whose promises, oaths, and engagemens, they would A. C. 1458. The royalifts at Blore Mean while Margaret fet out with the king on a progress into the counties of Warwick, Stafford, under the and Chester, in order to conciliate the affection of lord Audley, defeated the people; and, by means of her artful behaviour by the earl and affumed affability, formed a strong affociation of Salisbury in behalf of herself and her fon Edward. Under- heath. ftanding that the earl of Salisbury had raised a body of forces, and was on his march to join the duke of York in Herefordshire, fhe granted a commiffion to the Lord Audley to affemble troops, and prevent the junction of thefe noblemen. He accordingly levied A. C. 1459. ten thousand men, with whom he advanced against Salisbury, who had proceeded as far as Bloreheath on the borders of Staffordshire and Shropshire. Here the two armies came in fight of each other; and the earl, though his forces were not above half the number of the enemy, refolved to give them battle. They were parted by a rivulet; and on the twenty-third day of September, Salisbury made a feint of retreating, as if he had been afraid of an attack. Audley, on this fuppofition, passed the rivulet with great precipitation, in order to pursue D4 the A. C. 1459. the fugitives; and when part of his troops had croffed the brook, the earl, wheeling about all of à fudden, fell upon them with fuch impetuofity, before they could form, that, after an obftinate engagement, which lafted five hours, the royalifts were utterly defeated, with the lofs of their general and four and twenty hundred men, flain upon the field of battle. Fabian. Grafton, The malcontent lords are abandoned by their 'army. Salisbury, having thus opened his paffage, marched into Wales, where he joined the duke of York, who was employed in raifing an army for the profecution of his defign. The queen, in order to repair the damage fhe had fuftained at Bloreheath, and oppose the progrefs of the malcontents, with whofe motions fhe was perfectly well acquainted, exerted her endeavours with incredible activity, in affembling forces, and appointed the rendezvous at Coventry while her enemies wrote to Warwick, defiring he would join them with fome troops from Calais. On the receipt of his father's letter, he left that fortress under the command of his uncle the lord Falconbridge, and brought over part of the garrifon, commanded by Sir Andrew Trollop, an officer of great reputation. The king's army being affembled, he began his march from Coventry towards Ludlow, where the rebels were encamped: and, halting at Gloucester, offered a pardon to the infurgents, provided they would lay down their To this offer they replied, That they would not confide in fuch promifes, which were no other than fnares laid for their deftruction; but that they were ready to fubmit to the king, provided he could find any security for the performance of his promise. Henry, having received this anfwer, fuperfeded the earl of Warwick in the government of Calais, which he bestowed upon the duke of Somerset, and advanced to give battle to the malcontents. They wrote a letter to him, declaring that their fole view arms. in taking up arms, was to defend themselves against A. C. 1459. the attempts of their enemies; that they had no intention to fight, unless forced to an engagement; that all they required was a reformation of the abuses which had crept into the government, through the misconduct of the miniftry; and they befought his majefty to look upon them as his faithful fubjects, who had no defign to the prejudice of his perfon, and wifhed for nothing so much as to be reinstated'in his favour. The queen, imputing all this fubmiffion to fear, approached within half a mile of them in the evening, refolved to give battle next day, and in the mean time dispersed through the enemy's camp a proclamation, promifing pardon to all thofe who fhould lay down their arms and fubmit. This expedient produced a furprifing effect: the troops of the duke of York, fuppofing, from the king's making fuch an offer, that he had a great fuperiority of ftrength, and that there was no time to be loft, began to difperfe inftantaneoufly. Sir Andrew Trollop, who now for the first time perceived that the duke of York had a design upon the crown, deferted in the night, with the detachment he commanded; and his example was followed by fuch a number, that the lords, fearing they should be wholly abandoned, before day-break confulted their fafety in flight. The duke of York, with his fecond fon the earl of Rutland, retired to Wales, where they embarked for Ireland; and the earl of Warwick haftened over to Calais, whither he was foon followed by his father Salisbury, and York's eldest fon, the earl of March, at that time. in the nineteenth year of his age. The officers and foldiers, who remained after the retreat of their chiefs, fubmitted to the mercy of the king, who difmiffed them in peace, after having caused fome of them to be put to death for example. The parliament, affembling in the month of De cember, declared the duke of York and his adhe rents A.C. 1459. rents guilty of high treafon; their eftates were conExploits of fifcated, and they and their defcendants rendered the earl of incapable of fucceeding to any inheritance, even to Warwick by fea. Rymer. the fourth generation. As foon as the feffion broke up, the duke of Somerset embarked with a body of troops, in order to take poffeffion of Calais; but he met with fuch a reception as obliged him to land in another place, from which he marched to Guifnes, and there he fent out detachments to fkirmish with the garrison of Calais, by whom his men were generally repulfed to their quarters. Warwick was fo beloved by the nation in general, that when Somerfet landed with his troops, the failors fteered their fhips directly into the harbour of Calais. The queen being determined to wreft the government of this fortress from the hands of her enemies, equipped a fleet for the affiftance of Somerset, and ordered a confiderable body of troops to be put on board, under the command of the lord Rivers, and his fon Sir Anthony Wideville. While the fleet lay in the harbour of Sandwich, waiting for a fair wind, the earl of Warwick, having received intelligence of their deftination, manned the fhips which had lately deferted to him, and embarking fome troops, with Sir John Denham, they failed to Sandwich, where they surprised Rivers and all his officers, who were conveyed to Calais, together with their fhips; the failors themselves favouring the enterprize. Warwick, being thus reinforced with fhipping, failed for Ireland, in order to confult the duke of York about the measures to be taken for another infurrection in England, where the people efpoufed their caufe, and their friends expected them with impatience. The duke agreed with him in opinion that the lords at Calais should make a descent among their adherents and well-wishers in the county of Kent, and proceed directly to the capital, which they did not doubt would receive them with open arms. The earl earl of Warwick, in his return to Calais, fell in A. C. 1460, with the English fleet, commanded by the duke of Exeter, who had lately fuperfeded him in the poft of admiral, and been fent out to intercept him in his paffage but the failors and foldiers on board of the duke's fquadron refufing to fight against their old commander, he, in order to prevent a total revolt, failed into Dartmouth, where the greater part of his men deferted for want of pay and provifion. wick, enter The queen and the miniftry did not doubt but The earl of the interview between the duke of York and the March, with Salisbury earl of Warwick would produce a new rebellion, and Warwhich in order to weaken by anticipation, the London in council refolved to fet on foot an exact inquifition triumph. in all the towns and counties of the kingdom, for the discovery and punishment of all the partifans of the malcontents; the earl of Wiltshire and the lord Scales were vefted with a commiffion to make this inquiry, and punish all those who had carried arms for York and his adherents in the late rebellion; and they began to execute their powers with great feverity in fome towns that openly favoured the lords of the oppofition. Of all the counties in England Kent had the greatest cause to dread the refentment of the court, for it had always expreffed a particular attachment to the duke of York; and the conduct of the inhabitants under Cade was not forgotten: believing therefore that their ruin was inevitable, if not prevented by fome vigorous refolution, they sent an intimation to the lords at Calais, affuring them, that if they would land in Kent, the inhabitants would receive them with open arms, and hazard their lives and fortunes in their service. Sir Simon Montfort had been detached by Margaret with a body of fresh forces to guard Sandwich and other harbours that lay nearest the enemy; and fhips had been equipped for convoying the duke of Somerfet to England, where his prefence was |