Now! Then! 2024! - Yorkshire On This Day

Excerpt

About nine of the clock, being Palm Sunday, both the hosts approached in plain field between Towton and Saxton. When each part perceived other, they made a great shout, and at the same instant time there fell a small snyt or snow, which by violence of the wind was driven into the faces of them which were of King Harry’s part. The Lord Fauconberg [William Neville, Earl of Kent], which led the forward of King Edward’s battle, being a man of great policy and of much experience in martial feats, caused every archer under his standard to shoot one flight and then made them to stand still. The northern men, feeling the shot, but, by reason of the snow, not well viewing the distance between them and their enemies, like hardy men shot their sheaf of arrows as fast as they might, but all their shot was lost, for they came not near the southern men by forty tailor’s yards. When their shot was almost spent, the Lord Fauconberg marched forward with his archers, which not only shot their own sheaves, but also gathered the arrows of their enemies and let a great part of them fly against their own masters. The Earl of Northumberland and Andrew Trollope, which were chieftains of King Harry’s vanguard, seeing their shot not to prevail, hasted forward to join their enemies. The battle was sore fought, for hope of life was set aside on every part, and taking of prisoners was proclaimed as a great offence, by reason whereof every man determined to conquer or die in the field. This deadly battle continued ten hours in doubtful victory, the one part sometime flowing and sometime ebbing; but in conclusion King Edward so courageously comforted his men, that the other part was overcome and fled toward Tadcaster Bridge to save themselves: but in the mean way there is a little brook called Cock, not very broad, but of great deepness, in the which a great number were drent and drowned, in so much that common people there affirm that men alive passed the river on dead carcases, and that the river of Wharfe, which is the great sewer of the brook, was coloured with blood.

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To facilitate reading, the spelling and punctuation of elderly excerpts have generally been modernised, and distracting excision scars concealed. My selections, translations, and editions are copyright.

Abbreviations:

• ER: East Riding
• GM: Greater Manchester
• NR: North Riding
• NY: North Yorkshire
• SY: South Yorkshire
• WR: West Riding
• WY: West Yorkshire

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Original

So the same day about 9 of the clock, which was the 29 day of March, being Palm Sunday, both the hosts approached in plain field between Towton and Saxton. When each part perceived other, they made a great shout, and at the same instant time there fell a small snyt or snow, which by violence of the wind was driven into the faces of them which were of King Harry’s part. The Lord Falconbridge [Fauconberg – William Neville, 1st Earl of Kent], which led the forward of King Edward’s battle, being a man of great policy and of much experience in martial feats, caused every archer under his standard to shoot one flight and then made them to stand still. The northern men, feeling the shot, but, by reason of the snow, not well viewing the distance between them and their enemies, like hardy men shot their sheaf of arrows as fast as they might, but all their shot was lost, for they came not near the southern men by forty tailor’s yards. When their shot was almost spent, the Lord Falconbridge marched forward with his archers, which not only shot their own sheaves, but also gathered the arrows of their enemies and let a great part of them fly against their own masters. The Earl of Northumberland and Andrew Trolope, which were chieftains of King Harry’s vanguard, seeing their shot not to prevail, hasted forward to join their enemies. The battle was sore fought, for hope of life was set aside on every part, and taking of prisoners was proclaimed as a great offence, by reason whereof every man determined to conquer or die in the field. This deadly battle continued ten hours in doubtful victory, the one part sometime flowing and sometime ebbing ; but in conclusion King Edward so courageously comforted his men, that the other part was overcome and fled toward Tadcaster Bridge to save themselves: but in the mean way there is a little brook called Cocke, not very broad, but of great deepness, in the which a great number were drent and drowned, in so much that common people there affirm that men alive passed the river on dead carcases, and that the river of Wharfe, which is the great sewer of the brook, was coloured with blood.

387 words.

Tags

Tags are assigned inclusively on the basis of an entry’s original text and any comment. You may find this confusing if you only read an entry excerpt.

• Andrew Trollope (1) ·
• Archery (2) ·
• Battle of Towton (1) ·
• Cock Beck (1) ·
• Edward Hall (2) ·
• Edward IV (1442-83) (5), reigned 1461-70 and 1471-83, led the Yorkist faction in the Wars of the Roses ·
• Henry Percy, 3rd Earl of Northumberland (1) ·
• Henry VI (1421-71) (3) ·
• Henry VI, Part 3 (2) ·
• House of Lancaster (1) ·
• House of York (1) ·
• Palm Sunday (2) ·
• River Wharfe (6) ·
• 📌Saxton, North Yorkshire (2) ·
• Shakespeare, William (1564-1616) (14) ·
• Snow (16) ·
• 📌Towton (1) ·
• Wars of the Roses (4) ·
• West Riding of Yorkshire (147) ·
• William Neville, 1st Earl of Kent (1) ·

All tags.

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