The Duke of Gloucester, who commanded Edward’s left flank at Barnet, was later to become King Richard III.Leading from the front Edward IV has a good chance of being killed in the Battle.As a field Commander you would only be aware of what is happening where you are and not to your left or right This coupled with doubtful alliances has the potential for totally unexpected outcomes. The battle was fought in dense fog that caused utter confusion. The potential for treachery on either side with Clarence and Montague.It is however a good wargaming subject for a variety of reasons and it makes a great subject for wargaming for a number of reasons including: The scene was set for the Battle of Barnet.īarnet as a battle is not as well known as the battle of Tewkesbury that occurred around a month later and has often tended to overshadow it. Whilst this was going on Clarence, now of course the Earl of Warwick’s son-in-law, defected again and without Warwick’s knowledge re-joined his brother Edwards cause.Įdward’s duly captured the Lancastrian King Henry VI who faced the humiliation of being held captive in Edward’s baggage train as he pushed north to do battle with Warwick. Immediately amidst such treacherous times the loyalty of Warwick’s son was called into question because of his perceived inaction in Yorkshire. Edward however simply bypassed Montagues’s forces, avoided Warwick who was in Coventry and marched to London unopposed. Warwick knew of Edward’s landing and expected that his son the Earl of Montague would engage Edward in Yorkshire. In March 1471 Edward landed in Yorkshire with a small army and was able to recruit as he pushed south for London. King Edward IV spent his short exile drawing upon the support of his brother-in-law the Duke of Burgundy. Warwick was of course the same man who five years previously had led this same man and supposed traitor King to the tower! In 1470 Warwick released the hapless King Henry VI from his imprisonment and duly declared him to be King. With the King engaged in the north, Warwick landed in Devon with an army funded by the French King and the army continued to recruit as it marched on London.Įdward soon realised that his small force could not fight on twoįronts and with no hope of recruiting in the north he promptly fled the country. Prior to leaving England, Warwick had fermented rebellion in the north of England which Edward and his army was then forced to suppress. He was joined by the King’s own brother Clarence who cemented his loyalty to Warwick by marrying his daughter. The Earl of Warwick crossed to Calais to find other rebels and to raise an army. Hope for the Lancastrian cause was however rekindled when the King mismanaged his relationship with his most loyal campaigner the Earl of Warwick, the famous Kingmaker, who had done so much to bring Edward the throne of England. It seemed that the threat to the reign of the Yorkist King Edward IV from the House of Lancaster had waned and he was secure. By 1469 all of the most prominent supporters of the Lancaster cause were in exile and their ‘King’, Henry VI, was a prisoner in the tower. The Wars of the Roses had been rumbling along since 1455. Bryce has also provided some wonderful banners to adorn the various nobles that are available in the download section of the web site and has provided information on collecting the forces and painting them accurately. We provide a brief background to this historic War of the Roses clash and a scenario using the Warhammer Ancient Battles rules and army lists that first appeared sometime ago inside Wargames Journal.
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