The English Heritage Register of Historic Battlefields identifies 43 important English battlefields. Its purpose is to offer them protection and to promote a better understanding of their significance.
Battlefields are significant in four ways:
- As turning points in English history, for example the Norman Conquest which followed the Battle of Hastings in 1066, or the turmoil of the Civil Wars in the seventeenth century which changed the roles of monarchy and parliament. The reputations of great political and military leaders were frequently built on battlefield success.
- Tactics and skills of war still relevant to the defence of the country evolved on historic battlefields
- Battlefields are the final resting place for thousands of unknown soldiers, nobles and commoners alike, whose lives were sacrificed in the making of the history of England
- Where they survive, battlefields may contain important topographical and archaeological evidence which can increase our understanding of the momentous events of history which took place on their soil
You can search for Registered Historic Battlefields on The National Heritage List for England. The list of battlefields below provides further information regarding the history leading up to the battle and during the battle itself.