Events & walks
The Society is frequently asked to supply speakers for groups or societies, to give presentations about aspects of the battle or the people, events and politics surrounding it. (Please use our contacts page if you require any further information.)
Working with Tewkesbury Museum, we also provide outreach to both primary and secondary schools.
Events
At a social level, the Society organises events for members and joins with other groups in joint events. Details are circulated to members. Among the highlights have been:
- Visits to Towton Battlefield for the Palm Sunday walk.
- A visit to Shrewsbury Battlefield for a tour with battle expert Stephen Maxwell.
- The annual ‘Three Battles Festival’ event in Worcester with the Worcester Battlefield and Simon de Montfort Societies
- A tour of the re-interpreted Bosworth Battlefield with historian and author Dr Michael Jones.
- A visit to the Pitt-Rivers Museum
- A tour of the Mary Rose and Mary Rose Museum with our patron Robert Hardy.
- Annual visits to the Simon de Montfort wreath laying and tour of the Evesham battlefield.
- A visit to Losecote field with the Battlefields Trust.
Local activities the Society are involved in during 2012:
- Banner Painting. The Annexe, Barton Rd. Tewkesbury. Every Monday 1-4 p.m.
- Quiz Nights, Weatherspoons, Church St. Tewkesbury. Mondays 19th March, 16th April, 14th May, 11th June & 9th July. 8-00p.m
- Poems and Pints, Theoc House, Tewkesbury. Monday 26th March, (for the memorial statues) 7-30p.m.
- Three Battles Event, Worcester Guild Hall. 28th April
- Medieval Street Banners, Town Hall, Tewkesbury. Friday 11th May, 1-7 p.m Sat. 12th May 10 all day.
- Barn Dance, Watson Hall, Barton St. Tewkesbury. Fri. 18th May 7-30 p.m
- Tewkesbury Medieval Festival, Lincoln Green La. Sat. 14th & Sun 15th July
- Christmas Lights Event, High Street. Tewkesbury. Sunday 25th November.
We also have a ‘Spring Tour’, mainly visiting churches and castles, some of which have a connection with the battle of Tewkesbury.
There are also plans to visit a historical glassmakers in Wiltshire to see how Medieval and Roman glass was made.
For more details on any of these events please use our contacts page.
Walks
There are lots of possibilities for walking the battlefield. The southern part is largely open and undeveloped. The routes from Gloucester, by the river Severn and Tredington, by the river Swilgate, are pleasant walks and there are footpaths criss-crossing the area.
In 1986, a way-marked trail was laid out, and a leaflet is available for self-guiding through the core battlefield. This is an easy walk and will take no more than an hour to complete. The Society provides a comprehensive programme of guided walks, which are described below. Additionally, walks can be tailored for the interests and capabilities of interest groups. We have catered for everyone from the local heart support group to Wars of the Roses societies.
Tewkesbury Battlefield Trail
The summer walk.
Starting at the Crescent, Church Street, at 7.30 in the evening, generally, but not always, on the first Thursday of the month, this walk takes about two hours of gentle strolling. The “talk” explains the complex background to the battle, the conduct of the battle itself, and the fate of the main participants. It visits the “front line” and follows the action back into Tewkesbury.
The winter walk
Exactly as the summer walk, but starting at 2.30 in the afternoon, generally on the first Sunday of the month. The walk may be subject to variations if there are floods in Tewkesbury.
A tour viewing Tewkesbury Abbey from the Monument
The Tredington walk
Normally on the Sunday prior to the anniversary of the Battle, a walk along the footpaths to Tredington, the Yorkist camp of the night before. This is again a couple of hours, but with no commentary. Just a walk, and a bit of a debate. The walk starts at 10.30 from the Queen Margaret’s Camp. It returns in time for a pub lunch.
The Festival walk
On the Sunday morning of the July Medieval Festival, a walk starts at 1pm from the public information tent on the fair, and spends a couple of hours looking at aspects of the battlefield which are a little off the normal route. This is less of a guided walk than a travelling debate, as it is often joined by battlefield historians, or by battle re-enactors.
The Memorial Walk
On the Sunday closest to May 4th, a commemorative walk is held, which starts in Tewkesbury Museum at 2pm with an audio-visual presentation and an examination of the battle artefacts followed by a tour of the battlefield looking at the progress of the battle with talks on tactics and weapons. The tour takes about two to two and a half hours.
Walk dates and locations
| 2012 | |||
| Sunday | 16th April | 2.30pm The Crescent | 2 hour guided tour of the battlefield. |
| Sunday | 29th April | 11.00am Gupshill | Walk and talk to Tredington. |
| Sunday | 6th May | 2.00pm The Museum | Talk and extended guided tour of the battlefield. |
| Thursday | 7th June | 7.30pm The Crescent | 2 hour guided tour of the battlefield. |
| Thursday | 5th July | 7.30pm The Crescent | 2 hour guided tour of the battlefield. |
| Thursday | 19th July | 7.30pm The Crescent | 2 hour guided tour of the battlefield. |
| Thursday | 2nd August | 7.30pm The Crescent | 2 hour guided tour of the battlefield. |
| Thursday | 6th September | 7.30pm The Crescent | 2 hour guided tour of the battlefield. |