Kentish Rising May 1471

This uprising was a postscript to the rebellion by the earl of Warwick against King Edward and his subsequent alliance with Queen Margaret of Anjou. It was led by Thomas Neville, an illegitimate nephew of Warwick, who was known as the Bastard of Fauconberg. He claimed to have been given a naval command by King Henry and in early May he landed in Kent with about 300 men from the Calais garrison where he received a warm welcome and support came, not only from the men of Kent, but from those in Essex and Surrey. The small army grew to around 2,000 or 3,000 men as it marched towards London. From Sittingbourne, Fauconberg wrote to the Mayor and aldermen of the city asking permission to pass through it so as to shorten the route to engage with ‘the usurper’, King Edward. On 9 May permission was denied and the response included details of Edward’s success at Tewkesbury and the virtual annihilation of the Lancastrian cause.  Whether this was news to Fauconberg is not known but he was not deterred.

The situation in London was sensitive as King Henry was held prisoner in the Tower. Whether Fauconberg’s aim had really been to join up with Queen Margaret’s army or to rescue her husband from prison is not clear but when he reached London on 12 May he attacked the south end of London Bridge and sent troops across the river. Other than burning a gate in Southwark and some beer-houses near St Katherine’s there was no major damage. The city authorities had made good use of the past few days to prepare for the rebels so Fauconberg moved his army west to Kingston in an attempt to make an easier crossing over the Thames. He was thwarted when Earl Rivers sent a force by barge to intercept him.

Fauconberg returned to Southwark and he now launched a major assault on the city. He lined his guns along the south bank of the Thames and began a bombardment to provide some cover for a large force who were preparing to cross the river. Another force attacked London Bridge, setting fire to the small buildings on it, in order to clear an entry-point into the city without having to breach a gate.  Meanwhile, the rebels who had now reached the north bank attacked Aldgate and Bishopsgate. A contingent of rebels from Essex arrived and helped with the Aldgate assault. The citizens retreated through the gate and the portcullis was dropped, killing some rebels and trapping a small number within, who were immediately killed by the populace. The citizens of London fought hard and, supported by the authorities with whatever reinforcements could be spared, raised the portcullis and charged out of the city. Earl Rivers led a small force from the postern gate of the Tower and the earl of Essex mounted a successful counter-attack at Bishopsgate. Eventually the rebels were repelled. Some fled to Mile End and on to Stratford and others to Blackwall chased by Sir Ralph Josselyn. The remainder of the rebel army on the south bank, who had been out-gunned by the citizens and had made little progress on London Bridge, withdrew to Blackheath where they stayed until 19 May before returning for their homes. The previous day, Fauconberg had deserted them and with his Calais troops made for Sandwich. The troops returned to their garrison and Fauconberg remained in Sandwich, probably negotiating his pardon.

Meanwhile, King Edward and his army, triumphant after victory at Tewkesbury, entered London on 21 May. That night King Henry VI died at the Tower, undoubtedly killed on the orders of King Edward. The next day the king’s younger brother, Richard of Gloucester, led part of the army out of the city and three days later went to Sandwich to receive Fauconberg’s surrender. The king, who had followed his brother with the remainder of the army, now began the pacification of Kent and throughout the county men were punished, executed or fined. The Great Chronicle commented that the rich were hung by their purses and the commons by their necks.

Fauconberg accompanied his cousin of Gloucester to the north but his loyalty to the Yorkist regime was short-lived and by 28 September 1471 he had been executed for unspecified new offences.

Contemporary Source on-line (courtesy of the American Branch of the Society)

Fauconberg accompanied his cousin of Gloucester to the north but his loyalty to the Yorkist regime was short-lived and by 28 September 1471 he had been executed for unspecified new offences.

Part 5 of the Anonymous History of the Arrival of Edward IV in England and the Final Recovery of his Kingdom from Henry VI. The Aftermath of Tewkesbury through the Surrender of the Bastard of Fauconberg.

www.r3.org/bookcase/arrival5.html

Further Reading:

‘Richard, Duke of Gloucester, and the Death of Thomas Fauconberg’ by Richard Britnell.  The Ricardian, March 1995.  The article concentrates on the fate of Fauconberg after the rising.

‘Fauconberg’s Kentish Rising of May 1471’ by CF Richmond from English Historical Review, vol 85 1970. On the causes and eventual defeat of the uprising.

The Battles of Barnet and Tewkesbury by PW Hammond, Gloucester 1990