On This Day In History: The Battle of Blore Heath – Sep 23, 1459

AncientPages.com - On Sep 23, 1459 - the first major battle in the English Wars of the Roses was at Blore Heath, two miles east of Market Drayton in Shropshire, England.

The Wars of the Roses refers to a conflict fought in late Medieval England, which was essentially a power struggle between noble factions who were fighting for the right to the throne of England.

On one side was the House of Lancaster, who in King Henry VI held the throne. However the King was a weak leader and prone to bouts of mental illness, which meant that frequently his wife, Queen Margaret of Anjou, reigned in his place.

The King was opposed by the House of York led by Richard Duke of York - wealthy and powerful nobleman - who felt that he had a stronger claim to the throne.

Relations between the two sides grew increasingly tense from 1450 - both sides grew increasingly wary of each other and continued to actively build up their armed forces.

In September 1459, a further conflict was looking more and more likely.

On the morning of 23 September the two armies approached each other on the road leading east from Market Drayton, and on Blore Heath the two forces engaged.

The Battle of Blore Heath was a decisive victory for the Yorkists.

However, the advantage was short-lived as less than three weeks later York deserted his army at Ludford Bridge and fled to Ireland.

Salisbury and Warwick fled to Calais and the Yorkist army surrendered to the king.

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