A book Review:The Wars of the Roses by David Grummitt

 

The Wars of the Roses by David Grummitt

Volume 1 The Triumph of York 1455-1461

Published by Helion and Company

Helion sent a me a copy of this marvellous new history to review. Before I start I should declare that David Grummitt is a friend of mine and we have played games and have drunk beer together, however, I will not let that influence my review, although, on reflection I think he still owes me a beer!

The book is well laid out with the occasional photograph or map and begins with a chronology, as well as a list of abbreviations and acknowledgements and ends with an appendix which is basically a short essay about the Nobility of England and its involvement in the wars. Finally there are several pages of tables containing the manuscript sources for each chapter. In the centre of the book there are ten pages of beautiful illustrations by Bruno Mugnai and a map of the archaeological finds at Towton by Glenn Foard.

Pic Edward IV in London 1461

The Introduction discusses sources and information and lays out how and why the book has been written, to me this felt a little defensive almost like a justification but as I read on I realised why the author has taken this approach, this is a controversial history and he is expecting to be challenged and as you will see, this is probably a wise expectation. This book is different to most narrative histories relying as it does only on the original sources, although it also discusses the accepted traditional narratives and the later sources which inform them. The author uses a deliberate, methodical approach and relates frequently to the contemporary sources and modern archaeological evidence to challenge the current accepted history of events. 

This book will suit best those who have some knowledge of the period and particularly those who seek accuracy in their history and wish to get things right, it is as much a history of what didn’t happen as it is about what did, more so probably, as more of the book is about debunking the myths than stating what the author thinks did happen. The author quite rightly refuses to speculate where there is no original source material to provide information.

The first chapter, the Road to War, clearly lays out the reasons for the conflict and describes the situation in the years preceding the war however, I should insert a word of warning here, the book assumes a working knowledge of the history and process of the WotR and will prove a challenge to readers who are coming to this for the first time. Newcomers to the period would do well to read this after or alongside a more traditional, less detailed history as a primer. 

In the second and third chapters the battles of St Albans, Blore Heath and Ludford bridge are dealt with fairly quickly, the original sources seem to support much of what we know, which is not a lot.

The next chapter on Ireland and Calais was well written and very interesting to me and filled a huge gap in my knowledge of the period, the book is worth having in your collection for this chapter alone.

Chapter five concerns the battle of Northampton which is dealt with in the same thorough manner and spends some time discussing the field defence works and the defection of Grey

PIC Billman , Yorkist army Battle of Mortimers Cross February 1461

The chapter about the “battle” of Wakefield brings the first big surprise. Traditionally this battle has always been portrayed as a large army of Lancastrians catching a smaller army of Yorkists unawares outside of Sandal Castle and wiping them out. Several reasons have been given for this action happening usually in the form of a ruse from the devious Lancastrians -ambushing a foraging party seeking firewood which was reinforced from the castle, a Lancastrian force disguising themselves in Yorkist livery or hiding a detachment of cavalry in a nearby wood. All these narratives paint the Lancastrians as crafty, cunning, treacherous…almost as if the Yorkists had written the history themselves, and none of them are grounded in fact

The same narratives paint a desperate defence and the tragic loss of the Earl of Rutland cut callously down in his prime on a nearby bridge and possibly tortured, and Richard, Duke of York being slain after a brave fight and being beheaded after which a paper crown was fixed to his head.

The author using only the original sources completely destroys these narratives. David writes in a clear and very readable style and uses the terms probably and likely and rarely uses absolutes but discusses various possibilities and where there is no information he says so. This a refreshing style compared to the didactic approach many historians. 

The author produces a compelling argument dismissing each of the traditional accounts in turn and returning to the original and, more importantly, contemporary sources which declare quite simply that Richard, his son and the Duke of Salisbury were taken by surprise while riding with a small force, captured and then murdered in cold blood. The evidence for this theory was always there, several of the original sources state that York was murdered, none of them mention a battle.

And so we learn that York, Rutland and Salisbury were captured and put to death probably in Pontefract Castle – there was no battle of Wakefield!

pic The Map of the Second Battle of St Albans 

Mortimers Cross and the Second battle of St Albans each have a chapter and are dealt with fairly swiftly, although some time is spent considering the evidence for the approach of the two armies at St Albans as this informs what happens in the battle. The original sources seem to suggest that a cavalry charge may have won the day for the Lancastrians although there is also a suggestion of treachery. Great possibilities for any wargamer seeking to refight this battle.

The chapter on the Battle of Towton is where this book is at its best and it’s most controversial. The traditional account is one of two large armies coming together in a blizzard on large hill, after a skirmish at a river crossing the previous day, with the Yorkists using the advantage of the wind to shoot arrows at the Lancastrians whose reply into the wind and swirling snow was less than effective. There is a narrative that Fauconberg, a  prominent Yorkist, deliberately used the weather as ruse to get the Lancastrian army to waste their arrows which the Yorkists then cleverly shot back at them. Thus a ruse led to the Lancastrians retreating which became a rout at Cocks Beck, a small but deep river, and there thousands of men were slaughtered, so that fugitives escaping the rout crossed the beck over a bridge of the dead. Towton has always been seen as a decisive defeat of the Lancastrians and with a claimed 28,000 casualties is considered to be Britain’s “bloodiest battle” This narrative has been repeated, unchallenged, in all modern history books for the past century.

The author’s assertion is that there was no one big battle of Towton, that it was instead a series of large skirmishes or small battles that took place all in one day. The author explains in detail his reasoning which is based on the original sources and archaeological evidence and makes a very strong case.

David explains that the sources describe three major skirmishes and a fourth pursuit phase. The first of these  was a large affair near Ferrybridge at or shortly after dawn, followed by one of similar size, a “fluid battle”, later in the day which began at Sherburn in Elmet and ended somewhere near Scarthingwell, later known as Dintingdale, and finally the battle on Towton Dale , which may itself have been a string of smaller skirmishes. It is this last engagement that has been traditionally presented as the decisive set piece battle with the Duke of Norfolk arriving late and swinging the balance of forces in favour of the Yorkists. This it seems is complete nonsense and it’s likely that the Duke was not even present at the battle as he was unwell the day before. No contemporary source mentions the blizzard nor the slaughter at Cocks Beck which was, it would seem, a Tudor invention.

David’s account features a cavalry charge from the Lancastrians that nearly carried the day, sweeping away the Yorkist mounted men at arms, and that certainly does not fit with the traditional narrative but will surely be greeted with joy by all red blooded gamers!

The Epilogue brings this volume to a neat end and covers the aftermath of Towton and the reversal of roles of the newly crowned Edward IV representing the safe and rightful government of the realm with Henry VI as the rebel and the Yorkists gradually establishing control of the nation. This closing chapter also deals with the constant threat from France during this period and ends with Edward firmly established but the Earl of Warwick holding “much of the real power”

This book is literally a game changer! Like all brilliant ideas simplicity lies at the heart of it, going back to and only using the original sources adds a simple clarity. The author does not lightly dismiss the established narrative but considers the sources that it emerged from and discusses their veracity and purpose. Once you have dismissed the Yorkist and Tudor propaganda a nub of truth remains. Wargamers will find it a fascinating read and maybe also a frustrating one as we tend to reach for exact details about numbers, timings and battle sites. I am sure there will be the cries of “why do they have to meddle with everything!!” that greet any such work that questions our understanding of the past. However I believe this honest approach is refreshing and presents the gamer with some interesting choices about how to recreate or refight these battles. Personally, I like the challenge this presents, and I am already making plans to refight Towton (redux) as a short campaign and I am planning to add the Death of York to my list of Ruckus last stand scenarios along with Somerset at the Castle Inn and Warwick at Barnet. Best of all David has given us an excuse to use our cavalry!

I think time will show this book to be one of the most important military histories of our times concerning this particular conflict and it will rest on the same shelf as I keep my other revisionists, with the John  Keegens and the Peter Connollys, after all, if a history is not revisionist, what is the point of it?

David Grummitt is a respected historian and is a Staff Tutor at the Open University, having previously worked at the universities of Oxford and Kent, as well as the History of Parliament Trust. He also holds a position as Director of The Richard III Society and a member of the advisory panel for The Battlefields Trust.  All pictures used with the kind permission of Charles Singleton of Helion and Company

Using Mounted Characters in Ruckus and AnT

 

Using Mounted Characters in Ruckus and A and T

Ruckus was born three years ago on a wintery November night at Bristol Independent Gaming and has been played hundreds of times since by the Ruckusteers. One of the first things to develop once we had written the basic game were the rules for Mounted Characters, which of course was inevitable given the nature of Medieval warfare, who doesn’t love a knight… right?

The basic rules for MC were fairly easy to write once we recognised the factors, MC move faster, hit harder and are bigger targets, and these were all easy to accommodate into the existing rules but the mechanics of how this comes together to represent riding an animal into battle took a little more thinking about. It would be very easy for the MC to dominate the game which historically of course they did… up to a point

The answer to this was to use a Ruckus device, Mishaps and Calamities, so that charging an enemy was now no simple deed and could fail, sometimes spectacularly. This might not work so well in a big battle situation but feels right in this skirmish setting. I grew up around horses and know their ways and there is no explaining why a perfectly placid well trained creature will suddenly take the bit in its teeth and bolt off in a random direction at the sight or sound or smell of a child’s tricycle, a kite, a yellow bin, a beer bottle, a bee… How then might they behave in the chaos and din of battle with arrows whizzing by, screams and shouts, smoke and the smell of blood? Horses can be as stubborn as mules and just refuse to move or obey commands for no discernible reason and they can be as flighty and jumpy as a squirrel, in the confusion of a fight this could only happen more often 

We have now used MC in our games many times, Ben Mallett has used them in just about every game he has played since we first wrote the rules, they work well and they seem balanced. MC have a powerful charge, but it can go wrong, and effective counter tactics can negate a lot of their advantages pic : one of Ben’s notorious de Lynes charges Finn Mac Cool

Now that A and T has been published and both the Templars and Assassins should be Mounted by default, I thought it was time to have a look at Mounted Characters, how to get the best out of them and how as their Opponent, to counter them

The Steeds

Warhorses Historically Warhorses would be known the Destrier and Courser, they were not different breeds but different roles for a horse, essentially, they were both ridden into battle and for Ruckus purposes they are the Warhorse. Captains, Squires, Knights, Gendarmes and the Light Cavalry referred to as Scurrers or Prickers all ride warhorses, as do Jinetes and Coutiliers. In Ruckus Heroes and Fighters are mounted on Warhorses.

Warhorses are powerful, well trained mounts that have the ability to charge (and counter charge) only Heroes, and, in some Retinues, certain fighters can ride a Warhorse. An MC charging on a Warhorse gains an additional hit in melee and rerolls 1’s to hit. They move 10” and can charge up to 5”. They only get the charge bonuses if they successfully charge into melee. They can also use an Evade move to avoid combat. 

Warhorses ( and Nags) have a Health attribute just like Heroes, they have two Health and therefore can be wounded once before being killed 

Heroes mounted on Warhorses gain the Equestrian skill which helps them over the jumps and some Characters gain other Skills from being mounted, Templars for example, gain Powerful Charge, it might almost be said that a Templar really isn’t a Templar unless he’s mounted. Some Characters gain negative Skills from being mounted Gendarmes for example, gain Powerful Charge but also Proud which means they HAVE to charge any opponent within Charge range who is not in Hard Going or behind an Obstacle and they may not deliberately seek cover if shot at. 

Nags Historically these would be the Palfrey and Rouncey, often well bred horses but not trained for charging. They were general purpose riding horses such as might be used by mounted archers, camp followers etc..  In Ruckus Shootists are mounted on Nags. They cannot Charge but may still move into melee although they gain no bonuses when they do. They can be ridden by any Character and move 12”.  Nags also have a Health attribute, two Health, and can be Wounded once before they are killed. They can also use an Evade move to avoid combat

 Beast of Burden - an ass, packhorse, or mule used in specific scenarios, Clerics, Priests and other humble Characters might well be mounted on a BoB. They have one Health and are removed from play when wounded

How are Mounted Characters different to Characters on foot?

Mounted Characters are faster, they have increased Command, and they can be more powerful in melee however, MC are at greater risk of becoming Feckless, they are more vulnerable to missiles and do not do well in difficult terrain. How do these factors affect the way that are used MC in a game? Let’s break it down 

Command Mounted Heroes have a longer Command Range, as they can both see and shout further, their Command Range is three times their Prowess, for most Captains this will be 9 and will be 6 for most Squires. There are some Skills in Ruckus such as Commanding Presence that increase Command still further. If they Dismount or are forcibly Dismounted, their Command Range returns to normal.

There are several reasons why Mounted Heroes need a greater Command, wounded horses may bolt in random directions when shot at and, having greater movement, it is easy to move them, or charge them, out of Command and become Feckless. Once Feckless MC may move even further away! The life of a Mounted Hero in Ruckus is not always an easy one!

Top Tip Always have a Mounted Hero in command of Mounted Retainers! This is particularly true of the Templars Retinue where the Turcopoles mounted on Nags move faster than their Mounted Heroes on Warhorses (This seems rather obvious but needs stating)

Counter Use Shootists to Dismount the Heroes to reduce their Command or to cause them to bolt out of Command

Mounted Retainers. There are essentially two types of Mounted Retainer, those who ride Warhorses and those on Nags. Those who ride Warhorses are the Fighters and might be Gendarmes, Knights or Scurrers/Jinetes/Coutiliers all are warriors who ride into combat. Shootists ride Nags. 

Pic Jinetes Retainers on Warhorses 

Retainers mounted on Warhorses react differently when they are Feckless. The mounted warriors of the medieval world were notoriously undisciplined, and their Feckless table reflects this. This rule was left out of A and T because of the limits of space, however, it’s a necessary rule that you should include in your games

D6 Feckless on a Warhorse

 5-6 “As My Lord Commands” ride towards their Spears leader

3-4 “Chaaaaaaarge!” Retainer charges towards the nearest enemy

1-2 “ooh! Shiny things!” Retainer rides off to pillage, remove the figure from the table

Retainers mounted on Nags are usually Shootists and use the normal Feckless table 

If Mounting a standard Ruckus Retinue your Billmen may be mounted on Warhorses and become Scurrers, your Archers may be mounted on Nags Pic: A mounted Retinue- shootists on the left, then the Bills as Scurrers,  then the Heroes on the right

Warhorses v Nags 

A first look would suggest that Warhorses are superior to Nags and in melee this is certainly true, however, Nags used well by an astute player can turn the tables on their more powerful cousins

Shootists mounted on Nags can shoot at Heroes and Fighters on Warhorses and will usually successfully Evade if charged due to their greater movement, however Charging and Evading are both Gambits and carry a risk, a Character mounted on a Nag who is caught by one charging on a Warhorse will be wishing he had better armour!

 

Shooting from Horseback

For the standard Ruckus Shootist, shooting while Mounted is not great. Archers may move up to half and shoot once from horseback at short-range, hitting on a 6, and or shoot twice if stationary. Crossbows may shoot once at short-range, hitting on a 6, if they do not move, they may Reload while mounted.

However, they do benefit from the greater movement and perhaps the best tactic is to use this speed to take up advantageous positions and Dismount your Shootists

Equites Milites –Some Medieval Warriors excel at shooting from horseback. Equites Milites enables Shootists to Shoot and move full distance without penalty.  Mounted Shootists with this skill such as Assassins, Jinetes, Coustilliers and Horse Archers all benefit from the rule. These Shootists can cause big problems if used well and can use their Skills and extra movement to stay out of trouble. Horse Archers from the Turkic Warriors Retinue have the additional shooting Skills Parthian Shot and Feigned Retreat which make them particularly adept at this tactic. Jinetes and Coustilliers can move full distance and throw their javelins with no reduction to range or accuracy.

Shooting at MC 

Horses make big targets I couldn’t decide whether it should be easier or harder to hit a Character on horseback, they are bigger, but they move faster. For a long time, my thought was that these factors cancel each other out, so we had no bonus for shooting at MC, but eventually I changed my mind, not through any scientific reasoning concerning the ballistics of medieval missilery, but more from the point of view of game balance. MC gain quite a few advantages as listed previously and tended to dominate the game a +1 modifier when shooting at MC redresses the balance. Pic Mounted Archers, often the best use for MC is to move your shootists quickly to a position of advantage and dismount

Crossbows are your friend Crossbows do not tend to do well in Ruckus, they cannot move and shoot in the same Activation, they have a slow rate of fire and a short range, however, they excel when shooting MC, particularly if they have a Rested Shot as this gives them +2 to hit (+1 for the MC and +1 for the Rested Shot). Moreover, crossbows have a -1 factor to wounding Horses.

Top Tip Get your Crossbows behind an obstacle or in a building and shoot them Riders down!

Mounted Characters in melee

To use Mounted Characters successfully, timing is everything. MC gain 1 Attack dice and reroll 1’s when they successfully charge an opponent, so timing your moves and getting your charge in is essential to get the best out of your steed. Some Skills and Traits such as Powerful Charge increase this bonus but all rely on a successful Charge.

The Charge movement Bonus can really help to bring off a Charge, especially if it is combined with a Perk Card, using this combination your Hero can move a massive 25 inches! You can start your Charge out of Bow range and still melee the Archer that is shooting at you!

Lance armed Characters get another bonus, they reduce their opponents save by one, they cannot Fend or Parry, so they are a purely offensive weapon. 

The Downside It would appear that the MC are all powerful with many advantages over the humble foot soldier however appearances can be deceptive. They are big targets for missiles and MC can never benefit from Support, their charge advantage can be simply countered by making sure your Heroes are Supported. The Charge bonus carries over to subsequent Rounds IF the MC wins the first round, however if that first round is drawn or lost a supported Character on foot has the advantage

Horses v Terrain MC lose all of their Charge bonuses when attacking Characters behind an Obstacle or in Hard Going, if your Retinue is mostly on foot, using terrain wisely will save you a lot of grief, do not get caught in the open.

Top Tip Pick your targets try to avoid charging Supported Characters on foot or behind an Obstacle

 

When to Dismount Most scenarios require Objectives to be taken by Characters on foot, so Dismounting is essential. Horses do not do well in Buildings, MC must Dismount to enter them.

A cunning Opponent uses cover well, if your adversary takes to cover it might be a good idea to do the same, Dismount, adopt a slow approach, making the best of any available cover

Mounted Traits and Skills There are several of these Equestrian, Equities Milites, and Powerful Charge improve a Characters ability to ride, shoot and fight from  the saddle. Proud on the other hand affects MC negatively. The BIG Book of Ruckus (working title) , due to be published in 2026, will have a whole new set of Rider Skills, some of which give the Rider new abilities or improve existing ones and some which will improve the quality of the steed

Mounted Characters have several distinct pluses, they are fast, powerful and can give several tactical advantages however they are not all conquering, they are easy to shoot, they are tricky to use, they cannot hold Objectives and they can get themselves into trouble very easily.

They look great though, they are fun to use and bring a whole new dimension to the game

Kitbashing Turcopoles-WGA Light Horses

 

pic Icon of a Saint equipped as a Turcopole St Catherine’s Monastery, Sinai, late 13th century

One marvellous thing about the modern hobby is the advent of plastic multipart kits, these little beauties open a wide world of kit bashing possibilities. This is particularly true at the moment with so many manufacturers putting out such a wide range of figures from all eras and theatres of war. The recent increase in interest in the Medieval period has led to an eruption of plastic figures all excellent grist to the mill of any kit basher.

After kit bashing Turcopoles on foot  for my Templar Retinue see previous post https://wilgut.blogspot.com/2025/06/the-brotherhood-of-poor-knights-of.html I wanted to create the same figures but in their more natural role as Light Cavalry,   Mounted Characters in Ruckus terms

Variety is the spice of life or so it is said and it is certainly true of skirmish games where each figure represents an individual person, having them each distinctly different helps not only to recognise them on the table but adds a certain narrative quality. Every figure tells a story…

Having already kit bashed these figures I was able to replicate them as their mounted versions by simply using the rider legs from the GB Arab Light Cavalry set however, I wanted to make them a little different from the mounted archers I had already made by using different steeds. 

I chose to use WGA Light Horses. This is a lovely little kit with many possibilities. I think its better than the previous General Accoutrements “Horses” set in that these steeds have a narrower girth… the previous set are very wide and only the most straddle legged hombre can sit upon them without considerable surgery!

 Nice clean plastic with minimal cast lines or excess plastic and sharp mouldings, a treat to work with

Beautifully sculpted flowing manes and tails. The reins setup is a bit fiddly at first, but you soon get used to it, I found it easiest to dry fit first, then stick the “plate” of the rein bit to the neck of the horse, allow this to dry before fixing to the body.

You may have to try them all out to find which head goes with which set of reins...or at least I had to!

I wanted to make the horses look a bit more “of the time” and so extended the saddle blanket with green stuff and added a horsetail decoration to the harness. The horsetail came from a Victrix Islamic Cavalry standard 

For this one I added the “disc of crescents” from the standard to the front harness and the horse tails to the side harnesses 

This horse was painted as a dappled grey bay 

   Based with sand painted with Citadel Zandri Dust and Ushabti Bone

Tufts are Gamers Grass

  I like this horse the best, it’s a lovely posture and stance although I think I could have done a better paint job, the shading is a little too dark…

I cocked up the shield a little too! The writing is much clearer on the foot version 

This horse is done with the Wargames Foundry Buff triad

I think for this figure, the dropped loose reins are perfect 

A brown horse! This was painted with the Citadel Mournfang range 

 I like the effect of the disc and horse tails

 

The tricky bit! Replicating what I did with the shield! A nightmare as I could not remember what colours I had used!

A fair match, I think…

…until you compare the shields…WOoops!

I did a better job with this shield

I had to kit bash a figure to represent this Footsore figure, I think I got it close enough

I think they look grand! Now I am thinking that I may have to create some more... exactly the same but wielding lances for when they are “Arm’d for Combat”

They also make me want to create some more to be horse archers in my Ayyubid Retinue