ABSTRACT
In the spring of 1464 the land was not under the plough but was an expanse of open moor, largely devoid of trees. With the Lancastrians facing south, in front of Percy's Leap, the Yorkists probably carried out their initial deployment on the line of the present woodland. The Lancastrians had a foothold in Tynedale, holding Hexham, Prudhoe and possibly other centres. From Hexham the ground shelves markedly toward the crossing at Linnels Bridge, some two miles distant on the south side, rises steeply in the direction of Slaley. Barely two weeks after Hexham, John Neville, was Lord Montagu, before King and court at York and in the presence of both of his brothers, elevated to the earldom of Northumberland. Though perhaps the greatest of the Northumbrian fortresses, Bamburgh was not built to withstand cannon, and the deployment of the royal train before the massive walls gave ample notice of deadly intent.
