Variously described as the largest, longest and bloodiest battle on English soil, Towton was fought with murderous intensity in atrocious conditions. There was, for the defeated, little chance of escape and none for surrender.

Originally published: London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2011.

Introduction / by David Starkey -- Dramatis personae : -- England, 1422-1450 -- England, spring 1460 -- Prologue -- A step too far -- A great man's legacy : minority -- An absence of kingship : majority -- An absent-minded king -- A question of honour -- A queen transformed -- 'A Warwick' -- The sun in splendour -- A country at war : north vs south -- Towton; Palm Sunday 1461 -- In memoriam -- Dramatis personae : after Towton -- Wound man -- Family trees.