Historic Event told in Comic Strip Form

By John Freeman on October 12, 2011

A gigantic comic strip depiction of the Battle of Wakefield drawn and written by artist John Welding, previously shown at Wakefield Museum as part of their ‘Battle of Wakefield 1460’ Exhibition, can be seen at the University of Leeds until the end of the year.

The Battle of Wakefield was fought at Sandal Magna near Wakefield, West Yorkshire in December 1460 and was part of the Wars of the Roses. The opposing sides were the Lancastrian army, loyal to the captive King Henry VI, and the army of Richard, Duke of York, the rival claimant to the throne. The battle resulted in the death of the Duke of York and the defeat of his army.

Says John, on his website: ‘I scripted and drew the strip to get across the atmosphere of what might have happened in the last few days of The Duke of York’s last campaign in the North.’

Shown on large panels in the foyer area of the Parkinson Building (that’s the main building at the University, with the clock tower) this graphic depiction of an important battle is well worth a look.

Update 23 Oct – this display now seems to have vanished!

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.