The Life of Harry Hotspur

"The novel weaves an intense emotional connection to a celebrity Knight."

– Reviewer

England 1403: A kingdom torn apart by rebellion. One man called Hotspur fights against his family, his king, and his demons to resurrect a code long since dead. But who will be victorious when the two horns of the moon collide?Thrown into the mayhem of the Hundred Years War when still a child, Henry Percy is scarred for life. But far from shrinking from his fears, he emerges to become a legend in his own lifetime and the epitome of medieval chivalry.Earning the nickname 'Hotspur' due to his impulsive and over-anxious nature, Percy serves a king not fit to rule, a father set on northern dominance, and an England beset with crumbling borders. But his greatest conflict is within himself and the hyperactivity that threatens to destroy him.

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Hotspur: Henry Percy Medieval Rebel

"If you like the end of the fourteenth century, and want to understand the code of chivalry as it was lived during that time, this book should be in your hands!"

– Medieval History

Henry Percy –‘Hotspur’- has become an almost legendary character. Immortalised by Shakespeare in Henry IV, he is seen as the archetypal anti-hero – the chivalrous medieval rebel who challenged Henry IV. In this first full-length account of Hotspur’s life, Andrew Boardman reveals the real Henry Percy – his background, his overbearing family and the rise to fame which brought him into direct confrontation with the king.

The Battle of Towton

"Boardman has an unrivalled knowledge of the ground and the record, such as it is, of the battle fought there."

– The Times Higher Educational Supplement

On Palm Sunday 1461 a ruthless and bitterly contested battle was fought by two massive medieval armies on an exposed Yorkshire plateau for the prize of the crown of England. This singular battle in the Wars of the Roses has acquired the auspicious title of the longest, biggest and bloodiest battle ever fought on British soil.

The First Battle of St Albans 1455

"Anyone with the smallest interest in the history of our city should read The First Battle of St Albans."

– St Albans Observer

For many years the battle of Bosworth was traditionally regarded as the final encounter of the Wars of the Roses. However, today most historians agree that the final pitched battle of the wars was fought at Stoke Field in 1487. So if the battle of Stoke signified the end of the conflict where did York and Lancaster first cross swords?

The Medieval Soldier in the Wars of the Roses

In this revealing study of the medieval soldier Andrew Boardman uses a variety of documentary sources to answer questions about who fought the Wars of the Roses. Eyewitness accounts of the men who fought as captains, archers, artillerymen, billmen, men-at-arms and cavalry – both in England and abroad – are used to paint a vivid picture of fifteenth-century conflict in all its confusion and violence.

About

Andrew is a historian and author based in Yorkshire, UK.

His published books include: Towton: The Bloodiest Battle (1994 reprinted 1996), The Medieval Soldier (1996), Blood Red Roses (2001), Hotspur: Henry Percy Medieval Rebel (2005) and The First Battle of St Albans (2006).

As a lecturer and historical consultant he has appeared and advised on the TV documentary series Secrets of the Dead (Channel 4 & Sky One, 1999) and also Instruments of Death (Yesterday Channel, 2012).

Most recently he advised on Hotspur for the BBC series Danny Dyer’s Right Royal Family (2019) and is currently working on a novel set in the Crimea.