The Battle of Wakefield

On 31st December 2005, members of Towton Battlefield Society and its affiliated re-enactment group, the Company of Palm Sunday 1461, were proud to present the first large-scale public commemoration of the Battle of Wakefield to be held at Sandal Castle.

The highly successful day got off to a rousing start at 10am, when COPS Vice-Captain Mick Doggett mustered the group for a live interview with BBC Radio Leeds. Immediately afterwards a dozen costumed COPS, led by Cap'n Mick with his drum and a knight in full armour, marched down from Sandal Castle to retrace the route taken by Richard, Duke of York, on that fateful day in 1460. We even felt like royalty, pursued by a crowd of paparazzi at every step of the way!

Arriving at the Duke's memorial on Manygates Lane, we laid two wreaths of white roses and lilies in memory of the fallen on both sides, and observed a minute's silence.

Then we paraded back to the Castle, and treated between 300 - 500 local people to a full day of living history. Outdoor activities commenced with a demonstration of longbow archery and pole-arms drills. The climax of the combat displays came with a sword fight between Archer Doggett and our sole Lancastrian representative, Lord 'Black-Faced' Clifford (aka Stuart Ivinson of the Royal Armouries). This drew gasps from the crowd as they hacked, hewed, panted and slid about on the slippery wet grass - a real glimpse of the dangerous, unglamorous reality of medieval warfare.

Inside the Visitor Centre, the female contingent had a rather warmer and more comfortable time! We had laid out all our costume, weaponry and personal equipment for 'show & tell', including a 15th century kitchen table where our authentic gingerbread attracted a great deal of attention (many visitors thought it was made of raw meat until they tasted it!). And in nice contrast, we showed a member's collection of metal-detected medieval finds, so that people could see the originals on which our replica kit is based. Meanwhile TBS volunteers did sterling service on the refreshments table, selling nearly £100's worth of mulled fruit punch and delicious cakes made or donated by the Society and our families and friends.

Altogether it was a splendid day, despite the freezing cold wind and intermittent rain, and we received some very gratifying feedback, especially from younger members of the public. So we certainly hope to repeat the event in 2007, possibly working in conjunction with the Yorkshire Branch of the Richard III Society, to ensure that this important battle continues to be remembered as widely as possible.

Helen Cox
Company of Palm Sunday 1461