Go for the head - injuries from the medieval battle of Towton (1461)

To get a better understanding of historical martial arts it’s always interesting to look at the evidence from particular battlefields. While war is a regrettable human folly that has caused much harm and tragedy, it is a part of our history, and mass graves can tell us a lot about the life and death of people back then. This battle occurred during the Wars of the Roses and it’s often called Britain’s bloodiest battle, with an estimated 28,000 casualties. There is a tendency towards head and arm injuries, whereas evidence for hits on the chest and back is rare, most likely because of the torso being well armored. Cuts and chops to the skull were apparently very common, more so than blunt weapons. And many crania had multiple injuries, which goes to show the importance of targeting the head to ensure elimination of the threat. *** Where to find the book *** In the US: =as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&