Last spring I took a trip to the United Kingdom with a friend where we visited over 2 dozen different battlefields (twice that if one counts alternative sites, castles which had been besieged, and hillforts), most of which dated from the dark ages through the English Civil War. The Battle of Culloden in 1746 is generally considered to be the last major battle fought on English soil, so almost by definition, all British battles pre-date the United States.

From this adventure, I believe I gained some insights into the English battles we so often attempt to re-create on the gaming table. This article is directed towards Americans who feel they would like to visit a few battlefields on their next trip to the U.K., and would like to avoid some of the pitfalls of travelling in the U.K. English readers who want to obtain a perspective about how an American traveler views their country, hopefully, will not be too insulted, and may even be mildly amused.

Why do it?

The simple answer is that we are wargamers with an interest in military history. Visiting battlefields can give one a new insight into the battles we fight during our monthly and weekly meetings. It may even cause us to rethink the way we handle these battles.

For me, the big insight I obtained was the realization that most "dark age" and many medieval battles were fought on, near, or are connected with hill forts. Now most of the "dark age" and medieval battles I have played at the club or at conventions involve a flat battlefield with maybe a couple of forests and other terrain features like small hills or a stream or two. Visiting a number of actual battlefields has me questioning whether we are doing it all wrong.

Indeed, it seems that many if not most "dark age" or medieval battles were simply a case where a defending army would find a nice steep hill (and hillforts fit the bill nicely), line up their troops at the top of a hill in a shieldwall, and in effect tell the other army, "if you want me and my land, come and get me." Having hiked to the top of South Cadbury Castle (probable site of Camelot), I have no question that even a modern soldier would not be particularly happy if his commanding officer told him to "take that hill."

Now, in most cases, the defenders had a significant advantage in adopting this approach. None-the-less, the guy at the top of the hill could still lose the battle. Harold Hardrada at Stamford Bridge, Harold Godwinson at Hastings and Richard III at Bosworth are prominent examples. And how Edward II ever lost at Bywater, with his troops lined up on what best could be described a cliff, is a monument to his massive incompetence.

Assuming my theory is correct, a few battles make more sense to me than before I visited the battlefield. For example, I have always wondered why Harold Hardrada did not defend at the river and the bridge at Stamford Bridge. While the River Derwent is not a raging flood, I personally would have been hesitant to cross the river, even without armor and weapons. (the wargames scenario typically presents the river as being fordable -- but I would not like to be in the middle of this river with an enemy on the opposing bank.)

So, it would have made perfect sense for Hardrada to simply line up his guys along the river in a very strong defensive position. However, he climbed to the high ground, lined up his guys in a shieldwall, and in effect told the Saxons, "come and get me." If one adopts the theory that this is how "dark ages" commanders were trained to handle their armies, this approach does make some sense.

Aside from the insights one can get from visiting battlefields, it has the benefit of getting one outside of the cities and off of the standard tourist track. I don't believe that one can get a feel for what the U.K. or the English are like by spending the entire trip with American tourists. During the course of visiting battlefields, one will see many treasures and have adventures that most tourists cannot even imagine.

Finding the Battlefields

The battlefield walker is blessed with a number of good books, which not only describe the battles, but give you detailed directions how to get there. Some of these books are rather difficult to find in the U.S., but a partial listing, in my order of preference includes:

D. Smurthwaite, The Compete Guide to the Battlefields of Britain (Webb and Bower, 1984, ISBN 1-56619-165-3)(Includes Ordnance Survey Maps of the Battlefields and reasonable directions for finding the battlefields)

Get mapping, British Battles (Harper-Collins Publishers, 2002, ISBN 0 00 714417 2)(Overlays of the army locations over aerial maps of the battlefields.) This can be quite useful in locating the actual battlefield, but some of their descriptions are suspect.

P. Warner, The Daily Telegraph: British Battlefield s (Cassell, 2002, ISBN 0-304-36332-4)(A compilation of 4 Osprey titles from the 1970s providing descriptions of both the battles and directions to the battlefields along with key sites on the battlefield. One of the more useful references.)

G. Bell, Yorkshire Battlefields (Wharncliffe Books, 2001, ISBN 1-903425-12-3). An amusing account of the major battles fought in Yorkshire. Many of his opinionated comments make this a fun read, like: "Constantine would display considerable talents in the near future, chief of which was his remarkable ability to kill any opponents crossed his path, and the emphasis he placed on being a sort of divine savior who alone could restore the Roman Empire to its old glory. On his death in 337 AD, he had managed to kill any opponent within reach (including his own son) place a huge burden of taxes on the Roman people, and had introduced Christianity as the state religion. For these highly questionable reasons, later historians have given him the totally undeserved title of 'The Great'"

W. Seymore, Battles in Britain (Wordsworth Editions Limited, 1999, ISBN 1 85326 672 8) The description of each battle described in the book is preceded by directions to the battlefield.

K and D Guest, English Heritage: British Battles (Harper Collins Publishers, 1996, ISBN 0 00 470969 1)(A nicely illustrated book showing the clothing, weapons and armor used at each of the battles as well as color maps showing viewing spots, monuments and car parks.)

D. Clark, Battlefield Walks in Yorkshire (Sigma Leisure, 2003, ISBN 1-85058-775-2) (The closest thing will find to the type of battlefield guides provided at the National Battlefields in the U.S. This book will guide you around the battlefields covered by the book and give descriptions of the major features of each battlefield. However, it is limited to battlefields in Yorkshire.)

A. Burne, The Battlefields of England (Stackpole Books, 1996, ISBN 1-85367-228-9) (Provides a description of major battles and sketchy directions to the battlefield. A classic reference.)

P. Young and J. Adair, Hastings to Culloden (Alan Sutton and Sutton, 1996, ISBN 0-7509-1372x) A classic reference, focussing primarily on latter battles. Useful for those interested in the English Civil War.)

Now the poor reader should be warned that these books do not necessarily agree as to the actual location of the battles in question. One book might give you directions to one site, and another will give you directions to another site on the other side of the U.K. In many cases, no one really knows WHERE the battle took place, and the guides provide an intelligent guess. (Even the location of Bosworth and Hastings are disputed.) From the gamer's standpoint, this is good news, because it gives us more battles to fight. (After all, we are duty bound to play all possible location to decide which one is the most plausible location.)

How to get to the Battlefields

The simple truth is that the English do not preserve their battlefields the way Americans do. With respect to "dark ages" and medieval battlefields, they often are not even sure where the battle took place. Several battlefields do have a ticket counter where one can pay to see a small museum, walk the battlefield, and visit a gift shop. Hastings, Bosworth, and Bannockburn come immediately to mind.

However, the vast majority of battlefields do not have ticket takers, explanatory markers, museums or gift shops. A few may have a marker near the battlefield, but there are no guarantees that the public will have access to the marker (Evesham is a case in point.) This leaves it up to the military historian to use his abilities to try to locate the battlefield.

In order to do this, the battlefield walker has little choice but to hire (rent) an automobile. Public transportation does not go to most of the battlefields, except in cases where a city has been built over the battlefield meaning that the battlefield has been lost. This means driving in England, an experience that can turn the best of drivers into a shrieking maniac.

Now, one has to understand that the problem of driving in England is not related to "driving on the left and overtaking on the right." Negotiating roundabouts can be mastered with a degree of practice. Once can even learn to drive on a narrow one lane road with traffic travelling in both directions.

No, the real problem is that there are no road signs in the whole blasted country. One can travel for miles in the wrong direction and be completely oblivious to what road one is actually on. The problem is compounded in cities, where roads change their names every three blocks, meaning that a street sign probably would not do the poor driver any good anyway. Moreover, the absence of street signs renders even the best of maps worthless.

Unfortunately, if one is going to see English battlefields, one has to drive. All I can do is to suggest several rules that may reduce the frustration to some extent:

Rules

1. The good news is that "hiring" (renting) a car in the U.K. is relatively easy. You basically need your passport, a valid driver's license, and a functioning credit card. (English readers may be terrified at the thought of how easy it is for Americans to drive in the U.K.) Having a valid credit card may be the trickiest, because credit card companies have a nasty habit of declining large overseas charges, even if your account is current, or even paid off. It is probably a good idea to get as much insurance as possible, because your U.S. liability policy probably does not cover damage to rental vehicles outside of North America.

2. You will get lost. Guaranteed. Driving through the typical English city will require you to navigate at least 6 roundabouts. The typical roundabout will have six exits. This means that you have one chance in 36 of successfully navigating an English city. It also means that you will have 35 chances out of 36 of driving from roundabout to roundabout to roundabout. My definition of "Hell" has changed to a typical English city where one spends eternity travelling between interlinked roundabouts.

3. Speaking about roundabouts, the simple rule is that you are required to "give way" (yield) to any vehicles already in the roundabout. With multi-laned roundabouts, you will need to start in the inside lane for a right turn, and the outside lane for a left turn. In many cases, the lanes will be marked as to the direction you are to go. (By the way, you go clockwise around the roundabout. Going "anti-clockwise" is likely to have unfortunate consequences.)

4. Avoid cities at all cost. Why? Because you only have one chance in 36 of successfully navigating one. Of course, this is useless advice, because there is no way of avoiding cities, unless one wants to see nothing but motorways on the trip. (Many cities have park and ride operations where one parks his car outside of town and takes a bus into the city. In fact, this is the only way to see Bath, since all of the parking in town appears to be restricted to permit holders.) Simple rule: enter a city, get lost. AND UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD ONE VENTURE INSIDE THE LONDON RING ROAD (the M25)!!!

5. When you get lost, you will inevitably end up in a "car park" (parking lot). If you end up in a "car park," you are officially lost, and should proceed to the exit of the "car park" and try to get started again. (Finding the exit, can, in itself, be an adventure.)

6. Absolutely positively get a good English road atlas, preferably one which is super-scaled. You can find them at any chain bookstore, and at service stops along the motorway. My advice would be to get one before you leave the airport. Most of the maps you will find in the U.S. are not good enough, so you are better off waiting until you get to the U.K. Ordnance Survey maps are nice, particularly in the larger scales, but can be bulky and something of a nuisance if you are going to be travelling a lot. If you have a good road atlas, you will still get lost, but it will take you less time to find your way again.

7. While you are picking up your road atlas, try to get a copy of the Rules of the Road. Again, this can be found in many of the larger bookstores. Then read it. You will learn the difference between Pelicans and Zebras and other weird quirks of driving in the U.K., and perhaps avoid a costly ticket.

8. The few road signs which exist can be found a few feet before your enter a roundabout, and when one has no time to read it. The signs often do not identify roads but will point to a city. The city, may or may not, be the one you are looking for. But it will be a city located along the road. Therefore it is essential to memorize every city which may be located before or after the city you are going to.

9. The shortest distance between two points is the motorway. English motorways are like inferior U.S. interstates. Just like U.S. interstates, they have a nasty habit of avoiding anything worth seeing. And yes, all motorways exit into a roundabout.

10. All English drivers suffer from road rage. All the talk about English courtesy goes out the window when an Englishman gets on the road. Wouldn't you, if someone stuck you on a narrow, one lane, winding road with no road signs, only to follow some foolish American who is hopelessly lost? And the price of gasoline (over $5.00 a gallon) does nothing to soothe their temper. So think of the worst California (or, for those from the East Coast: Massachusetts) driver, multiply his bad driving by a factor of 10, and you have your typical English driver. Now the good news is that the U.K. has gun control, so these guys, at least, are not armed.

11. Do not ask an Englishman for directions; they are completely clueless. All of the sane English refuse to drive in the U.K., preferring to take a train to their destination city and taking either a bus or taxi to their destination in town. All of the insane English are already on the road and are too busy honking, flashing their headlights and otherwise acting…insane… to be of any use. Yes, I have had an Englishwoman answer my question concerning the location of one of the main streets in Reading, "well, I grew up in Reading, but I wouldn't drive there."

12. The exception to paragraph 7 is the Tourist office in every town. Tourist offices close at 5:00 o'clock p.m., so the odds are that when you arrive in town, they will be closed. But assuming you get there before they close, they are of limited value. The person in the Edinburgh tourist office helping me find a building located about two blocks from the office spent a good half hour checking maps and speaking with co-workers to find the street (which of course would not be marked.) It's sort of like asking a New Yorker where Times Square is located and getting a blank stare.

13. DRIVE SLOWLY. Take your time. Yes, the madman behind you will be honking, flashing his lights, and generally acting insane. But he would be doing this anyway, and if not to you, to someone else. So don't blame yourself. It's not worth missing the correct turn on the roundabout and getting lost for an hour. Besides, photo radar boxes (gray boxes along the highway which take pictures of your rear license plate) exist throughout the entire country, and English speeding tickets can be an expensive addition to your vacation. Just remember, the Queen's government wants you to drive slow, even if the maniac behind you does not. If the guy honking his horn and flashing his lights gets too out of control, simply roll down your window and say: "Pardon. Je ne parle pas de Anglais. Parlez vous Français?" Since the English maniac will probably assume your are a Czech at this point (because your French accent will be awful), he will never suspect you are an American (because Americans do not study languages), and will probably ignore you.

14. Parking can be a problem, especially at your selected battlefields. Most "car parks" (parking lots) are of the "pay and display" variety. There is usually a machine located in the parking lot where you prepay for a ticket which is displayed on the windows of your car. Failure to pay results in a £40.00 fine ($70.00). Most battlefields do not have "car parks," and there are no shoulders along the road (most of the roads are two lanes with curbs along the sides.) While many English seem to stop and park wherever and whenever they feel like it, I would not recommend the practice for Americans. Some of the guidebooks listed above will suggest places to park and view the battlefields.

Now if the above does not convince you NOT to rent a car and instead join a tourist group of elderly Americans, there is another caveat about visiting English battlefields:

The Condition of the Battlefields

Well, you have determined which battlefields you want to visit. You have braved the English roads, and worse yet, the English drivers, and you arrive at your battlefield. What can you expect to find?

If you were expecting Hadrian's Wall to be standing in all of its glory, you are bound to be disappointed. The simple truth is that Hadrian's Wall was dismantled by the locals centuries ago, and the stones are now part of their homes and their hedges. In a real sense, when you travel to Northumbria, the wall is all around you. But the most you will actually see will be a knee high section of ruined wall. (Of course, a gatehouse of a Roman fort along with several barracks have been rebuilt at South Shields.) Similarly, the Viking city of Jorvik now lies seventeen feet beneath the streets of York.

By the same token, a number of battlefields have been built over. (Evesham, Brunanbugh, Sterling Bridge, Neville's Cross and, maybe, Falkirk immediately come to mind). One, Stamford Bridge, has had the indignity of having a "caravan" (mobile home) park built on it. Thanks to the miracle of modern drainage, the marshy ground no longer exists at Bannockburn. Pevensy Castle, which was located along the shore during Roman times and the Norman invasion, is now a mile inland due to the silting of the south coast of England. That is to say, in many cases the battlefields often do not look the same way they did 500 to 1000 years ago.

You will read about ancient trees that are 400 years old, and realize that those trees did not even exist during the time of your favorite battle. Maybe the oldest of the trees were present during the English Civil War. But for the most part, there are no guarantees that the forests you see were actually present during the battle.

Most battlefields are not particularly well marked. A few will have a single marker or sign describing the location of the battle. Many have nothing. If you are going to Stamford Bridge, look for the mobile home park -- that is your battlefield. For the most part, the English veterans of 1066 or the Wars of the Roses did not organize like the Grand Army of the Republic with the political clout to preserve battlefields and place memorials on every inch of these battlefields.

But a number of battlefields are in pristine condition, which means, they are open fields (except the dark ages battlefields, which are open hillforts). Prior to the modern era, most commanders avoided forests and other difficult terrain (unless they were commanding a dark ages army, in which case they sought them out). It is difficult to set up a shieldwall (or wall of pikemen for that matter) in rough terrain, so the commanders looked for open country. Most battlefields are not really much to write home about, and make for very uninteresting pictures. (See pictures of Northallerton and Towton)

However, by visiting these battlefields, it is possible to get some sense for the lay of the land and the problems facing the commanders. The hills (and hill forts) have not gone away with time.

Other Sites

A description of most military related sites in the United Kingdom can be found in: M. Evans, The Military Heritage of Britain and Ireland (Andre Deutsch, 1998)(A directory of airfields, battlefields, castles, cemeteries, forts, monuments, museums and ships organized by region).

By far, the most interesting sites are castles where sieges took place. Since sieges were a common aspect of medieval warfare, some of these structures can be quite interesting. But then again, many castles are just piles of rubble. Most of the great castles (Caerphilly, Harlech, Caernarvon, Conwy, Caerlaverock, Porchester, Pembroke, Bodiam, Rochester, etc.) are little more than ruined shells. Occasionally, floors and roofing in the keep will have been replaced. (Conisbrough, Porchester - which also has its Roman walls.) A number have been restored to something approaching their medieval appearance (Dover, Carlisle, and the Tower of London).

Others have been restored by the wealthy to serve as their private palaces (Eilean Dolan, Windsor), and at least one has been restored by the likes of Madamn Tussard;s to give one a true Disneyland experience (Warwick - admission $20.00 per person plus parking). Most are owned by some historical trust, which will have a ticket booth, a gift shop and a small museum. (Unfortunately, there are at least four major historic trusts in the U.K., all of them designed to extract all possible money from tourists.) Many of these castles are on or near battlefields, or were the targets of a siege. (e.g. Rochester is near the believed location of the Battle of the Medway, approximately where the M2 crosses the Medway.)

I, personally, have a strong liking for reconstructions, reenactments and living history museums. One of my best travel experiences was spending Halloween at the Cosmeton Medieval Village in Penarth to the south of Cardiff in Wales. They had a huge bonfire, mummers, recitation and other "medieval entertainment" done by some very fine reenactors. Castell Henllys in southwestern Wales between Fishguard and Cardigan, has a nice reconstruction of a Celtic hillfort.

Jarrow, south of Newcastle, has Bedesworld, a functioning Saxon farm. When I visited, they had a pottery exhibition and some highly knowledgeable reenactors who explained how pottery contributed to the Christianization of England (which I may discuss in a future article). Nearby is the Arbeia Roman Fort in South Shields where a Roman gatehouse and barracks have been reconstructed.) West Stow, to the east of Cambridge, has the reconstruction of a Saxon village (which I did not have time to see). Another eleventh century fortified manorial burgh is currently being built by Regia Anglorum in South Kent. (see http://www.wychurst.org/index.html) And the partially reconstructed, albeit empty) Stokesay Castle south of Shrewsbury near Ludlow, provides a fine example of a fortified manor house on the Welsh marches. I drove by Murton outisde of York at least three times (getting lost), without ever realizing that they had some nice reconstructions there. (No signs.)

Many of these sites are the dreams of reenactors who have a passion for recreating history in a way that even the most serious Society for Creative Anachronism members in the United States can only dream of. They typically have events at these sites (such as the Halloween event at Cosmeton Medieval Village.) For example, a reenactment of the Battle of Hastings is scheduled every 5 years at the Hastings battlefields, the next one taking place in 2005. (The pictures of the last event can be found in T Leprevost & G. Bernage, Hastings 1066 (Heimdal 2002, ISBN 2 84048 150 2). The internet sites for the major national historical trusts will have a listing of these events.

DON'T FORGET THE MUSEUMS.

The best sites in the U.K. are free or are available for a nominal fee. These sites include the British Museum, the Imperial War Museum, the National Army Museum, the Museum for the City of London, the Royal Scottish Museum, and many Regimental museums. (There is a nice collection of these museums in Winchester, including the Gurka museum and the Royal Green Jackets Museum, which has an excellent model of the battle of Waterloo.)

Finally don't forget to have fun. Blackpool is the U.K.'s playground, having first class roller coasters, dark rides and other amusements. It is tacky, hopelessly low class, 100% British, and an absolute blast. A trip to the Island of Skye in the Scottish Highlands offers some of the finest views anywhere on this planet. (And a visit to the Brochs at Glenalg is well worth the detour, for the scenery alone.) One can burn out on too many battlefields and castles.

Where to Eat and Sleep

At some point during your trip, you may want to eat or sleep. This may provide more of a challenge than you could ever expect. Now, if you are with a tour, you will stay in a nice American style hotel, eat American food, and spend all of your time with Americans. You will see lots of stately homes, over-priced tourist traps (like Warwick Castle) and gift shops that pay a 15% kickback to the tour guide. But, you won't see any battlefields.

Unlike the U.S., English motorways do not have billboards advertising the location of motels or inns. There are service stops along the motorways (indicated on the highway maps with a circled "S"). These usually have a Travel Lodge (or the equivalent), which provide American style motel rooms for £45.00 (about $75.00) per night. Most cities have overpriced hotels, but if you are like me, you probably balk at the thought of spending over $100.00 for a bed for one night.

The English themselves tend to stay in beds and breakfasts. These run a whole gamut of accommodations. I have stayed in guesthouses, hotels, private homes, farmhouses, motel-style rooms, pubs, inns dating from the English Civil War, dormitories, and a converted bishop's home. Unlike the Travel Lodge's a B&B room includes a good breakfast of juice, cereal, fried tomatoes and mushrooms, eggs, bacon, and sausage. (Americans beware! Black pudding is made from clotted blood!)

Inside cities, the beds and breakfasts tend to be limited to certain streets or parts of town. They are not well marked, and can be impossible to find. The tourist information office will make reservations and give you directions to approved B&B's for a fee of approximately £5.00, provided you get into town before the tourist information office closes. (Some tourist offices have automated screens, which are of limited help.)

Most B&B guides are useless because they do not provide directions or maps (which are worthless anyway because streets are not well marked). In town, locating B&B's can be a true nightmare. Your best chance of finding a B&B is along the roads outside of cities, where many farms supplement their incomes by taking guests.

Allow a good two to three hours at the end of each day to locate a B&B. If you have not found one by nightfall, get on the nearest motorway and head to the Travel Lodge. Or bypass the search altogether and go directly to the Travel Lodge. And if it happens to be a bank holiday, plan on sleeping in your car.

As far as food: well, if you wanted great food you would go to France, right? The simple truth is that English cuisine is basically American cuisine with a few oddities like black pudding and haggis thrown in. If you want to eat at McDonalds or Burger King, you can. (But why?) One can usually get a pretty good meal at a pub. Of course, there are Chinese, Italian, Indian and even Mexican (!) restaurants in most large cities and many small ones. Do not pass up the opportunity to sample the fish and chips wrapped in newsprint and doused with vinegar and salt.

So, why do it?

Visiting English Battlefields entails a fair amount of hassle for some questionable rewards. However, a lot of American tourists spend a lot of money to insulate themselves from the country they are visiting and the people who live there. They are herded from place to place, taking pictures of sites (many of questionable worth), checking off each site from their list of "places to see" as they hop back on the bus to visit every tourist trap in between sites (where the tour guide gets a 15% kickback on the overpriced knick-knacks purchased by the tourists.) These tourists stay in American style hotels and eat American food while they enjoy their "foreign" experience.

When one visits a battlefield one is forced to interact with the locals. Most American tourists avoid these places, either because they are politically incorrect or because there is the perception that they are of little historical interest. By visiting battlefields, one really has the opportunity to see the people and understand where they come from. In many cases, the only tourists at these sites are the English themselves, seeking to learn more about their country.

The experience of seeing the battlefield first hand, in turn, gives the historical gamer better insights into how to better present his games.

Visiting English Battlefields: An American's Guide Revisited [Saga 93]