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Mail David
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and the Battle of London Bridge
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- In 1450, the men of Kent were worried about the state of the country: King
Henry VI's
unpopular friend, the Earl of Suffolk, had been executed but the King
still promoted his followers.
- A large group of 5,000 men with
weapons led by Jack Cade gathered on Blackheath. There were peasants, craftsmen & shopkeepers and also landowners, knights & MPs.
- The King send a small army against them, but they were defeated at Seven Oaks.
- They marched to Southwark. They made the White Hart Inn their headquarters. The King fled to
Kenilworth in Warwickshire.
- They crossed London Bridge &
promised the Londoners they would be safe with Cade in charge. He
struck the 'London Stone' with his sword & declared himself Master
of the City.
- They marched to the Guildhall & then to the
Tower of London. The Lord Treasurer & other Royal officials
were captured there & executed; but then the rebels ransacked the City.
- The Londoners were not happy. The rebels returned to Southwark at night; but when they tried to cross London Bridge the next evening, the Londoners stopped them.
- There was a big battle through
the night. Many of the houses on the bridge were burnt down. Lots of
people died trying to escape. This was called the ‘Battle of London Bridge’.
- The Lord Chancellor promised to meet the rebels’ demands & pardon them. So they dispersed.
- Henry VI did not agree to this though. He
promised money to people to hunt down Jack and his followers.
- Jack was killed while on the run.
His head was displayed on London Bridge.
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