England has been at peace for as long as most people can remember – but there are still battles being waged in its towns and villages.

Almost four hundred years ago Sir Jacob Astley set out for Oxford from the town of Bridgnorth with a small army raised from Wales and the West. He was the king’s last hope in a disastrous civil war. But Astley did not reach the Royalist capital. His force was attacked by Parliamentarian forces near to Stow on the Wold where the survivors were locked in the local church and where blood flowed through the streets.

In today’s battles there is little or no bloodshed – though blood pressure sometimes runs dangerously high. In this book the Battle of Stow provides the backcloth to the battles of today – battles that are taking place in many communities across the country. These are the battles waged between residents and their politicians, between ordinary people and big business, between the locals and the incomers, between those with roots and those who are just passing through. Here the foot soldiers are more likely to wield a pen or placard versus the pike or musket of the 17^th century.

Chapter 1 The March Begins
Chapter 2 Astley and the Aging
Chapter 3 Travelling Men
Chapter 4 Feeding the Foot
Chapter 5 Towns and Villages
Chapter 6 Who’s in Charge?
Chapter 7 Essential Worship
Chapter 8 Locals versus Incomers
Chapter 9 Jobs for the Boys
Chapter 10 Just Visiting
Chapter 11 The Last Battle
Appendix: The Battle of the Battlefields