The battle of Tewkesbury in 1471 was a decisive Yorkist victory for Edward IV, devastating Queen Margaret’s Lancastrian cause – colourfully portrayed in the town’s annual medieval festival. Edward was a PR genius, and unsurprisingly, the victors carefully crafted their own version of events, giving the outcome an air of inevitability when glanced at on a surface level. Edward IV painted as the hero. The Lancastrian commander, Edmund Beaufort of Somerset, scapegoated as the convenient villain. Alternative voices hunted down and silenced violently. A narrative compounded by the heavily biased and highly fictionalised writings of Edward Hall, who was not yet born at the time of the battle.

Contemporary evidence reveals a far different story – not only that responsibility for failings of the Lancastrian army points to individuals other than Edmund, but that his life and character were worlds away from the caricature he has been reduced to. Somerset is so often spoken about in the context of the one hurdle he fell at, but contemporary documents on his life reveal a charismatic, kind man with a brilliant military career, earning him the top position at the court of Charles the Bold.

This talk explores the close personal friendship Edmund struck up with Charles – based on shared values championing chivalry, loyalty and honour – a friendship so strong that it defied the political alliances of the time, much to Edward IV’s shock and fury. With a friend in Charles of Burgundy, and an equally close friend in Queen Margaret (and thus France) – was Edmund of Somerset even closer than initially thought in uniting to warring continental superpowers? Edward IV, who benefited from them both competing for a Yorkist alliance, considered Somerset – skilled in politics and brave and disciplined on the battlefield - a highly competent threat.

With this talk Dr Michael Jones (who wrote the New Oxford DNB entry on Somerset), seeks to humanise him and reveal the fascinating life and tragic betrayal and death of the man behind the myth – who even his enemies described in The Arrival (the official Yorkist account) as brave and loyal to his cause. 

Using new archival research, this talk gives us fresh insights into the battle and its shocking aftermath, and a very different set of heroes and villains.

 

Speaker Biography:

Author and presenter Dr Michael Jones is a leading military historian with a special interest in the Wars of the Roses and the battle of Tewkesbury. He is a member of several distinguished societies, including the British Commission for Military History and the Royal Historical Society.

Michael’s first book, The King’s Mother, a biography of Lady Margaret Beaufort, was shortlisted for the prestigious Whitfield Prize. He has published twelve titles since, including Bosworth 1485 – Psychology of a Battle, 24 Hours at Agincourt, and with Philippa Gregory, The Women of the Cousins’ War.

A driving force behind the search for Richard III, his book with Philippa Langely, The King’s Grave, reached the top 5 in the non-fiction best sellers list and was made into a film, The Lost King. His most recent work, a biography of the Black Prince, was named by the BBC History Magazine as one of its books of the year.

Michael was TV Consultant for the History Channel’s Warriors series, Channel 4’s Agincourt and Weapons that Made Britain. An enthusiastic and experienced speaker, he loves brining battles to life and offering exciting, innovative interpretations of them.

 

Date and Time:

Saturday 11th July

7.30pm

 

Location:

Old Baptist Chapel,

Old Baptist Chapel Court,

Off Church Street,

Tewkesbury,

GL20 5RZ

 

Tickets:

£5