Welcome Home to all those who have been away.
Though I suspect that they have always been In Yorkshire.
The Yorkshire Lancaster thing!

Well in 1460 when Richard Duke Of York was spending Christmas at Sandal Castle Wakefield with some of his Yorkshire friends and tenants. Clifford oh this is boring!

I'll start again It was Christmas 1460 and Richard (Duke of York) was spending Christmas at Sandal Castle with his Youngest Son aged 7 the Earl of Rutland. So he could go windsurfing at Pugneys Water Park. Richards's eldest son Edward was spending Christmas in Norfolk with the larger part of the Yorkist Army.

Now what happened was that Clifford who worked for the Duke of Lancaster was passing Sandal Castle when he see's Richard Duke of York stood on the battlements watching his young son windsurfing. Clifford thinking Edward, Richards Eldest son was there as well. Shouts out Hey Dick Ed! To Richard who not only took offence at these remarks thought that Clifford was going to invite himself to Christmas Dinner.
That's how the fight started Richard was not going to share his Yorkshire Puddings with anybody.

Unfortunately for Richard some of Clifford's mates were on they're way over to Wakefield from Pontefract to do Wakefield's Westgate Run. They cut off Richards's retreat back into the Castle and then it turned a bit nasty. Both Richard and his 7-year-old son were killed.

When Easter came round in 1461 Edward now promoted to be the Duke of York came up with his Army to Pontefract Castle intending to spend time at the Race Coarse. Over Easter when Clifford come over from York and gets up to his old tricks. This time making Long Tom at Edward from the other side of the river at Castleford. But this time Edward sends some of his Army round the side to cross the river at ferrybridge.
Clifford retreats to Towton Moor and the high ground.

Then to top it all it starts to snow! Well that cancels the race meeting and having nowt else to do Edward advances on the Lancastrian Army. As the snow is blowing into the faces of the Lancastran's Clifford fails to see how close the Yorkist Army is. He soon realises though when a hail of arrows lands on his army. The Lancastrians return fire but the Yorkshire Army has retreated so they all miss. This trick is repeated several times until Clifford and the Lancastrian Army are forced to come down off the high ground and fight at close quarters. 20000 were killed that day as Edward had given the order to give NO Quarter. Clifford had after all ruined both his Dads and Brothers Christmas. The river ran red with the Blood of both Yorkshire men and Lancastrains who as tenants of ether the Duke of York or the Duke of Lancaster had to send men to fight for who ever owned their Farm's. So the answer is yes Yorkshire men fought and died that day fighting in the Lancastrain Army and the Yorkist Army. No Need for Spin in the good old days!

There is a Red and White Rose that on Towton Moor that grows as a memorial to the slaughter when the Red Blood ran like water. This enchanted Rose it is said would grow in no other place. It survived the Plough and grew wild so they say for several hundreds of years after the battle. Which ended the argument for a time of who should rule England. Until Edward had an affair with some one else's wife and But that's another story.