Battlefield Heritage Park is a country park situated north of Shrewsbury in

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...

, in the area known as

Battlefield A battlefield, battleground, or field of battle is the location of a present or historic battle involving ground warfare. It is commonly understood to be limited to the point of contact between opposing forces, though battles may involve troops ...

. It marks the supposed site of the 1403

Battle of Shrewsbury The Battle of Shrewsbury was a battle fought on 21 July 1403, waged between an army led by the Lancastrian King Henry IV and a rebel army led by Henry "Harry Hotspur" Percy from Northumberland. The battle, the first in which English archers ...

fought between King Henry IV and English rebel nobleman Henry Percy.

History

The Battle of Shrewsbury is remembered as one of the bloodiest battles in English history and was fought between King Henry IV (with support from his son Henry Prince of Wales, later to become

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (1 ...

) and the rebel Henry Percy (commonly called Harry Hotspur). Battlefield Church – also known as St Mary Magdalene – was built in the fifteenth century to commemorate the battle. A 1995 report by

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...

noted that it is unclear if Battlefield Church, which was completed in 1410, marks the centre of the site of the battle, although a large common grave within the church's foundations would suggest the site was associated with the fighting. The church was built at the request of Henry IV, reportedly: "for the souls of those who fell". The now redundant church and surrounding earthworks are a

scheduled ancient monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

. The church contains some visitor information. The area considered to be the site of the battle remains almost completely undeveloped, although in use as agricultural land and enclosed by hedges. The A5124 runs near the southern boundary.

Visitor facilities and information centre

Information panels are provided around the site. An exhibition centre known as Battlefield 1403 opened in 2008 close to the church, and includes a café and farm shop. It includes a permissive footpath to the battlefield.Shropshire, Counci
"Battlefield Heritage Site"
, '' hropshire County Council', Unknown. Retrieved on 4 July 2013. There are two

wheelchair accessible Accessibility is the design of products, devices, services, vehicles, or environments so as to be usable by people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design and practice of accessible development ensures both "direct access" (i. ...

circular walking routes at the site and new route specifically for families has been created.

References

External links

Battlefield 1403 Exhibition Centre

English Heritage Register of Historic Battlefields map

Battlefield Heritage Park leaflet

Walking route round site
{{Authority control Country parks in Shropshire Military history of Shropshire Tourist attractions in Shropshire