More Background
The Battle of Bosworth Field
The confrontation between King Richard III and Henry Tudor at Bosworth Field on the 22nd August 1485 had been two years in the making. Richard had eagerly and somewhat anxiously awaited his rival’s invasion, keen to remove this threat to his throne once and for all but well aware of the fickle nature of some of his main supporters. For Henry Tudor, the 1485 invasion marked the final throw of the dice, the support offered by his French allies would not be available to him again if the battle was to go against him.
Henry arrived at Milford Haven on the 7th August and marched inland through his native Wales, where he hoped to rally support for his cause and bolster his small army. Indeed, Henry did gain the support of some important Welsh figures such as Rhys Fawr ap Maredudd and Rhys ap Thomas who brought with him a sizable force to join with Tudors. Henry’s men emerged from Wales and Henry’s army had increased in number although was still likely to be smaller than that which the King was mustering. To have any hope of victory Henry needed more men, and although Sir Gilbert Talbot brought his family’s troops to Tudor’s cause, Henry was still in desperate need of the support of his step-father, Lord Stanley, who had mustered some 5000 along with his brother Sir William but who had refused to join up with Richard’s men as ordered. Henry had been in constant contact with the Stanleys and even met them twice, where he begged them to openly declare for him. The Stanleys however, preferred to wait until the battle was already engaged before they showed their hand and their promises of support ‘when the time was right’ and with this Henry had to be content for now.
The two sides would meet just outside of Market Bosworth in Leicestershire, with the Stanley host positioned ominously off to the side. The battle began with the Yorkist cannon firing upon Lord Oxford’s men, which forced them to march up the slope towards the King’s vanguard, led by the Duke of Norfolk. The two armies clashed and fierce hand-to-hand combat raged until the Tudor forces began to give way. Just when the battle began to move against them though, the standard of the Duke of Norfolk fell and with it did the leader of the Yorkist van. Panic spread through the Yorkist lines and the rejuvenated Tudor men-at-arms pressed forward. Sensing the danger, Richard summoned his reserves, led by his friend Lord Northumberland and with Richard at their head, crowned helmet flashing in the sun, the Yorkist reserves flooded into the battle, reinforcing the lines and stopping the Lancastrian surge. The battle raged on for a further hour, until Richard and his men began to make headway and force Oxford’s men back down the hill. As had been the case at Barnet and Tewkesbury a decade and more ago, Richard was in the thickest of the fighting. With his cause on the rocks, Henry Tudor set out for his step-father’s position to beg for his support. Lord Stanley, deciding that Richard’s position was unassailable arrested his step-son and his bodyguard, led by his uncle Jasper Tudor and ordered his men to sweep down the slope and engulf the retreating Lancastrians. The result was a bloodbath as the slowly retreating Lancastrians entered full flight, with many being cut down by Stanley’s fresh troops. – Extract from the Bosworth Field Society guidebook
The King returned to London, where the pretender, Henry Tudor and his uncle Jasper were publicly and gruesomely executed, as were many others who had encouraged or supported his invasion. Tudor’s mother, Lady Stanley was arrested and kept in the Tower, although our merciful and glorious King has pardoned all those commons who rose against his rightful lordship. – Crowland Chronicle