Battle of Hexham

The Battle of Hexham, 15 May 1464, marked the end of significant Lancastrian resistance in the north of England during the early part of the reign of Edward IV.

The battle was fought near the town of Hexham in Northumberland. John Neville, later to be 1st Marquess of Montagu, led a modest force of 3,000-4,000 men, and routed the rebel Lancastrians. Most of the rebel leaders were captured and executed, including Henry Beaufort, Duke of Somerset, and Lord Hungerford. Henry VI, however, was kept safely away (having been captured in battle three times earlier), and escaped to the north.

With their leadership gone, only a few castles remained in rebel hands. After these fell later in the year, Edward IV was not seriously challenged until the Earl of Warwick changed his allegiance from the Yorkist to the Lancastrian cause in 1469.

Before

After the Battle of Towton, the Lancastrians failed to prevent the Yorkists from concluding peace negotiations with Scotland in 1463, and soon found that their northern base of operations was now threatened. It was decided to mount a campaign in the north of England to gather Lancastrian support before a huge force under Edward IV could muster in Leicester and move north to crush the rebellion.

The Lancastrian army moved through Northumberland in late April 1464 under the Duke of Somerset, and gathered support from Lancastrian garrisons. After the Lancastrians lost the Battle of Hedgeley Moor on 25 April 1464 to a Yorkist force led by John Neville, Lord Montagu, the Lancastrians again met Neville, this time near Hexham. The two sides met outside Hexham on 14 May 1464.

Battle

Details of the site of the battle, the composition and number of combatants and the events are sketchy but it is thought that the battle was relatively bloodless.

The Lancastrian camp was near Linnels Bridge over the Devil's Water found slightly to the south of Hexham. The Yorkists crossed onto the south bank of the on the night of 12–13 May and were, by the morning of the 14th, in a position to attack Hexham. Presumably the Yorkist advance was at speed, as despite warnings by their own scouts the Lancastrians had little time to prepare for battle.