Second Battle of St Albans – a Lancastrian victory
The second Battle of St Albans was fought on 17 February 1461 between the Lancastrian forces under Margaret of Anjou (Henry VI’s queen) and the Yorkist forces under Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick (‘The Kingmaker”). It was won by the Lancastrian forces. Henry VI was reunited with his wife and son. The Yorkists, however, won the Battle of Towton on 29 March 1461 and with it the crown for Edwrad IV.
The photo shows St Michael’s Bridge and ford. Part of the Lancastrian forces led by Sir Andrew Trollope entered St Albans via this ford. The present bridge was only built in 1765, but it is considered to be the oldest still existing bridge in Hertfordshire.
The second Battle of St Albans was fought over a larger area than the first Battle of St Albans on 22 May 1455, which was concentrated on the streets in the town centre.
The website St Albans & Hertfordshire Architectural and Archaeological Society has a map showing the area covered by both battles.
A short description of the various battles of the Wars of the Roses can be found on the website of the Richard III Society.
Dorothea Preis
Tags: Hertfordshire, St Albans, Wars of the Roses, Yorkists
[…] This is the first battle in what became known as the Wars of the Roses, with the white rose standing for York and the red for Lancaster (Henry VI). This battle is unique among all the battles of the Wars of the Roses in that it was entirely fought in the streets of the town and not in a field. Walking around the market area of St Albans today, you can still see the outline of the area in medieval times with its half-timbered houses and the narrow and winding alleyways. One can’t help wondering what the town’s citizens made of this. And not to forget that not even six years later on 17 February 1461, the armies were back for a second battle. […]