Timeline
o 23 September 1459 – Battle of Blore Heath. Salisbury defeats Audley and Dudley.
o 12-13 October 1459 – Ludford Bridge. Yorkist leaders flee – the Nevilles go to Calais,
York goes to Ireland.
o June 1460 – the Yorkists land at Sandwich, coming from Calais.
o 10 July 1460 – Battle of Northampton.
o October 1460 – Act of Accord and York created the Lord Protector.
o 30 December 1460 – Battle of Wakefield. York and Salisbury killed.
o 2-3 February 1461 – Battle of Mortimer’s Cross. York’s son, Edward, defeats Welsh
Lancastrians.
o 17 February 1461 – The Second Battle of St Albans. Margaret defeats Warwick.
o 4 March 1461 – start of Edward IV’s reign.
o 29 March 1461 – Battle of Towton and Lancastrians are defeated.
• June 1459 – Great Council met at Coventry that convicted but then pardoned the Yorkist
lords of unspecified offences. The Yorkist lords began a new rebellion to control the
government and gain support for their manifesto – York attempted to raise support in
Wales, Salisbury in north England, and Warwick at Calais (payments to the garrison were
increasingly delayed since the 1440s).
• September 1459 – Salisbury attracted attention from his Lancastrian opponents, and was
confronted by Lords Audley and Dudley with 10,000 men. On 23 September, the two were
defeated, and Salisbury escaped.
• York, Salisbury, and Warwick advanced to Worcester and sealed an agreement by indenture
to assist each other, except their loyalty to the king. The agreement was presented to Henry
VI, who recruited a large army that made the Yorkists retreat. Henry offered terms to the
Yorkist leaders and a royal pardon, which the Yorkists declined.
• October 1459 – the Yorkists confronted the royal army, a battle which the Yorkists had to
desert. York fled to Ireland with his son, the Earl of Rutland. Warwick, the Earl of March
(York’s eldest son), and Lord Fauconberg fled to Calais. In both places, the Yorkists were
supported; York cemented his popularity in England by offering independence from the
English parliament to the Anglo-Irish ruling elite.
• Parliament of Devils, November 1459 – the Yorkists were condemned as traitors and
attainted. Henry VI wished for leniency and a compromise. The attainder meant that the
Yorkists could only return to England with force. The government failed to retrieve Calais
due to the strength and raids of the Yorkists, defeating Somerset in the process.
• A propaganda campaign was launched in England to undermine the king’s authority, using
the same elements as the Cade manifesto.
• June 1460 – the Yorkists land at Sandwich, and march to London with no opposition. London
was not won over by the Lancastrian government, due to economic depression and the
preference for alien merchants (London was an important source of trade, taxation, and
loans). The monarch’s position was reliant on the support of London, important in
legitimising their rule.
• July 1460 – The Yorkists (excluding York) followed the king’s forces to Northampton. The
royalists did not trust the Yorkists’ intentions and drew a fighting force. Lord Grey Ruthin
defected to the Yorkist side, allowing a swift victory. Buckingham, Shrewsbury, and Lord
Egremont were killed. Henry VI was captured and taken to London, whilst Margaret and
Prince Edward fled north.
• York was delayed in returning to England for several months (until September 1460).
Meanwhile, Lancastrians were replaced with Yorkists in key roles. The Yorkists were
supported by south and east England, whereas they were unaccepted by Wales and the
Marches, and the north and southwest counties.
• October 1460 – York submitted a written case for his claim to the throne (Act of Accord) –
Henry VI was to remain on the throne, but York was to govern as Protector of England and
be named as heir instead of Prince Edward. This was not a popular move among York’s
supporters, as well as his opponents (Margaret was able to develop a strong group of
supporters and gathered troops in Wales and north England). Scotland was able to exploit
the weakness of the English government, and supported Margaret.
• December 1460, Wakefield – Salisbury and York, with a small force, left London to head
north and confront Margaret. They underestimated the size of Margaret’s forces and were
killed. The Lancastrian leaders, Somerset and Northumberland, avenged the deaths of their
fathers at the First Battle of St Albans.
• 2-3 February 1461, Mortimer’s Cross – Son of York, Edward, met the Welsh Lancastrian force
in a small-scale battle. Three suns were seen in the sky, which was seen as a good omen by
Edward. Jasper Tudor and Wiltshire escaped, whereas Owen Tudor was killed.
• February 1461, Second Battle of St Albans – in the lead up to the battle, Margaret allowed
her troops to plunder. Margaret met Warwick and other leading Yorkists at St Albans.
Warwick’s forces were untrained but used modern weapons such as cannons. His plan to
bombard the Lancastrian force was defeated, and Warwick and Norfolk escaped. The
Lancastrians regained control of Henry after London was abandoned by the Yorkists.
Margaret’s decision to negotiate her admittance into London was disastrous, because they
allowed the Yorkists entry (due to Margaret’s reputation for plundering) and she retreated
north again.
• 27 February 1461 – Warwick and Edward enter London, where he declared himself king to
legitimise his rule, using the Act of Accord to support his claim. There may have been
reluctance among the nobility due to Edward not being an anointed monarch. The popular
support for Edward was useful Yorkist propaganda. Many historians see Edward as the
‘puppet’ of Warwick due to the latter’s role in making Edward king. However, Warwick’s
forces were still recovering from their loss at the Second Battle of St Albans, and Edward had
a forceful personality.
• March 1461, Towton – Edward began a slow march northwards to gain as much support as
possible, whereas Margaret arranged her army at Towton. There was an unusually high
number of troops present at this battle, possibly because of its political significance for both
sides involved. Margaret had to defeat Edward before he was accepted as king, and Edward
IV had to defeat the Lancastrians to consolidate his rule. The battle was fought in terrible
conditions, in wind, cold, and snow. The Yorkists used the wind to rain arrows onto the
Lancastrian force. The arrival of Norfolk broke the Lancastrian ranks, resulting in most of the
Lancastrian leaders being killed. Margaret and Prince Edward escaped to Scotland.
• After winning Towton, Warwick stayed in north England to consolidate Edward IV’s authority
as king in the region, overseeing the submission of Dunstanburgh and Alnwick Castles. By
October 1461, the north of England was secured for Edward IV and Warwick joined him in
Westminster by November.