Battles on British Soil Trivia Quiz

Answer: Fulford

The Battle of Fulford took place on September 20th, 1066. It was this battle, between invading Norse and forces loyal to King Harold, which forced Harold to march north to Yorkshire. The invaders, under Harald Hardrada, set up camp at Riccall and marched towards York.

The opposing armies met at Fulford and the Norsemen, aided by Tostig, the exiled brother of King Harold, were victorious. Five days later Harold and his army arrived and defeated the invaders at Stamford Bridge.

Answer: South Glamorgan

Stalling Down is a few miles to the east of the market town of Cowbridge. There is some dispute as to the details of the battle. Some historians say it took place in 1403. There are also questions as to whether a certain Owain Glyndwr (Glendower) was present. Whenever the battle took place it was a massive defeat for the English forces led by King Henry IV.

Answer: Flodden

Flodden, or Flodden Field, was the last great battle between England and Scotland with over 60,000 men taking the field. Henry VIII had taken an army to France and James IV of Scotland, as an ally of the French, decided to march into England in a bid to force Henry to come back.

The English forces, under the Earl of Surrey, were armed with longbows and the Scots with long pikes, a recent acquisition from the French. The pike is not a good weapon against infantry and the Scots were cut to ribbons. King James and many of his nobles lost their lives at Flodden, and this ended the last serious Scottish threat to England for several decades.

Answer: St Albans

St Albans saw two battles during the conflict between the Houses of York and Lancaster, the second battle taking place in 1461. In 1455 Richard of York led an army of around 3,000 men towards London. The Lancastrian King Henry VI mustered his army and started to move north.

The opposing forces met at St Albans. The battle was a relatively minor affair with only a small number of casualties. The result was a victory for the Yorkists.

Answer: Falkirk

At Falkirk, William Wallace's pikemen used a formation which later became know as a 'schiltron'. In this formation the front row of pikemen knelt so the English cavalry faced an impeneratable wall of pikes. It was no match, however, for a new English weapon, the longbow.

After huge gaps had been opened up in the Scottish defenses the English cavalry were able to advance and destroy Wallace's army. Wallace himself managed to escape but was later betrayed and taken to London to be hanged, drawn and quartered.

Answer: Treachery

Richard's army outnumbered Henry's by more than two to one; until, that is, the defection of the Stanleys' 4,000 men to Henry. On seeing this, Percy, the Earl of Northumberland, refused to bring Richard's reserves into the fray. Richard's fate was sealed.

Answer: Sedgemoor

The Battle of Sedgemoor took place in Somerset between rebel forces led by the Duke of Monmouth and royalist troops under Lord Feversham. Monmouth landed in England from Holland with less than a hundred men but soon gathered support, mainly from poorly armed peasent farmers.

After being repelled at Bristol Monmouth marched his rag tag army towards Bridgwater. After a short rest they moved out under cover of darkness and encountered the royalists at the village of Westonzoyland. Monmouth's men were no match for the opposing army. Monmouth himself was captured and later executed.

Answer: Oliver Cromwell

By the time of Marston Moor the Civil War had been going on for three years. Cromwell had attained the rank of Lieutenant General of Horse and led a cavalry assault on the royalist forces. After breaking the King's horsemen Cromwell's men attacked the infantry from the rear, effectively ending the battle and the Royalist domination of the north of England.

The war raged on for a further two years.

Answer: 15 minutes

Incredibly, the whole affair lasted less than a quarter of an hour. Prestonpans was the first real battle of the uprising known as the Second Jacobite Rebellion. The English forces, loyal to George II, were led by Sir John Cope whilst the rebels, loyal to James Edward Stuart (The Old Pretender ), were led by his son Charles, better known as Bonnie Prince Charlie.

At 6am on 21 September 1745 1,400 Highlanders charged Cope's inexperienced army and routed them. There were few casualties, but over 1,400 English soldiers were captured. Following the battle Prince Charles insisted that the English wounded were given the best medical care available.

Answer: Culloden

Bonnie Prince Charlie had led an army south into England in an attempt to take the crown from King George II. He was forced to retreat north of the border, and after a skirmish at Falkirk fled to the Highlands. The Jacobite army tried to march towards the British forces under cover of darkness, but the going was slow.

When they realised the element of surprise was gone they returned to their camp at Culloden. When the British, under the command of William, Duke of Cumberland attacked, the Jacobites were in no fit state to offer much resistence. Cumberland gave orders that no one, not even the wounded, should be spared.

This action gave rise to the nickname of 'Butcher Cumberland'. The garden flower known in England as 'Sweet William', named in honour of Cumberland was called 'Stinking Billie' in parts of Scotland. Charles fled the country and died in Rome in 1788.