England

The Wars Begin

In February 1455, York was no longer Lord Protector, and Somerset was released from the Tower. He and Queen Margaret at once set about planning York's downfall. They had Henry call a great council of the realm for late May in Leicester. York knew that if he attended, he would almost certainly be stripped of titles and power, at the very least, and that he himself would likely wind up in the Tower.

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St Albans Abbey in 1848

So, he made the fateful decision to strike first. He was supported by the Neville clan, which likewise knew that they would suffer should the council meet. Their purported intent was to win Henry away from the clutches of his evil councillors, but very likely they from the first were planning murder, for not only would Somerset be there, so would Lord Percy, Earl of Northumberland and mortal enemy to the Nevilles.

The conspirators knew that the royal party would be passing through the little town of St Albans and that the forces accompanying the king would at that point be rather small, maybe two thousand. At St Albans, the Duke of Oxford and other Lancaster supporters were to join them. So St Albans was chosen as the place to strike, before the Lancaster forces should grow too strong.

On the 21st of May, York and Salisbury arrived at about 7am and took up positions. The king and his party arrived about two hours later. Once they were fully within St Peters Street, the Yorkists barred both ends and sent a herald to demand Henry hand over Somerset for justice. Henry naturally refused.

The negotiations took some time, so fighting did not break out until about 11am. York was initially driven back. Then the Earl of Warwick, son of Salisbury, broke through on one side via some kitchen gardens between two inns. Once they had fully engaged the enemy, York struck again and won the day.

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St Albans Cathedral

The king himself was wounded in the neck by an arrow. Somerset was cut down by a poleax outside one of the inns. Northumberland was killed, as was Lord Stafford. Somerset's son was wounded, but survived. King Henry took refuge in a tanner's cottage, which is where York found him. He assured the king that he meant him no harm, and returned him to London.

This battle marks the beginning of the Wars of the Roses.