Battle of Mortimer’s Cross, Herefordshire – Edward on the way to the throne
The Battle of Mortimer’s Cross was fought on 2 February 1461 in Herefordshire, It was an important battle in the Wars of the Roses.
In the Battle of Mortimer’s Cross the Yorkists were led by 18-year-old Edward, Earl of March (later Edward IV). They intercepted a Lancastrian forces led by Owen Tudor and his son Jasper into England. The Lancastrians outnumbered the Yorkists considerably and were better mounted and armed. The Yorkists were encouraged by a parhelion, a meteorological phenomenon in which three suns appear. This is the origin of Edward’s badge ‘The Sun in Splendour’.
Unfortunately the Battle of Mortimer’s Cross is not very well documented. The fighting must have been ferocious in adverse weather conditions in the middle of winter.
After the battle Owen Tudor was captured and executed in Hereford, along with other prisoners of rank.
To find out more:
Battle of Mortimer’s Cross, Battlefields Resource Centre.
Jennifer Young, ‘The Mortimer’s Cross Parhelion: How a Meteorological Phenomenon Changed English History’, Decoded Science (12 Nov. 2019). URL: http://www.decodedscience.com/the-mortimers-cross-parhelion-how-a-meteorological-phenomenon-changed-english-history/3437 [last accessed 1 Feb. 2020]
Dorothea Preis
Tags: Edward IV, Wars of the Roses, Yorkists
This entry was posted
on Sunday, February 2nd, 2025 at 6:00 and is filed under Events in History.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Both comments and pings are currently closed.
[…] winning the Battle of Mortimer’s Cross (2 February 1461), Edward, Earl of March, became King Edward IV on 4 March 1461. He defended his […]