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We are looking forward to welcoming the Northern Dales branch of the Richard III Society to Pontefract Castle on Thursday20th August for a tour and talk on the history of the castle itself. Following this event we have further talks and tours planned as follows;

Sept 12th – Two tours of Sandal Castle to look at the history of the castle and the Battle of Wakefield, including recent research, which will tie in with WMDC Heritage week. Tickets are free and available from Pontefract Castle.

Sept 29th – Talk at Walton Library Wakefield, 7.30pm start titled ‘Friends and Enemies – A History of Pontefract and Sandal Castles 1070-1650. Tickets available on the door..

Nov 29th – Talk at Pontefract Castle Visitor Centre commencing at 2.00pm titled ‘The Three Sieges of Pontefract Castle’ when we will rejoined by Civil War historian David Cooke. Tickets available from the castle and are £3 each which goes to the upkeep of the castle.

It was a pleasure to deliver a talk to Towton Battlefield Society this evening on ‘Henry IV and Pontefract Castle’. Thanks to Alex and everyone for inviting us to do the talk and thanks to everyone for the positive comments at its conclusion. We look forward to seeing everyone again soon.

Thank you to everyone who came to our talk on the above today – this was the biggest turnout we have had so far, and it is very much appreciated. I hope everyone enjoyed the presentation and it was great to have so much interaction in the q&a that followed. Our next event is on Saturday 12th September at Sandal Castle, when we will be undertaking two tours on that day, covering the history of the castle and the Battle of Wakefield, to incorporate some of the new theories around this event. Places are free and can be booked via Pontefract Castle. We look forward to seeing you then.

Thank you to everyone who attended our talk today at Pontefract Castle on ;A Great Northern Conflict – the Percys and Nevilles in the fifteenth century. This was the biggest attendance we have ever had and as ever, we really appreciate the positive feedback and the great q&a at the end of the talk. We hope to see everyone again at our next talk on Sunday 14th June at 2.00pm in the visitor centre at Pontefract Castle when we will be discussing ‘Richard III in the North’. If anyone has any questions from todays talk or any general questions on the topics we cover, then please get in touch via the ‘contact us’ button on the front page of the website.

We are looking forward to seeing everyone at our first talk of 2026 at Pontefract Castle Visitor Centre, on Sunday 19th April at 2.00pm. The talk will be titled ‘A Great Northern Conflict – the Percys and Nevilles in the 15th Century’ and will look how this northern feud fed directly into the Wars of the Roses. The talk will last approx one hour and there will be plenty of opportunity for questions afterwards. We will also provide details of our further talks planned at the castle during this year. We look forward to seeing you there.