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Towton Battlefield Society
Battle of Towton Commemoration
28 March 2010Guided Battlefield Walks & Medieval Living History Camp
Towton Hall, Towton, North Yorkshire
9:30am – 4pmADMISSION: ADULTS £2; UNDER 12'S FREE
Admission includes car parking, programme, guided walk, access to all shows & displays
March 29th 1461 was a fateful date in English history. On that snowy Palm Sunday a new king, Edward IV, seized the crown from Henry VI – after 28,000 men had died on Towton battlefield and thousands more drowned in Cock Beck, in the biggest and bloodiest battle ever fought on English soil.
Towton Battlefield Society, its affiliated re-enactment group The Frei Compagnie and guest Wars of the Roses re-enactors invite you to remember this day with a guided memorial walk over one of the country's most unspoilt 15th century battlefields, and a day-long living history commemoration in the grounds of Towton Hall.
Guided walks (approximately 4 miles, warm clothes and stout footwear recommended) leave every 15 minutes from Towton Hall Barn (by the gate of the event field) between 9:30–10:45am. There is also a full programme of activities on the event field: an authentic medieval encampment; falconry, archery and sword combat demonstrations; a memorial service; and a finale representing the Battles of Ferrybridge and Dintingdale featuring the last stand of the Flower of Craven and the death of Lord Clifford. Traders, information and refreshment stalls can be found all day in the Barn.
(Towton Battlefield Society is a registered charity, no.1043080. All proceeds from this event are used to support the Society’s activities: battlefield preservation & research, public education & outreach).
LOCAL INFORMATION
Location: Towton is situated south of Tadcaster in North Yorkshire. Car parking for the event is signposted from the main road (A162) through the village.
Access: Guided walks are 4 miles over rough farm track with some moderate gradients, and are unsuitable for wheelchair users or people with severe walking difficulties. A short walk (Dacre’s Cross on B1217 to battlefield information board overlooking Bloody Meadow) is wheelchair/pushchair accessible, and gives an excellent perspective of the battlefield.
The Event Field is a rough pasture which may be unsuitable for pushchairs and wheelchairs in wet or muddy conditions.
Local Pubs and Eating Places: the Rockingham Arms in Towton; the Crooked Billet (B1217 outside Saxton); The Greyhound in Saxton; The Ash Tree Inn & Restaurant, London Road, Barkston Ash.
Local Accommodation:
Wheelgate Guest House, 7 Kirkgate, Sherburn-in-Elmet; Tel: 01977 682231
Church Hill Guesthouse, 3 Church Hill, Sherburn-in-Elmet; Tel: 01977 681000
The Old Presbytery Guest House, London Road (A162), Saxton; Tel: 01937 557708Tourist Information: www.touristinformationcentres.com/ or www.ytb.org.uk/
For further information about Towton Battlefield Society or this event, please see our website, www.towton.org.uk, email chairman@towton.org.uk or telephone Mark Taylor on 01302 882488
Helen Cox, Palm Sunday Publicity Co-ordinator; helen@herstory.eclipse.co.uk
Click here to download programme of events.
8 March 2010
Upcoming Theatrical Production
Shakespeare’s Richard III - at the Riverside, London
The Love & Madness Company is staging a modern dress version of Shakespeare’s Richard III at the Riverside Studios at Hammersmith in London.
This production is being produced by Ben Kidd and stars Carl Prekopp as Richard and Sadie Frost as Lady Anne.
Dates:
Wednesday, 3rd March – 2pm & 7:30pm
Wednesday, 10th March – 2pm & 7:30pm
Tuesday, 6th March – 2pm & 7:30pm
Sunday, 21st March – 2pmTickets:
£18.50 full/ £14 concessionsVenue:
Riverside Studios, Crisp Road , Hammersmith, London W6 9RL
Tel: 020-8237-1111
www.riversidestudios.co.ukNow Is The Winter – at the Old Library, Oxford
A new one woman play, starring Helen McGregor, titled “Now is the Winter” will premiere during the Oxford Fringe Festival in April of this year. Richard’s story is told through the eyes of a servant who has known him all of his life.
Dates:
7th to 10th April – 6:15pmTickets:
£8.00/£6.00, available from: http://www.wegottickets.com/evenue/2498 or at the door from 5:30pm.Venue:
Alarum Theatre at The Old Library, Radcliffe Sq, OxfordFurther information can be found on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/pages/Now-is-the-Winter/311612998856 or at the Oxfringe site: www.oxfringe.com
26 February 2010
Notice of the Annual General Meeting of the Richard III Society
This year, the Society’s AGM and Members’ Day will take place on:
Saturday, 2 October 2010
at Leicester Adult Education College, 2 Wellington Street, Leicester LE1 6HL
Further details will be given in the June Bulletin but, in the meantime, please put this date in your diary.
4 February 2010
From Pontefract to Fotheringhay:
a journey along the funeral route of Richard, Duke of York in 1476In 2010 the Wakefield Historical Society will commemorate the 550th anniversary of Richard of York’s death in 1460 by retracing the route of his re-burial journey in 1476 along its original route on the anniversary dates of 21st to 29th July, stopping each night at the town where the body rested.
Each day will include visits mainly to places of direct relevance to the journey itself or the medieval period, some of them not generally open to the public, and each evening will include the Medieval Vespers of the Dead, if possible in the church where the duke’s body rested, and a talk by an invited lecturer.
The itinerary includes Sandal Castle, Pontefract Castle and Hermitage, Conisborough Castle, Roche Abbey, Blyth church, Gainsborough Old Hall, Laxton medieval field system, Southwell Minster and Bishop’s Palace, Newark, Grantham, Boothby Pagnell and Ellys manor houses, Stamford, Longthorpe Tower, Apethorpe Hall (tbc) and Fotheringhay Castle and Church.
It is possible to book for individual days (pick up at mainline railway stations). The cost per day (including coach travel and entrance fees but not accommodation or meals) is £20. Participants will be responsible for booking their own accommodation (lists available).
Evening talks will cover Richard, Duke of York’s reburial procession 21st-30th July 1476, Medieval roads and travel, Seeing salvation and sacred imagery at Blyth Priory Church, Medieval agriculture and the countryside, Medieval inns on the Great North Road, The Heraldic Funeral: Its Purpose and Meaning.
There is no need to book for Vespers or evening talks – they are free and all are welcome.
For further information e-mail info@wakefieldhistoricalsoc.org.uk or wakefieldhistory@tiscali.co.uk, write to Pam Judkins at 18 St John’s Square, Wakefield WF1 2RA or phone 0797 144 9451.
Wakefield Historical Society are building a website to provide information about the reburial procession and the events being organised this July at: www.richarddukeofyorkfuneral.org.uk
Coach travellers should book by the end of March as that is when the size of the coach will need to be confirmed.
18 January 2010
revised 10 March 2010
National Geographic Channel's Mystery Files - Princes in the Tower
The National Geographic Channel has produced a series of half-hour Mystery Files programmes based on historical and mythical figures.
Of particular interest is a programme about the ‘Princes In The Tower’ which will be will premiered on the National Geographic channel on Tuesday, 2nd February at 7.30pm.
The Society’s Research Officer, Lynda Pidgeon and Professor Michael Jones, who is well known to Ricardians, contributed to the programme.
The full list of Mystery Files programmes follows:
Date
Time
Episode
Monday, 1st February
1900
Nostradamus
Monday, 1st February
1930
Jack the Ripper
Tuesday, 2nd February
1900
Robin Hood
Tuesday, 2nd February
1930
Princes in the Tower
Wednesday, 3rd February
1900
Rasputin
Wednesday, 3rd February
1930
Billy the Kid
Thursday, 4th February
1900
King Arthur
Friday, 5th February
1900
Leonardo Da Vinci
Monday, 8th February
1900
Abraham Lincoln
Tuesday, 9th February
1900
Cleopatra
Wednesday, 10th February
1900
The Man in the Iron Mask
Thursday, 11th February
1900
Romanovs
Friday, 12th February
1900
Joan of Arc
The series will be broadcast in the USA on the Discovery network but details of the transmission dates are not yet known.
14 January 2010
Website Questionnaire
Over the last few months, the website team has been working hard to bring the site up to date. We have not completed the task but are well on our way. In order to continually improve the site, we would like to know about your experiences and ask for your feedback.
A short questionnaire, which was piloted at the AGM, was developed and is now available on the website. We would like to ask you to take a few minutes to fill it out and return it to us. The questionnaire was created in Microsoft Word with a series of check boxes plus space for you to include any comments and/or thoughts. If you wish to return the questionnaire electronically, it must be downloaded, completed, and then attached to an e-mail. Alternatively, it can be returned by post. Mailing instructions are provided on the questionnaire.
Beth Stone
Web Content Manager
4 December 2009
Isolde Wigram
It is with sadness that we announce the death of Isolde Wigram, senior Vice-President of the Society, and one of those responsible for the refounding of the Society in 1956.
She had been unwell for some time and in a nursing home for the last couple of years. Her passing, on Friday 27th November, was peaceful.
There will be a private funeral shortly and a Service of Thanksgiving in January, 2010. Details will be made available when they have been confirmed.
The Executive Committee and members of the Richard III Society extend their sympathy and condolences to Isolde’s family and friends. She will be missed.
Dr. Phil Stone
Chairman, Richard III Society
28th Novemebr 2009
The Site of the Battle of Bosworth - an update
Where is Bosworth?
Lynda Pidgeon provides additional information on the battlefield site. Please click here.
23rd November 2009
The Site of the Battle of Bosworth
The announcement made today (28 October) about the real site of the Battle of Bosworth is both exciting and interesting. To be shown cannonballs and other missiles that were used at the battle helps to bring our history to life. The fact that the battlefield is not at the site of the Battlefield Centre comes as no surprise - doubts have been expressed for several years - but at the same time, neither should it detract from the Centre and its new exhibition, which explains much about how the battle was fought and why. The Richard III Society has worked with the Centre to ensure that the exhibition presents an accurate and balanced account of the life and times of King Richard as well as the battle. Of course, they will need to change the details of where it was fought, but the basic history remains the same. This battle was a turning point in English history and it is good to know with greater certainty just where it took place, even if we wish the result had been different. It makes no difference to the aims of the Society and members will continue to promote research into the times of Richard III, at the same time looking forward to hearing more about the site of the battle where the king was ‘piteously slain’ as it is disclosed.
Dr. Phil Stone
Chairman, Richard III Society
28th October 2009
September Ricardian Bulletin
It has come to our notice that some issues of the September Bulletin have been printed with a number of pages blank. The Bulletin Editorial team are investigating this matter and we will let members know the outcome as soon as possible. We will also be contacting overseas branches to alert them to the potential problem.
In the meantime, members who have received a Bulletin with blank pages should contact the Chairman (ptstone@blueyonder.co.uk) to request a replacement copy when they become available.
We do apologise to all members who have received incorrect Bulletins.
Study weekend 2010 - Richard III’s York: People and Places
We are currently putting the finishing touches to the programme for the next study weekend which will take place next April in York. Since we were not able to finalise details in time for the September Bulletin, we are letting interested members know the provisional details now so they can get the date in their diaries.
DATE: The evening of Friday, 9th April to lunchtime Sunday, 11th April 2010
VENUE: Elmbank Hotel, The Mount, York YO24 1GE www.elmbankhotel.com
Note: The College of Ripon St John is no longer available during the Easter Break for conference bookings. We therefore decided that it was a good opportunity to try using a hotel.
COST: Residential rate approximately £225 for single occupancy with all meals from Friday supper to Sunday lunch. The cost for those sharing a twin room on the same basis will be about £175. All rooms are ensuite. Non residential rate approximately £75, including lunch on Saturday and Sunday. Non-residents will also be able to attend dinner at the hotel on Friday and Saturday nights at an additional cost of about £25 per dinner.
PROGRAMME:
Based on the theme of Richard III’s York, the talks will cover aspects of life in the city including people and buildings. There will be both Society and guest speakers.
We hope to arrange a tour on Saturday afternoon, possibly of the Minster Glazier’s Studio, which will be an opportunity to see the work being carried out on the conservation of glass from the Great East Window. The window was built by glazier John Thornton between 1405 and 1408.
- We are investigating the possibility of an after-dinner speaker for Saturday evening.
If you are interested in attending the study weekend and want to reserve a place send an email to the Research Officer, Lynda Pidgeon at lynda.pidgeon@btinternet.com or write to her at 42 Osborne Street, Swindon SN2 1DA. Full details and a booking form will appear in the December Bulletin.
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