI looked for peace throughout the nobility and called for talks in early 1458. The talks were disrupted by Sir John Clifford, Henry Percy, 3rd Earl of Northumberland and Henry Beaufort, 3rd Duke of Somerset, whose fathers died at St. Albans. Henry VI conceded and allowed them to be compensated by York, Salisbury and Warwick. The peace talks culminated at Loveday 24 March 1458 but the public display of peace didn't continue as Margaret of Anjou and Warwick sparred with each other either side of the English Channel with Warwick lucky to escape London with his life.

MASTER OF DECEPTION

York and Salisbury gathered troops in anticipation and word was sent to Warwick to do the same. Salisbury left Middleham and marched south-west to meet York but was intercepted by royal forces at the Battle of Blore Heath on 23 September 1459. 

Lord Audley leads the attack on Salisbury

Margaret of Anjou had heard of Salisbury's movements and sent James Tuchet, Lord Audley, to intercept him. Audley chose the open field of Blore Heath in Staffordshire to attack Salisbury with his 10,000 men and took position behind a stream out Salisbury's archers range. Salisbury showed his experience by enticing Audley to cavalry charge when he feinted a retreat and two subsequent charges from the Lancastrians couldn't break Salisbury's lines. The fighting left 2,000 Lancastrians, including Audley, dead.

Salisbury was aware that the main Lancastrian army was nearby and tasked a friar to fire cannons left on the battlefield to mask his retreat. This ingenuity resulted in Salisbury linking up with York and Warwick by Ludlow. The royal army forced York to encamp south of Ludlow at the Battle of Ludford Bridge. The king's presence led to the defection of Warwick's forces and the three Yorkist commanders fled the battlefield with Salisbury, Warwick and York's son, Edward, Earl of March, headed south to Calais.

Exile in Calais lasted eight months with Warwick meeting with York in Ireland in March 1460 to plan their return two months later. Salisbury stayed in London to hold the city as Warwick and March successfully fought the royal forces at Battle of Northampton. Warwick returned to London with the king and York came to the city on 10 October 1460 to claim the throne for himself. York's unsuccessful public display to take the throne for himself alienated Salisbury and Warwick who were hesitant in deposing the king.

An Act of Accord on 24 October 1460 decreed that York and his subsequent heirs would inherit the throne after Henry VI but Margaret of Anjou was courting Scottish support with James III. 

News of Northumberland mobilising forces and raiding Salisbury and York estates led the two nobles, along with York's second eldest son, Edmund, Earl of Rutland, to leave London and march north. The Yorkist army clashed with Edmund Beaufort's army at Worksop, Nottinghamshire, and reached Sandal Castle near Wakefield on 21 December 1460. York was drawn out onto Wakefield Green and ambushed at the Battle of Wakefield on 30 December 1460. 

A crushing Yorkist defeat saw York die on the battlefield and Rutland was caught fleeing the battle and executed. Salisbury's attempt to flee the lost battle lasted a few more hours than Rutland's and he was caught and held at Pontefract Castle. Salisbury's captors were contemplating a ransom when the earl bribed a jailor to apparent safety but commoners saw Salisbury leaving, sprung an attack and executed him.

Salisbury's head would be spiked alongside those of York and Rutland on Mickelgate Bar in York but the Neville dynasty didn't end there. Warwick would later be the "Kingmaker" and Salisbury's grand-daughter, Anne Neville, became Queen Consort when Richard III came to the throne 23 years after the rout at Wakefield.

Profile - Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, Part 2 1458-1460

Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick, will forever be known as the "Kingmaker" due to the power he wielded during the Wars of the Roses.

PIRATE

Warwick returned to Calais in the spring of 1458 and began courting friendship with Phillip of Burgundy, an important trade ally. Warwick looked to negotiate Prince Edward's betrothal to a Burgundian princess without King Henry VI and Queen Margaret of Anjou knowledge. Warwick continued to frustrate the royal couple by disregarding a truce between England and the Hanseatic League and plundered the ships of German wool traders as they entered the English Channel.

Map of 15th Century Calais

The queen summoned Warwick to London to answer for his piracy and Warwick arrived in the capital with 600 retainers to ward off the queen's threats. Warwick returned to the capital later that year and an accident by the king's scullion nearly left Warwick impaled on a spit in the royal kitchens. Warwick's men, suspicious of a plot, looked to kill the scullion and a fight broke out with the royal servants. Warwick overwhelmed the royal guard, seized the scullion and brought him before the queen. Margaret astutely ordered the kitchen orderly to death for attempted murder but later allowed the scullion to escape and flee to Yorkshire. 

Margaret persuaded the Council that it was Warwick who instigated the fight and had them issue an arrest warrant. Warwick fled to Calais  but returned when he heard of the queen's intentions of replacing him with Henry Beaufort, 3rd Duke of Somerset, as Captain of Calais. Warwick defiantly stood in front of the Council and reminded them that it was Parliament who appointed him as Captain of Calais and only Parliament could revoke his position. Warwick was attacked as he left the council chambers by retainers loyal to Margaret partisans, Somerset and the Earl of Wiltshire, and Warwick narrowly escaped to Calais.

Richard Duke of York and Warwick's father, Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury, gathered troops and sent word to Warwick for assistance. Warwick rallied 200 men-at-arms and 400 archers to be commanded by Calais Master Porter, Andrew Trollope, and Warwick left Calais under the watch of his uncle, Lord Fauconberg.

York had rallied his troops near his residence of Ludlow in the Welsh marches and Salisbury travelled south from Middleham, Yorkshire, to join him. Warwick landed in Kent and marched north uncontested through London and on to Warwick Castle but the royal forces reached Warwick ahead of him and blocked the road north towards Salisbury. Warwick continued west and met up with York, and a battle-hardened Salisbury after Warwick's father was victorious in the Battle of Blore Heath. 

The Yorkist commanders, after taking communion at Worcester Cathedral, swore an oath of allegiance and respect to the king but Henry VI was persuaded by Margaret to ignore it. The king's forces pursued York south of Ludlow and York's army encamped on the shore of the River Tern, for the Battle of Ludford Bridge. 

BETRAYED

York 's outnumbered men were overawed in seeing the royal standard flying across the other side of the bridge and were unwilling to fight against the king himself. Henry VI seized on this and sent word to the Yorkists that a free pardon would be given to anyone, apart from Salisbury, who defected and this offer was too good a opportunity to miss for Trollope. Warwick's Calais contingent came over to the Lancastrians and York was fearful of Trollope informing the royal commanders details of his troop formations.

York, Salisbury and Warwick told their captains that they were to spend the night of October 12 1459 at Ludlow in order to plan their next move. The commanders used the cover of night to make their escape and fled the battlefield. The remaining Yorkist soldiers woke up to see their leaders gone and peacefully surrendered to the king. 

Flee into exile began at Ludford Bridge

York had taken his second eldest son, Edmund, Earl of Rutland, with him to Ireland whilst Warwick and Salisbury fled to Calais and were accompanied by York's eldest son, Edward, Earl of March. York had left behind his wife Cecily, daughter Margaret, and his youngest sons, George and Richard, to the mercy of the Lancastrian army and the family were found at Ludlow Market Cross. Cecily's sister and Warwick's fellow aunt, Anne, took them into care under the watchful eye of Anne's husband, Duke of Buckingham.

Warwick returned to Calais and was supported by it's people who rallied against Somerset, the newly appointed Captain of Calais. Somerset looked to assert his title by taking Calais for himself but found the city gate locked. Somerset was able to establish a base in nearby Guisnes and appointed Trollope the town's bailiff due, in part, to Trollope's knowledge of the area. Somerset continued to mount attacks on Calais but Warwick remained unnerved.  

Warwick still had one of his ships moored in Sandwich and the queen sent the husband of long-time friend, Jacquetta of Luxembourg, to commandeer the vessel. Richard Woodville, who was now Earl Rivers, and his son, Anthony, arrived at Sandwich but were soon taken prisoner by Warwick's supporters. The Woodvilles were taken across the English Channel and Warwick, Salisbury and March ridiculed their captives. Warwick especially berated Earl Rivers for being a son of a squire who had married himself into the nobility to become a lord.  

RETURN

Warwick was able to sail uncontested to Ireland to meet with York to plan their return from exile and Warwick, Salisbury and March landed in Sandwich on 26 June 1460. Salisbury stayed behind in London and Warwick marched north with 10,000 men towards the royal forces in Coventry. The Yorkist grievances were taken by three emissaries but were denied access to the king by Buckingham who responded that "the Earl of Warwick shall not come to the King's presence and if he comes he shall die." The two forces met at the Battle of Northampton on 10 July 1460 and Warwick sent message to Buckingham that "at 2 o'clock I will speak with the King or I will die." 

Warwick outnumbered the royal army two to one and advanced at 2 o'clock into hard wind and rain. Warwick's men were met with a fierce hail of Lancastrian arrows but the rain had made the royal artillery near useless. March took the vanguard up to the ditch guarding the Lancastrian right flank and were assisted by Lancastrian Lord Grey of Ruthin who had previously been bribed by Warwick and March. 

The battle lasted just half an hour once the Yorkists were behind the Lancastrian front lines and the royal troops fled the king's defence. Henry VI had remained in his tent behind the front line and his four lieutenants of Buckingham, Earl of Shrewsbury, Lord Egremont and Lord Beaumont, all died trying to stop the Yorkist approach.

Warwick kneels to the captured King Henry VI - depicted by Graham Turner

The Yorkist archer, Henry Mountfort, captured Henry VI and confined him to his royal tent until Warwick and March arrived. The earls knelt before the king and sought forgiveness after taking up arms against him once again in order to challenge those in his Council. The king had no choice but to accept and Warwick once again led the king back to London.

York arrived in London on 10 October 1460 and proclaimed his intentions by placing a hand on the throne and replied, "I know of no person in this realm that owes not to wait on me, rather than I of him" when asked by the Archbishop of Cantebury if York wished to see the king.

York's actions alienated Warwick and Salisbury. The Nevilles were angry at York for not consulting them and they remained hesitant about deposing the king. Warwick remonstrated with York in the pretender's Westminster lodgings and Rutland defended his father. March, fully aware of Warwick's power, calmed his younger brother, and a simmering Warwick left the apartments, speaking only with March.

Aware of the dissension in his own ranks, York detailed his hereditary claim to the throne to Parliament who passed an Act of Accord on 24 October 1460 that ordered York (and his heirs) as successors to the throne after Henry VI.

Margaret of Anjou had fled north with her now-disinherited son after her husband's defeat at Northampton and had travelled from Wales to Scotland. Margaret was negotiating terms with the Scottish king, James III, and Lancastrian forces began to build just south of the Scottish border.

York was disturbed by the news of a growing northern army and marshaled his troops by having March garrisoned to the west in the Welsh Marches whereas Warwick oversaw London. York, Salisbury and Rutland now marched north to meet the Lancastrians, and their deaths, at Battle of Wakefield.

Battle of Blore Heath 1459

England's uneasy period of peace since the First Battle of St. Albans came to end on 23 September 1459 at the Battle of Blore Heath in Staffordshire.

BACKGROUND

Queen of England, Margaret of Anjou, had been growing in animosity towards Richard, Duke of York, and his supporters, Earl of Salisbury and Earl of Warwick. The Yorkist commanders were spread across the land with York at Ludlow in Shropshire, Salisbury at Middleham,Yorkshire and Warwick in Calais. 

Troops were being mustered on both sides and Salisbury took his men south to link up with York at Ludlow. The royal army was moving to Ludlow from Nottingham but Anjou, hearing of Salisbury's movements, instructed James Tuchet, Lord Audley, to intercept.

BATTLE

Audley chose the open ground of Blore Heath to press home his advantage of 10,000 men and cavalry. Salisbury took up defensive positions by digging a trench to his rear and fortified the front line with stakes. Audley took up position behind a steep, wide and fast-flowing stream that was out of range of Salisbury's archers.

Salisbury prompted Audley into a cavalry charge by ordering a portion of his line to retreat. Audley fell into the trap as Salisbury ordered his men to return and attack the cavalry crossing the stream. The Lancastrian infantry successfully crossed the stream in a second attack and a fierce melee ensued.

Lord Dudley leads the Lancastrian attack

Audley died in the fighting and his command was left to John Sutton, Lord Dudley, who led 4,000 infantrymen into the third and final wave. Dudley's cause soon deteriorated when 500 of his own men joined the enemy and attacked the Lancastrians. Dudley's men soon fled the battle and they were cut down by Salisbury's men. 

Salisbury, despite having half of the men, was able to take advantage of the land and his military tactics, to kill 2,000 Lancastrians to the loss of his 1,000 men. But Salisbury was aware of an approaching royal army, with Anjou five miles away at Eccleshall and Henry VI 10 miles away.

Salisbury showed further ingenuity in his undetected retreat from Blore Heath when he instructed a friar to fire the remaining battlefield artillery throughout the night. The royal forces of 15,000 men advanced to Blore Heath and were greeted the next morning by the lone friar. The friar replied to Lancastrian demands of why he stayed on the battlefield all night by saying he was "afraid to leave it."

York would later met up with Salisbury and Warwick at Worcester to prepare for a fight with the Lancastrians that came at Ludford Bridge on 12 October 1459.