Battle Of Blore Heath 1459 |
| Hob Uid: 1110165 | |
Location :
Staffordshire
Newcastle-under-Lyme
Loggerheads
|
| Grid Ref : SJ7134135226 |
| Summary : The site of the battle of Blore Heath is located in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire. The battle was fought on 23rd September 1459 and was a part of the War of the Roses. This was caused by the protracted struggle for power between the reigning dynasty of the House of Lancaster (red rose) and the competing House of York (white rose). In spring 1459 the Queen presented indictments for treason against the Duke of York and his nephew the Earl of Warwick. The response of the Yorkists was to raise an army. As the Earl of Salisbury (Warwick's father) moved south to rendezvous with York at Ludlow, he was intercepted at Blore Heath by the Queen's forces under Lord Audley. Outnumbering the Yorkists 2:1, Audley deployed his men on a shallow ridge running down to a brook. The 9,000 to 10,000 Lancastrians were in a strong defensive position. Salisbury reconnoitred the enemy position and decided against an assault. He ordered his men to prepare an equally strong defence, with stakes planted in front of the Yorkist line and a trench dug to the rear. With his defence established, Salisbury's problem was to persuade Audley to advance the attack. He achieved this by faking a sign of retreat. Obligingly, Audley charged his vanguard forward across the brook. Salisbury's archers shot their horses from under them and the Yorkist infantry rushed in to finish the winded and disorganised calvarymen. A second mounted attack met the same fate and for his third assault Audley changed his tactics, leading 4,000 infantry forward as the main thrust of his attack with cavalry in support. A furious and bloody melee took place on the slopes of the Yorkist position, during which Audley was cut down and killed. His cavalry now withdrew entirely, some riding off the battlefield, others deserting to the Yorkists. Unable to make progress against the enemy fortifications, with their commander dead and their cavalry defeated, the Lancastrian infantry broke and fled. |
More information : The site of the Battle of Blore Heath is a Registered battlefield. For the designation record of this site please see The National Heritage List for England (1 & 12)
Further information on the site of the Battle of Blore Heath. (2-9)
The site of the battle of Blore Heath is located in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire. The battle was fought on 23rd September 1459 and was a part of the War of the Roses. This was caused by the protracted struggle for power between the reigning dynasty of the House of Lancaster (red rose) and the competing House of York (white rose). In spring 1459 the Queen presented indictments for treason against the Duke of York and his nephew the Earl of Warwick. The response of the Yorkists was to raise an army. As the Earl of Salisbury (Warwick's father) moved south to rendezvous with York at Ludlow, he was intercepted at Blore Heath by the Queen's forces under Lord Audley. Outnumbering the Yorkists 2:1, Audley deployed his men on a shallow ridge running down to a brook. The 9,000 to 10,000 Lancastrians were in a strong defensive position. Salisbury reconnoitred the enemy position and decided against an assault.
He ordered his men to prepare an equally strong defence, with stakes planted in front of the Yorkist line and a trench dug to the rear. With his defence established, Salisbury's problem was to persuade Audley to advance the attack. He achieved this by faking a sign of retreat. Obligingly, Audley charged his vanguard forward across the brook. Salisbury's archers shot their horses from under them and the Yorkist infantry rushed in to finish the winded and disorganised calvarymen. A second mounted attack met the same fate and for his third assault Audley changed his tactics, leading 4,000 infantry forward as the main thrust of his attack with cavalry in support. A furious and bloody melee took place on the slopes of the Yorkist position, during which Audley was cut down and killed. His cavalry now withdrew entirely, some riding off the battlefield, others deserting to the Yorkists. Unable to make progress against the enemy fortifications, with their commander dead and their cavalry defeated, the Lancastrian infantry broke and fled. (10)
Today the battlefield is full enclosed agricultural land. The wood where the left flank of the Yorkist army was positioned is now of a lesser extent. (11)
The National Grid Reference for the site is: SJ714352 (13)
Battlefield Report (4) |