Alison Weir Tours

LANCASTER AND YORK
  
16th to 24th May 2013

An exclusive, fully escorted tour led by Alison Weir as Study Director



In the late fifteenth century, England was torn by dynastic wars between the Royal Houses of Lancaster and York, rival claimants for the throne. This conflict – once called ‘the Cousins’ Wars’ - is now known as the Wars of the Roses, and it ended with the bloody overthrow of the Plantagenet dynasty, which had ruled England for over three hundred years, and the usurpation of the House of Tudor. It was a period of battles and family strife, and witnessed the emergence of some of the most charismatic and controversial royal figures in history. Among them were the weak and pious Henry VI, of the House of Lancaster; his energetic Queen, Margaret of Anjou; his rivals, Richard Plantagenet, Duke of York, and the charismatic, lascivious Edward IV; Edward’s brother, the enigmatic Richard III; his sons, the lost Princes in the Tower; and his daughter, Elizabeth of York, whose marriage to Henry VII united the rival dynasties. The story of Lancaster and York also incorporates the earlier history of these royal houses, embracing John of Gaunt, ‘time honour’d Lancaster’, and his beautiful mistress (and, later, wife), Katherine Swynford, mother of his Beaufort bastards. 

In this comprehensive tour, Alison Weir will tell the stories of these fascinating historical characters as she escorts you to many important historic sites connected with the Wars of the Roses and the royal Houses of Lancaster and York, taking you to some of the most beautiful and scenic parts of England.     

8 nights with breakfast included:

3 nights at a London hotel (details to be confirmed)
2 nights at the Mercure Shakespeare Hotel, Stratford-upon-Avon 4*
3 nights' bed and breakfast at Monk Fryston Hall Hotel near York 3*

Included:
Welcome dinner in London
Dinner at Monk Fryston Hall
Lunch at Fotheringhay
Farewell dinner in London.

Visiting:

*    The Tower of London
*    Westminster Abbey
*    Stratford-upon-Avon
*    Ludlow Castle
*    Tewkesbury Abbey
*    Kenilworth Castle
*    Bosworth Battlefield Heritage Centre and Country Park
*    Middleham Castle
*    Barley Hall, York
*    York
*    Gainsborough Old Hall
*    Lincoln and Lincoln Cathedral
*    Fotheringhay Castle and Church
*    St Albans and the site of the Battle of Barnet
*    Windsor Castle and St George’s Chapel