PLANTAGENET. Family at War.

Wakefield to Towton. Chivalry dies on the fields of blood.

Northampton it fell to the Queen and Henry Beaufort, 3rd Duke of Somerset, to prepare a new strength of arms. Margaret chartered a ship and took refuge at Scotland's court. There she began raising an army from her northern supporters who, once amalgamated, repeatedly harassed York's estates in Yorkshire. Lancastrian forces also began to muster in Wales and Yorkshire itself. In constant communication with her nobles, Somerset, Devonshire, Exeter, Roos, Clifford, Latimer and others, and appointing a base in Hull to work from the Lancastrians planned their next moves.
March took his troops to Wales to quell the discontent there. To counter any southern threats Warwick stayed in command in London.
21/12/1460. York, with his son Edmund, Earl of Rutland and Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury, moved his army of about five thousand men into Yorkshire and took up residence in Sandal Castle, Wakefield, this as a show of force against the gathering foe.
The fortification, situated on the south side of the River Calder close to Wakefield, became the northern stronghold of the Yorkist forces. Here the nobles spent Christmas, the troops billeted in the neighbouring villages.
York's son, Edward, Earl of March and his army also began to move north east from his position on the Welsh Borders in support of his father at Sandal. York knew he might have a fight on his hands.
Queen Margaret with her Lancastrian army spent Christmas at Pontefract Castle, twelve miles from Wakefield.
Sources are unclear precisely what happened but it is possible that a truce was agreed for over the Christmas period.
Immediately after Christmas Day though, Queen Margaret set off to march her army to Wakefield there to confront the Duke of York. The Yorkist troops enjoying rest and relaxation out of sight and mind were forced inside the walls of the castle, a move which York knew would lead to a severe shortage of rations.
29/12/1460. York held a Council of War.
At the meeting his allies the Earl of Salisbury, Sir Thomas Neville, another of Salisbury's sons, Sir David Hall, Sir John Parr, Sir John Mortimer, Sir Hugh Mortimer and several other experienced soldiers urged the duke to remain within Sandal Castle and await on March with his substantial reinforcements before embarking on any foray outside the walls. In spite of this advice York seemed determined to sally out and attack the Lancastrian army. Why? He had only to sit tight, force the Lancastrians into a humiliating withdrawal on March's arrival.
Did Queen Margaret goad him with insults of cowardice, of not having the bravery to confront an army led by a woman. Some of her troops were immediately outside the castle, the remainder though hidden in the hills. Did York underestimate the numbers?
Did Andrew Trollope feign to join the Sandal Castle garrison and persuade York to march out by supposedly betraying the Lancastrians as being few in number, a deceit which was far from the truth.
The Nevilles of course, were one of the great families of the north, but were a family divided. Salisbury's immediate kin had risen above the senior branch, the one of the Earl of Westmorland's, who because he was ill, his younger brother John Neville of Raby had a great deal to gain by the destruction of both York and Salisbury.
The Percys too, another great northern family, were more than resentful of the jumped up Nevilles, and so opposed any idea of York and Salisbury gaining more influence in society and position.
During the Christmas truce it is possible John Neville of Raby colluded with the Percys, other Lancastrians and Andrew Trollope to devise a plan to fool York into coming out to join battle sooner rather than later when his reinforcements would arrive.
Andrew Trollope, a hero of the closing stage of the Hundred Years War and rewarded with the Captaincy of Calais, was a supposed Yorkist who changed allegiance at Ludford Bridge taking the Calais Garrison over to Henry's side. If he could gain York's confidence once again, feed him false information about the strength of the Lancastrians, concealing most of his own troops in the woods surrounding the castle, march a much smaller contingent into the open to deceive him into thinking the opposition was much smaller than it was then maybe York could be drawn out.
It could also be possible the scheming John Neville of Raby agreed to fool York with false colours, giving the impression that more Yorkist troops had arrived. And yet another possibility is that John Neville pretended to raise men for York, but raised them for Lancaster instead. Any or none of this scheming may have gone about while the Christmas truce was in force! And again it is possible that an attack on a foraging party from Sandal Castle during the truce caused Richard's anger to boil over, he then deciding to confront the Lancastrian army and take revenge.
Either way York appears to have had some faith in a conviction that he held the upper hand, and whether or not he harboured any faith in any number of turncoats, or whether or not he had an incline that a large portion of the Lancastrian army would come over to his side, or that they were few in number, he left the castle and gave battle, against strong advice to hold fast and wait for his son. Something convinced him to march out and not only be confronted by the Lancastrians he could see, but the greater numbers hidden in the woods.
Margaret's army possibly numbered some fifteen thousand when Clifford's troops were accounted for, York commanding only a third as many. Either incredibly brave and sure of his cause or deluded and a complete fool he was betrayed by his own impetuous nature or the intrigue and avarice of his enemies.
Both armies had mounted knights in armour with sword, lance and shield, as well as mounted men at arms, again in armour with sword, lance and shield, although often these men fought on foot. Added to these was a force of longbow men enjoyed by both armies. There is no indication firearms were used at the Battle of Wakefield.