The Medieval Soldier in the Wars of the Roses

This study examines the men who fought the Wars of the Roses as captains, men-at-arms, archers, billmen, artillerymen, sailors and cavalry. Boardman explains how forces were recruited and retained, how soldiers were paid, armed, fed and billeted, and how social status affected service. The account moves beyond noble commanders to recover the practical experience of the ordinary fighting man.

Chronicles, letters, civic records, surviving weapons and battlefield archaeology are used to reconstruct combat on land and sea. Evidence from the Towton mass grave illuminates wounds, physical condition and the violence of close fighting, while the wider discussion considers tactics, morale, killing and the soldier’s fate after battle. The result challenges romantic assumptions about chivalry and presents late-medieval warfare as an organised but brutal human activity.