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Hedgeley Moor
- 25th April 1464
On 25 April, this group met up with the main
Lancastrian force of about five thousand men, at Hedgely Moor. Exact
details of the battle are in short supply, but it is believed that Sir
Ralph Percy commanded the Lancastrian right wing, Somerset, Bellingham
and Grey the centre and Hungerford and Roos the left.
Montagu advanced first, with his entire force,
but before he reached the Lancastrians, the force under Hungerford and
Roos broke and scattered. This surprising departure required the
Yorkists to readjust their lines and for Montagu to consolidate his
forces against the remaining Lancastrians.
The depleted Lancastrian force was ineffective
against Montagu's forces, and as the Lancastrians began to give way Sir
Ralph Percy was deserted by everyone except his household retainers,
even Somerset. The remaining Lancastrians fought bravely, but were
vastly outnumbered. The battle did not last long, and Percy and most of
his men were killed.

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