The British nation a history / by George MWrong . -,and gentry werewith the rulingline, and itsstrength was inthe north. As oj>-portunity offered,Lancaster or Yorkwould make a sud-den effort to gainthe kingdom; thenobles on each§ide, who werebound by solemnpledges to supporttheir leaders when called upon, would sumiuon hastilytheir armed retainers or mercenaries, in many casesveterans of the long French war. A march and a fightwould follow. There were few sieges: the issue wasusually fought out in the open field, and with a deci-sive battle the levies of each side were quickly dis-banded, a
The British nation a history / by George MWrong . -,and gentry werewith the rulingline, and itsstrength was inthe north. As oj>-portunity offered,Lancaster or Yorkwould make a sud-den effort to gainthe kingdom; thenobles on each§ide, who werebound by solemnpledges to supporttheir leaders when called upon, would sumiuon hastilytheir armed retainers or mercenaries, in many casesveterans of the long French war. A march and a fightwould follow. There were few sieges: the issue wasusually fought out in the open field, and with a deci-sive battle the levies of each side were quickly dis-banded, and war ended for the time. The towns tooklittle part in the struggle : they rarely heeded the call toarms of the rival sides, but kept a supply of both Yorkistand Lancastrian emblems, and opened their gates cheer-fully to the victor. During the period wealth increasedrapidly. There is evidence that many cliurches were built,and that, wliilc the barons and their armed retainers were. A CENTURY OF CIVIL AND FOREIGN WAR 219 The rapidchanges in thecontest, whichbecomes steadilymore bloody. dying in the field or losing their heads upon the block, the working classes lived in comparative comfort. At St. Albans, York, though he held Henry prisoner, protested his loyalty, and declared that his aim was onlyto drive away evil counsellors, and soon, whenmadness again darkened poor Henrys mind,he became Protector. Henry recovered, and toget York once more out of the way, sent himback to Ireland. Disorder was everywhere. Marauding French forces haunted the English coasts, and in August, 1457, stormed and pillaged Sandwich. For days their leader lay at anchor in tlie Downs, defying England; but this menace ended when Warwick, Yorks friend, took strong measures as guardian of the seas. A ceremony of reconciliation at St. Pauls in March, 1458, seemed to promise peace. Henry walked in solemn procession with his crown on his head, York led the queen, and Lan-castrian and Yorkist b
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