The Battlefield

 

https://www.britishbattles.com/wars-of-the-roses/battle-of-tewkesbury/

Much has been written about the battle and its location over the centuries. Recent research suggests that the traditional view of the battlefield may not be quite correct. Nora Day has proposed that the Yorkists approached from the east, rather than the south. Her article is an excellent read and makes a good argument.

For this project I will be sticking to the more established view of the battlefield. I will try the battle again later using Nora's ideas, as it will make for an interesting action when deployments are so different.

Day, N. (n.d.), A Fresh Look at the Battle of Tewkesbury. Tewkesbury Historical Society. Retrieved from: https://tewkesburyhistory.org/A-Fresh-Look-at-the-Battle-of-Tewkesbury

Battles of Barnet and Tewkesbury 1471 - Wars of the Roses DOCUMENTARY

I found this YouTube video an excellent introduction to the Battle of Tewkesbury and the campaign leading up to it. Kings and Generals have a number of excellent War of the Roses videos available.

World War of the Roses Event

 

Thanks to Chris Breese for getting this fantastic project under way.

The idea is to have as many gamers as possible from around the world playing Billhooks on this weekend, and then posting photos, videos and AAR's of their experiences. 

How could I say no?

I have chosen to play the Battle of Tewkesbury for the event. Not the largest battle of the conflict, but big enough to create both a great visual impact and a sizeable challenge to complete.

Never Mind the Billhooks - an Introduction

 In September 2019, Wargames Illustrated published Andy Callan's Never Mind the Billhooks rules. Initially these came free with the WI September 2019 issue, but are now also available on the WI website either in hardcopy or as a pdf.

(photo courtesy of Wargames Illustrated)

Since their release, WI have added quite a bit of support for the rules. So far this includes a ten part series on You Tube where Andy Callan and Steve Wood (of Arcane Scenery and Models fame!) run through the design process and play a game to illustrate how it all comes together, FAQ and gaming aids, and a fantastic compilation of WI articles on the War of the Roses as well as painting guides.

For me, the timing could not have been better. I had just made the decision to adapt the Furioso rules from Alternative Armies to the WotR, but this work is no longer needed. 

There is an active Facebook group where people are actively displaying their armies, battle reports and some lively discussion. One recent post from Chris Breese discussed the idea of a worldwide weekend of wargames on May 22-23. 

And so this project was born.

Links

Wargames Illustrated Never Mind the Billhooks page   

https://www.wargamesillustrated.net/never-mind-the-billhooks/

Arcane Scenery and Models

https://arcanesceneryandmodels.co.uk/

Never Mind the Billhooks Facebook Group

https://www.facebook.com/groups/billhooks/

YouTube video Series

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLn7lk0MRdW_zxY3TxaogCSiaMiy61N0yZ