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Fatal Colours: Towton, 1461 - England's Most Brutal Battle

Fatal Colours: Towton, 1461 - England's Most Brutal Battle

by George Goodwin (Author)

  • Used

    Hardcover 2011

    $3.45
Synopsis

The Battle of Towton 1461 was unique in its ferocity and brutality, as the armies of two kings of England engaged with murderous weaponry and in appalling conditions to conclude the first War of the Roses. Variously described as the largest, longest and bloodiest battle on English soil, Towton was fought with little chance of escape and none of surrender. Yet, as if too ghastly to contemplate, the battle itself and the turbulent reign of Henry VI were neglected for centuries. Combining medieval sources and modern scholarship, George Goodwin expertly creates the backdrop of fifteenth-century England. From the death of Henry V, with his baby son's inheritance first of England, then of France, he chronicles the vicissitudes of the 100 Years War abroad and the vicious in-fighting at home. He brilliantly describes a decade of breakdown of both king and kingdom, as increasingly embittered factions struggle for supremacy that could only be secured after the carnage of Towton. Fatal Colours includes a cast of strong and compelling characters: a warrior Queen, a ruthless king-making Earl, even a Papal Legate who excommunicates an entire army. At its centre is the first full explanation for the crippling incapacity of Henry VI - founder of Eton and King's College, Cambridge - but forever child-like. Fatal Colours masterfully brings to life a vibrant and violent age. 'Brilliantly researched and superbly written, Fatal Colours vividly brings to life one of the most dramatic periods of our history.' Tracy Borman

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More Information

Format: Hardcover
 Pages: 296
 Edition: First Edition
 Publisher: W&N
Published: 10 Mar 2011
ISBN 10: 0297860712
ISBN 13: 9780297860716
Book Overview: Gripping account of the Wars of the Roses battle of Towton - the most brutal day in English history.

Media Reviews
Fatal Colours is more thank a book about one battle, vivid, humane and superbly researched though it is. It is an account of a moment of profound crisis in English politics -- David Starkey For a nation that is so fond of a bellicose past, it is astonishing that so little is known about this most bloody day in English history. George Goodwin's emotive account of this half-time mark in the Wars of the Roses is an essential addition to our gory story. -- A.A. Gill, Hon Patron Of Towton Battlefield Soc. The Wars of the Roses have attracted many historians: some deal in the technicalities of military strategy; some chronicle the lives of the chief protagonists. Much rarer is the ability to combine all three - but Goodwin has pulled it off in this page-turning read. -- Helen Castor Sunday Telegraph -17.04.11 The story has never been told so well or so excitingly'George Goodwin rightly argues that while Towton can claim to be the biggest, longest and bloodiest English battle, what really marks it out is 'its brutality, its final casual indifference to the rules of war and humanity.' -- Desmond Seward, Author Of The Last White Rose BBC HISTORY MAGAZINE, MAY 2011 Brilliantly researched and superbly written, Fatal colours vividly brings to life one of the most dramatic periods of our history. -- Tracey Borman, Author Of Elizabeth's Women utterly captivating, perfectly balanced between fascinating detail and nail biting narrative. I was particularly struck by the attention given to ordinary soldiers and the way in which George had winnowed out the often poignant stories of their lives from the documentary evidence- it's a subject which is often overlooked and gave a fresh perspective on the battle. -- Lisa Hilton, Author Of Queens Consort Goodwin... charts his way through the off-putting complexities of the family tree very nicely, enlivening the minor characters while giving the major characters their proper weight in the story... eloquent and easily digestible account, told with an eye for the salient detail, and I hope this is the first in a series of histories of this fascinating but poorly served period...you close Goodwin's wanting to read more. -- Toby Clements DAILY TELEGRAPH - 05.04.11 Written with clarity of style, accessible and engaging. A significant addition to the literature on the period. -- Professor Anthony Goodman A cracking job. A very enjoyable read. -- David Cooke, Chairman Yorkshire Battlefields Trust Full of fascinating detail. I enjoyed it immensely. -- Allan Harley Secretary of the Wars of the Roses Federation George Goodwin, who has written a book on Towton to coincide with the battle's 550th anniversary in 2011, reckons as many as 75,000 men, perhaps 10% of the country's fighting-age population, took the field that day. THE ECONOMIST- 16.12.10
Author Bio
George Goodwin is a history graduate of Cambridge, where he was awarded a Foundation exhibition. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing.