Battle of Ferrybridge - a 28mm Wargame part 1

Good Evening Folks and welcome back to the next instalment of our Wars of the Roses journey. In this post we focus on the battle just before the big one at Towton. Think of this as the hors d'oevre for the main course. 

The Battle of Ferrybridge was fought on the 28th March 1461, although there is some debate that it may have been fought on the same day as Towton. As the Yorkists under the command of March and Warwick marched north to confront Queen Mary's army at York they had to cross the river Aire.

Edward & Warwick review the crossing at the river Aire

On the 27th Warwick's advanced forces took the crossing but 24 hours later the Yorkist army was thrown into confusion as the Lancastrians under Lord Clifford retook the bridge and proceeded to destroy it. The Yorkists rallied and sent out a flanking force under Lord Falconberg to cross upstream at Castleford and swing into the Lancastrian flank whilst Edward and Warwick would storm the crossing.

The plan, although costly in lives worked and Clifford's troops were driven back. Clifford himself was killed in the retreat. With the bridge secure the Yorkist could press on with their advance.

Refighting Ferrybridge

This game is an intriguing one as it requires the Lancastrians to defend the bridge whilst under the threat of counter attack from their flanks – it is all about buying time for the Lancastrian army marching from York.

We agreed at the beginning of the game the Lancastrians would win if they still held or contested the bridge by 10.15pm - effectively 3 hours of gametime - a perfect Monday night

The Lancastrian cavalry relief force is off table at the beginning of the game. After each turn roll d6 for each unit – on a 5-6 they will appear next turn – as they appear shuffle the Lord card into the deck. Once the first unit is on table add +1 to d6 roll each turn.

The Yorkist horse under the command of Falconberg/Norfolk start on table

The Yorkist foot under Falconberg’s battle command are also off table and roll d6 per turn following same instructions as Lancastrian horse.

It is assumed the archers on the Lancastrian side of the river have dug in (ie behind hedges and will get a +1 morale save from archery fire

The Yorkists will win the game if they can force crossing of the river at the bridge. In addition killing Clifford gives the Yorkists a major victory

The Lancastrians win if they are still in possession of the bridge (or it is contested by the end of the evening.

Defending the Bridge

Morale tokens 

The Lancastrians put all their morale tokens in the pot including the cavalry reinforcements as they arrive. The Yorkists only put the tokens in for Falconberg’s cavalry and infantry forces on the left wing as they arrive. Only these troops count when removing morale tokens for the Yorkists and once deleted the flanking force must retire. The Yorkists can continue top prosecute the attack at the bridge BUT remember the time limit.

It is assumed that Warwick and Edward’s forces are unlimited and therefore the 'army' cannot be tested on morale although individual units can still become daunted, routed etc.

Assaulting the bridge can be crossed by units in closed block formation. The river itself from bank to bank is 12" wide and the bridge itself affords no cover from missile fire.

Orders of Battle

Please note these are ficticious orders of battle - aside from Warwick, Edward, Falconberg and Clifford the rest of the commanders were selected on the cards available.

Optional/House rule: BC denotes Battle Commander. A BC may order other units other than his own

Lancastrian Forces

Leader	Units	Figures	Unit Count
Exeter (BC)	2 x Mtd Knights	16	2
Fitzhugh	2 x Lgt Horse	16	2
Clifford (BC)	2 x Men at Arms 3 x Skirmish Archers	42	5
Trollope (BC)	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2
Codnor	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2
Welles	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2
Devon	2 x Bow	24	2
Heron	2 x Bow	24	2
Delves	2 x Bill 1 x Skirmish	30	3

Yorkist forces muster for the assault

Yorkist Forces

Leader	Units	Figures	Unit Count
March (BC)	1 x Men at Arms (Vet) 2 x Bow 2 x Bill	24	2
Warwick (BC)	1 x Men at Arms 2 x Bow 2 x Handgunners	48	4
Horne	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2
Essex	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2
Hastings	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2
Berners	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2
Mortimer	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2
Arundel	2 x Men at Arms	24	2
Falconberg (BC)	1 x Mtd Knights 1 x Lgt Horse 2 x Skirmish	28	4
Norfolk	2 x Light Cavalry	16	4
Say & Sele	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2
Cromwell	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2
Scrope	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2
Bouchier	1 x Bill 1 x Bow	24	2

Note: 

Should Edward/Warwick use up all the troops listed above (except Falconbergs force) they may add one bil unit & one bow unit per turn to the road leading to the bridge. They cannot run out of troops

Building the Bridge

Refighting this battle gave me the opportunity to build a custom piece of terrain for the game. Nobody really knows what the medieval bridge looked like at Ferrybridge so it could have been an all timber construction or part wood/stone built. We do know that Clifford's forces attempted to render the bridge useless by removing the planks. 

My bridge was constructed from foamcore with a very simple design.

Once dry the main walls were clad in biro-embossed eva foam.

The bridge itself has two 'decks' - both constructed from balsa etched with a biro for planking. The first shows an intact bridge.

The second shows where planks have been removed.

The bridge itself was painted matt black and then drybrushed with greys and browns.

The full battle report on Ferrybridge will be published the day after the game and a link will appear here.

Game report HERE