Historic%20Yorkshire

THE SHEPHERD LORD. 59
wastheson of the JohndeClifford, who was knownby the
name of Black-faced Clifford. The mother of Henry
was born at Londesborough,near Market Weighton, in
the East Riding; she was the heiress of the Bromfletes,
Barons de Vesci, and by her marriage with John de
Clifford, ninth Baron, this estate, on the death of her
father, cameinto the possessionofthe Cliffords.
Let us now briefly glance at the aspect of affairs in this
country at about the period of whichwe treat. The whole
nation was being torn and harassed by the disastrous
internecine warfare of the rival Roses of York and
Lancaster. The Duke of York had been slain on Wakefield
Green, and the Yorkists defeated. The Duke's son
had won at Mortimer's Cross, and lost at St. Albans.
Queen Margaret proceeded to Yorkshire and raised a
large army. Edward followed her, and the bloody field
oi Towton was fought, resulting in the total rout of
Margaret and her friends. As we have seen, John de
Clifford was previously struck by an arrow, which gave
him his death-wound.
We now resume the story of the ShepherdLord. As
might be expected, the death of the Black-faced Clifford,
who had caused such atrocities to be perpetrated on the
Yorkist adherents,as wellas imbuedhis hands deeplyin
their blood himself, exposedthe lives ofthe Lady Clifford
and her children to great jeopardy. Innocent as they
were, and irresponsiblefor the evil deedsof the deadlord,
the revengeful nature of Edward was too wellknown to
leave any doubt in the mind of Lady Clifford as to the
course he would pursue if the family of his bitterest foe
came into his power. She was wellaware that a cruel
fate was in store for her children if they came into his
terrible clutches; for there wasevery reasonfor supposing
that their innocent lives would be requiredin atonement
for the excesses of their father. Therefore, immediately
the news of the Lancastrian overthrowand the death of
her lord reached Lady Clifford, she was thrown into a
state of the utmost distress,her first thoughts being for