Info Favorites Register Log in
myArmoury.com Discussion Forums

Forum index Memberlist Usergroups Spotlight Topics Search
Forum Index > Off-topic Talk > Towton Reply to topic
This is a standard topic  
Author Message
Sean Flynt




Location: Birmingham, Alabama
Joined: 21 Aug 2003
Likes: 10 pages
Reading list: 13 books

Spotlight topics: 7
Posts: 5,981

PostPosted: Fri 01 Oct, 2010 8:59 am    Post subject: Towton         Reply with quote

I first became interested in the battle of Towton ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Towton ) after reading the wonderful Blood Red Roses. I followed that with other histories, including the Osprey history of the battle with illustrations by Graham Turner. I later discovered that one of my (Lancastrian) ancestors is known to have been among the vast numbers of dead and that further piqued my interest.

I kept coming back to one of Turner's paintings of the battle--the decisive moment before the lines close, just after Fauconberg brilliantly seized a tactical advantage for his archers. It's a beautiful painting and highly accurate in its details. I finally treated myself to a 34" x 24" print of the painting from by-the-sword.com. It actually wasn't that much of a treat--$60. Happy BTS has lots of Turner's artwork, including WOR and ECW scenes but this one more than all the others seems like a window onto the field.

I finished mounting and framing the Towton print yesterday and I'm just about to hang it in my office. I'm really thrilled to own this! One of the most impressive things about Turner's work is that he has studied the period so thoroughly that he's gotten drawn into serious historical jousting. He commissioned a very fine English plate harness, which can be seen at his site, and recently won The Queen's Golden Jubilee Trophy in joust at Royal Armouries, Leeds (a hugely impressive feat by itself).This interest, in turn, is informing his artwork.

Enjoy!

Graham Turner: http://www.studio88.co.uk/acatalog/Graham_Turner.html

The BTS prints:
http://www.by-the-sword.com/acatalog/Art_Work.html



 Attachment: 173.97 KB
Towton.gif


-Sean

Author of the Little Hammer novel

https://www.amazon.com/Little-Hammer-Sean-Flynt/dp/B08XN7HZ82/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=little+hammer+book&qid=1627482034&sr=8-1
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
Randall Moffett




Location: Northern Utah
Joined: 07 Jun 2006
Reading list: 5 books

Posts: 2,121

PostPosted: Fri 01 Oct, 2010 10:11 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Very neat purchase. Some of my favorite artwork of medieval events are his painting.

Thanks for the photo of it. I love that one as well.

Did you see the rout picture... ouch!

RPM
View user's profile Send private message
Chuck Russell




Location: WV
Joined: 17 Aug 2004
Reading list: 46 books

Posts: 936

PostPosted: Fri 01 Oct, 2010 1:12 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

i love Turners work. now if only i had the cash.

thanks for sharing!
View user's profile Send private message Yahoo Messenger MSN Messenger
Chris Lampe




Location: United States
Joined: 07 Mar 2005

Posts: 211

PostPosted: Fri 01 Oct, 2010 2:35 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Very nice print!

I first became interested in the Wars of the Roses after reading Sharon Penman's "The Sun in Splendour". I really like the illustration "The Melee at Towton" in the center of the Osprey book and wouldn't mind having a print of that one. I'll have to check out the site with his artwork.
View user's profile Send private message AIM Address
Glennan Carnie




Location: UK
Joined: 23 Aug 2006

Posts: 289

PostPosted: Sat 02 Oct, 2010 12:44 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

It IS a lovely piece.

A bit of trivia on the picture: The archers in the foreground are portraits of real people; in this case the Towton Bowmen. If you know the Towtons it's obvious who is who! The figure in the centre left, with the blue/white livery and brown monmouth cap is Guinness World Record holder Mark Stretton. He actually appears more than once in the picture - see if you can spot him!
View user's profile Send private message
E.B. Erickson
Industry Professional



Location: Thailand
Joined: 23 Aug 2003

Posts: 455

PostPosted: Sat 02 Oct, 2010 5:38 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

There's an old SFI thread on Towton entitled "A day of much slaughter" (I think that's what it was!) in which archaeological discoveries in the form of battle-damaged human remains is discussed. It gave me a headache to view some of the skulls found.

--ElJay
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
Scott Hrouda




Location: Minnesota, USA
Joined: 17 Nov 2006
Likes: 15 pages
Reading list: 87 books

Posts: 643

PostPosted: Sat 02 Oct, 2010 6:05 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Sean, you have my admiration and envy!

I remember you mentioning tracing your family history to a participant in this gruesome battle in an earlier post. For someone who is keenly interested in historic arms and armour, this piece must be very special to you. In my opinion, Turner’s works really “capture the moment” and allow the viewer to immerse themselves in that particular time and place.

Sean Flynt wrote:
I finished mounting and framing the Towton print yesterday…

Did you mount the print yourself? I know you have mad skills from your scores of “DIY” threads, but matting and framing too? Cool

Well done, enjoy the view of Towton! Happy

...and that, my liege, is how we know the Earth to be banana shaped. - Sir Bedevere
View user's profile Send private message
Sean Flynt




Location: Birmingham, Alabama
Joined: 21 Aug 2003
Likes: 10 pages
Reading list: 13 books

Spotlight topics: 7
Posts: 5,981

PostPosted: Sat 02 Oct, 2010 8:00 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Scott Hrouda wrote:

Did you mount the print yourself?


Yep. 20 years as an aspiring art photographer, with not much to show for it but some obsolete film and darkroom skills and a pretty decent ability to mount, mat and frame. Happy I'd never done a little cutout like I did here to incorporate the caption and credit. Worked perfectly, though I had to disassemble my little mat cutter twice to get the verticals.

But, yeah, I look out at that Lancastrian line and see Sir John Rodham somewhere in there with an arrow in his gizzard or whatever it was that got him.

-Sean

Author of the Little Hammer novel

https://www.amazon.com/Little-Hammer-Sean-Flynt/dp/B08XN7HZ82/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=little+hammer+book&qid=1627482034&sr=8-1
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
Sean Flynt




Location: Birmingham, Alabama
Joined: 21 Aug 2003
Likes: 10 pages
Reading list: 13 books

Spotlight topics: 7
Posts: 5,981

PostPosted: Sat 02 Oct, 2010 8:03 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Glennan Carnie wrote:
It IS a lovely piece.

A bit of trivia on the picture: The archers in the foreground are portraits of real people; in this case the Towton Bowmen. If you know the Towtons it's obvious who is who! The figure in the centre left, with the blue/white livery and brown monmouth cap is Guinness World Record holder Mark Stretton. He actually appears more than once in the picture - see if you can spot him!


That's wonderful! I had a feeling that some of Turner's faces are portraits from life, and I'm very happy to be able to put a name to at least one of them (and that it's Stretton!)Big Grin Now I know why the postures of the archers are so convincing. I've seen video of Stretton, and now that you ID him it's as clear as day. What an enormous strain those war bows put on the body!

-Sean

Author of the Little Hammer novel

https://www.amazon.com/Little-Hammer-Sean-Flynt/dp/B08XN7HZ82/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=little+hammer+book&qid=1627482034&sr=8-1
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
Glennan Carnie




Location: UK
Joined: 23 Aug 2006

Posts: 289

PostPosted: Sun 03 Oct, 2010 1:42 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Quote:
What an enormous strain those war bows put on the body!


And that's the truth! A bow above 130lb will compress your body by about 10%!
View user's profile Send private message
Frances Perry
Industry Professional



Location: West Yorkshire
Joined: 01 Jan 2006
Reading list: 10 books

Posts: 68

PostPosted: Mon 04 Oct, 2010 11:31 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I love that picture - I have it framed above my mantle piece in the front room. I am also a member of Towton Battlefield Society:

www.towton.org.uk

and help to mark the Battle of Towton with a commemorative event every year on Palm Sunday at Towton.

People might be interested in the article by A. A. Gill in the Sunday Times:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/desti...572704.ece

“In these modern times, many men are wounded for not having weapons or knowledge of their use.”
- Achille Marozzo, 1536
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
Sean Flynt




Location: Birmingham, Alabama
Joined: 21 Aug 2003
Likes: 10 pages
Reading list: 13 books

Spotlight topics: 7
Posts: 5,981

PostPosted: Mon 04 Oct, 2010 12:52 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Thanks for the links, Frances! I'm jealous of your proximity of so many places I've tasted only briefly.
-Sean

Author of the Little Hammer novel

https://www.amazon.com/Little-Hammer-Sean-Flynt/dp/B08XN7HZ82/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=little+hammer+book&qid=1627482034&sr=8-1
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
Walter S




Location: Czech Republic
Joined: 16 Aug 2008
Likes: 1 page

Posts: 86

PostPosted: Mon 04 Oct, 2010 4:13 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Glennan Carnie wrote:


And that's the truth! A bow above 130lb will compress your body by about 10%!


That has to be wrong - it would be 6" / 17cm on average person, and that is just not physically possible.
View user's profile Send private message
Glennan Carnie




Location: UK
Joined: 23 Aug 2006

Posts: 289

PostPosted: Mon 04 Oct, 2010 11:09 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

Walter S wrote:
Glennan Carnie wrote:


And that's the truth! A bow above 130lb will compress your body by about 10%!


That has to be wrong - it would be 6" / 17cm on average person, and that is just not physically possible.


Sorry: I meant in draw length.
View user's profile Send private message
Scott Hrouda




Location: Minnesota, USA
Joined: 17 Nov 2006
Likes: 15 pages
Reading list: 87 books

Posts: 643

PostPosted: Fri 03 Dec, 2010 10:00 am    Post subject:         Reply with quote

I know this has been discussed on myArmoury before, but I couldn't find the appropriate thread. Here's an article I noticed today on Yahoo news.

Site of Britain's first ever gunbattle revealed

...and that, my liege, is how we know the Earth to be banana shaped. - Sir Bedevere
View user's profile Send private message
Randall Moffett




Location: Northern Utah
Joined: 07 Jun 2006
Reading list: 5 books

Posts: 2,121

PostPosted: Fri 03 Dec, 2010 4:07 pm    Post subject:         Reply with quote

WOW is that a misleading title!!!

A gun battle would, at least to me, indicate large numbers of them- maybe more so than other weapons on the field. This certainly was not the case at Towton. There was a better article out on this find but I could not find it on any of the forums I frequent. I will wait and see what reports and such come out of this find. The fact it was fractured very badly is interesting as well.

RPM
View user's profile Send private message


Display posts from previous:   
Forum Index > Off-topic Talk > Towton
Page 1 of 1 Reply to topic
All times are GMT - 8 Hours

View previous topic :: View next topic
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
You cannot attach files in this forum
You can download files in this forum






All contents © Copyright 2003-2024 myArmoury.com — All rights reserved
Discussion forums powered by phpBB © The phpBB Group
Switch to the Basic Low-bandwidth Version of the forum