https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/ Mon, 30 Mar 2026 11:05:05 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/tower_logo-1-75x75.png https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/ 32 32 ‘A Great Northern Conflict” https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/a-great-northern-conflict/ https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/a-great-northern-conflict/#respond Mon, 30 Mar 2026 11:05:01 +0000 https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/?p=4800 On Sunday 19th April at 2.00pm in the Visitor Centre at Pontefract castle, we will be delivering our first talk of 2026 on ‘The Percy/Neville Feud – A Great Northern Conflict’. The rivalry between these two great families, especially in the North, would impact the first half of the fifteenth century in England and would directly lead to the Wars of the Roses. Join us to learn more about these two families and the particular events that drove their quarrel. Tickets are available from Pontefract castle itself and are free or join us on the day. We look forward to seeing you on the day.

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]]> On Sunday 19th April at 2.00pm in the Visitor Centre at Pontefract castle, we will be delivering our first talk of 2026 on ‘The Percy/Neville Feud – A Great Northern Conflict’. The rivalry between these two great families, especially in the North, would impact the first half of the fifteenth century in England and would directly lead to the Wars of the Roses. Join us to learn more about these two families and the particular events that drove their quarrel. Tickets are available from Pontefract castle itself and are free or join us on the day. We look forward to seeing you on the day.

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]]> https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/a-great-northern-conflict/feed/ 0 Battle of Wakefield https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/battle-of-wakefield-3/ Wed, 31 Dec 2025 09:30:38 +0000 https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/?p=4792 As we reach the end of 2025, the Battle of Wakefield has never been more in focus than at present. New research has cast doubts on the traditional view of the battle and has stimulated intense debate. We here at his site really welcome this new focus on the events of 1460/61 and we will obviously discuss these in our relevant tours and talks in 2026 and beyond. Whilst feeling that there does need to be more corroboration around the potential location of York’s death, what is perhaps more important, is that whether York did indeed die along the lines of the traditional view in battle, or ambushed somewhere near Stanley or Methley, none of this detracts from the importance of the events at Wakefield on 29th/30th December 1460. Can we wish all our readers and visitors to this site a Happy New Year and peaceful 2026.

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]]> As we reach the end of 2025, the Battle of Wakefield has never been more in focus than at present. New research has cast doubts on the traditional view of the battle and has stimulated intense debate. We here at his site really welcome this new focus on the events of 1460/61 and we will obviously discuss these in our relevant tours and talks in 2026 and beyond. Whilst feeling that there does need to be more corroboration around the potential location of York’s death, what is perhaps more important, is that whether York did indeed die along the lines of the traditional view in battle, or ambushed somewhere near Stanley or Methley, none of this detracts from the importance of the events at Wakefield on 29th/30th December 1460. Can we wish all our readers and visitors to this site a Happy New Year and peaceful 2026.

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]]> Seasons Greetings https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/seasons-greetings/ Tue, 23 Dec 2025 11:16:22 +0000 https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/?p=4788 We would like to wish all our visitors to these pages and all who have come on our tours and talks in 2025 a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. 2026 already looks to be an exciting one, with new theories being discussed around the battles of Wakefield and Towton, whilst we already have a number of tours and talks booked which will cover such a wide range of topics as the ‘Percy/Neville Conflict in the North’, ‘Richard III in the North’ and the ‘Three Sieges of Pontefract Castle’. Details will be posted here in due course but until then, very best wishes from us all.

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]]> We would like to wish all our visitors to these pages and all who have come on our tours and talks in 2025 a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. 2026 already looks to be an exciting one, with new theories being discussed around the battles of Wakefield and Towton, whilst we already have a number of tours and talks booked which will cover such a wide range of topics as the ‘Percy/Neville Conflict in the North’, ‘Richard III in the North’ and the ‘Three Sieges of Pontefract Castle’. Details will be posted here in due course but until then, very best wishes from us all.

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]]> The Biggest and Bloodiest Battle on English Soil https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/the-biggest-and-bloodiest-battle-on-english-soil/ Sun, 30 Nov 2025 16:14:47 +0000 https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/?p=4785 Thank you to everyone who came to our talk today at Pontefract Castle on the above. It was really fantastic to see so many people there and we hope you enjoyed the afternoon. Please keep a look out on this site over the next few weeks when we will publish details of our talks and tours for 2026 and we hope to see you then. In the meantime we will take this early opportunity to wish everyone a happy Christmas and peaceful New Year and we will see you in 2026.

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]]> Thank you to everyone who came to our talk today at Pontefract Castle on the above. It was really fantastic to see so many people there and we hope you enjoyed the afternoon. Please keep a look out on this site over the next few weeks when we will publish details of our talks and tours for 2026 and we hope to see you then. In the meantime we will take this early opportunity to wish everyone a happy Christmas and peaceful New Year and we will see you in 2026.

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]]> The Biggest and Bloodiest Battle on English Soil – Towton or Marston Moor https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/the-biggest-and-bloodiest-battle-on-english-soil-towton-or-marston-moor/ Sun, 23 Nov 2025 11:18:58 +0000 https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/?p=4782 Our final talk of 2025 will take place on Sunday 30th November in the visitor centre at Pontefract Castle. For this talk we are joined by civil war historian David Cooke and the talk will take the form of a debate around the biggest and bloodiest battle on English soil. We hope that this event will not only be informative but also a bit of fun, where you the audience, can also have your say. Tickets are available from the usual sources and directly from Pontefract Castle itself and the event, is as ever, free. We look forward to seeing you on the day.

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]]> Our final talk of 2025 will take place on Sunday 30th November in the visitor centre at Pontefract Castle. For this talk we are joined by civil war historian David Cooke and the talk will take the form of a debate around the biggest and bloodiest battle on English soil. We hope that this event will not only be informative but also a bit of fun, where you the audience, can also have your say. Tickets are available from the usual sources and directly from Pontefract Castle itself and the event, is as ever, free. We look forward to seeing you on the day.

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]]> Heritage Weekend https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/heritage-weekend-3/ Sun, 14 Sep 2025 11:12:58 +0000 https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/?p=4771 Thank you to everyone who came to our two tours at Sandal Castle yesterday where we looked at the history of the castle and the Battle of Wakefield. It was lovely to see so many of you there and to receive such great feedback on the tours and content. We look forward to seeing you at a future event. Our next talk will be at Pontefract Castle at 2.00pm on Sunday 30th November where we will discussing ‘The Biggest and Bloodiest Battle on English Soil – Towton or Marston Moor?’. The tickets are free and available from the castle itself.

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]]> Thank you to everyone who came to our two tours at Sandal Castle yesterday where we looked at the history of the castle and the Battle of Wakefield. It was lovely to see so many of you there and to receive such great feedback on the tours and content. We look forward to seeing you at a future event. Our next talk will be at Pontefract Castle at 2.00pm on Sunday 30th November where we will discussing ‘The Biggest and Bloodiest Battle on English Soil – Towton or Marston Moor?’. The tickets are free and available from the castle itself.

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]]> Heritage Weekend Saturday 13th Sept https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/heritage-weekend-saturday-13th-sept/ Fri, 22 Aug 2025 09:30:42 +0000 https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/?p=4744 On Saturday 13th September we will be delivering two tours of Sandal Castle discussing a history of the De Warennes, the development of the castle and the Battle of Wakefield, as part of the WMDC Heritage Weekend. The tours will commence at 11.00am and 1.30pm and must be booked via ticketsource or Pontefract Castle itself. The tours have already proven to be very popular and we look forward to seeing everyone on the day. Cafe facilities are available on site if participants would like to get either meals or drinks.

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]]> On Saturday 13th September we will be delivering two tours of Sandal Castle discussing a history of the De Warennes, the development of the castle and the Battle of Wakefield, as part of the WMDC Heritage Weekend. The tours will commence at 11.00am and 1.30pm and must be booked via ticketsource or Pontefract Castle itself. The tours have already proven to be very popular and we look forward to seeing everyone on the day. Cafe facilities are available on site if participants would like to get either meals or drinks.

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]]> Heritage Weekend https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/heritage-weekend-2/ Tue, 05 Aug 2025 18:39:42 +0000 https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/?p=4740 On Saturday 13th September we will be delivering two tours at Sandal Castle – at 11.00am and 1.30pm – on the history of the castle and the De Warenne family and the Battle of Wakefield. Places on the tours are free and can be reserved by contacting Pontefract Castle. Places on the tours are almost full, so if you are interested, please act quickly. We look forward to seeing you there.

The post Heritage Weekend appeared first on .

]]> On Saturday 13th September we will be delivering two tours at Sandal Castle – at 11.00am and 1.30pm – on the history of the castle and the De Warenne family and the Battle of Wakefield. Places on the tours are free and can be reserved by contacting Pontefract Castle. Places on the tours are almost full, so if you are interested, please act quickly. We look forward to seeing you there.

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]]> Wakefield and Towton Update https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/wakefield-and-towton-update/ Mon, 04 Aug 2025 11:24:08 +0000 https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/?p=4736 There is a significant amount of new research and analysis taking place at this time around the whole winter campaign of 1460/61 and how it has been recorded by both chroniclers and historians. As this new thinking is made known, we will bring this information to our website in this section and in our talks and tours. If anyone has any questions or comments regarding this, please feel free to get in touch via the Contact Us button above.

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]]> There is a significant amount of new research and analysis taking place at this time around the whole winter campaign of 1460/61 and how it has been recorded by both chroniclers and historians. As this new thinking is made known, we will bring this information to our website in this section and in our talks and tours. If anyone has any questions or comments regarding this, please feel free to get in touch via the Contact Us button above.

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]]> Battlefield Trust https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/battlefield-trust/ Mon, 05 May 2025 14:52:43 +0000 https://pontefractsandalcastles.org.uk/?p=4594 Thanks to everyone from the Battlefield Trust who came along to our Medieval Day in Wakefield on Saturday 3rd May, where we visited both the Chantry Chapel and Sandal Castle for a history of this fortress and the Battle of Wakefield. It was great to meet everyone and we hope you had a great day. We hope to see you again soon at another event.

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]]> Thanks to everyone from the Battlefield Trust who came along to our Medieval Day in Wakefield on Saturday 3rd May, where we visited both the Chantry Chapel and Sandal Castle for a history of this fortress and the Battle of Wakefield. It was great to meet everyone and we hope you had a great day. We hope to see you again soon at another event.

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