PLANTAGENET. Family at War.

Secrets and subterfuge.

At this point in the timeline it may be helpful to reflect on what has occurred so far and ponder on the why and wherefore and what if.
The heavily pregnant Queen Elizabeth, forced into sanctuary at Westminster when Edward fled England, gave birth to a son in November 1471. Did Cicely Neville contact the Queen during the readeption of Henry VI, she also had remained in London staying at Baynards Castle, presumably in the knowledge her nephew Warwick would do her no harm. When Edward and Gloucester came back to England with a Burgundian funded army at their back, he took his Queen, Elizabeth, our from sanctuary and deposited her, his daughters and six month old son, Prince Edward at Baynard's Castle under the care of his Mother Cicely.
With Edward IV returned from the continent, and triumphant over all his enemies, Henry VI and Margaret of Anjou, their son the Lancastrian Prince of Wales, the Earl of Warwick, the Duke of Somerset, Jasper Tydor and the Bastard of Fauconberg, it has to be appreciated how fortunate he had been to hav0e picked them off one by one. Not ignoring his military skill and endeavour Edward definitely had some good chance on his side to have been in the right place at the right time, or rather his adversaries not be.
To begin with, Edward beat Warwick to the capital as both of their armies marched to take the strategic city of London. Secondly, when Edward arrived there, Somerset had already vacated in order to go meet his queen, Margaret of Anjou due from France with her son the prince and heir to the Lancastrian cause. Edward encountered no resistance at the gates of London and once inside took the crown again, this time with a son and heir of his own, a Yorkist dynasty to boast about to all his supporters.
Edward's next fortune was both with Jasper Tydor in Wales, readying his forces for the Lancastrian return of their queen in a region much sympathetic to the Lancastrian cause and far less for York, and also 'The Bastard of Fauconberg', landed in Kent, bringing the Calais garrison with him and raising rebels in the county to march on London and supposedly join Warwick his uncle.
And last but by no means least, Margaret of Anjou and Prince Edward, landed late on in the proceedings, in the west, and heading north to again supposedly meet up with Warwick and Tydor.
On realising the formidable army which would come together if all met up Edward took Warwick to be his first target, his army the nearest, at Barnet or thereabouts. Edward of course won the spoils at this encounter.
Tydor, Fauconberg and Margaret, initially unaware of Warwick's death, all gathered more Lancastrian support from the Lancastrian leaning counties of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Kent, as well as the Welsh lands over the border. All have one aim, to destroy Edward and his Yorkists. Why did they not plan their strategy better?
After Barnett it is true to say Edward had no idea where Margaret and Somerset were, not much information came out of these counties. She, heading north though, through Taunton, Wells and Bristol, hears of Barnett. Now she needs to cross the Severn River and meet up with Jasper. Edward headed north then west to find her, sending instruction to Sir Richard Beauchamp to close the gates of Gloucester to her. Thankfully Beauchamp complied, forcing Margaret further north to Tewkesbury and the fateful battle encountered there. She was not able to meet up with Jasper Tydor. Again Edward is fortunate in his manoeuvres.