Editing Battle of Bosworth Field (section)

===Lancastrians===
[[Henry VII of England|Henry Tudor]] was unfamiliar with the arts of war and was a stranger to the land he was trying to conquer. He spent the first fourteen years of his life in Wales and the next fourteen in Brittany and France.{{sfn|Chrimes|1999|pp=3, 15–17}} Slender but strong and decisive, Henry lacked a penchant for battle and was not much of a warrior; chroniclers such as [[Polydore Vergil]] and ambassadors like [[Pedro de Ayala]] found him more interested in commerce and finance.{{sfn|Chrimes|1999|pp=299, 301, 318}} Having not fought in any battles,{{sfn|Saccio|2000|p=183}} Henry recruited several experienced veterans to command his armies.{{sfn|Ross|1999|p=211}} 
<!-- Mediaeval historian Thomas Brynmor Pugh believes that instead of participating in the battle, [[Jasper Tudor]] stayed behind in Wales to secure an escape route for his nephew, in case the battle was lost.{{sfn|Pugh|1992|p=50}}-->
[[John de Vere, 13th Earl of Oxford|John de Vere]], 13th [[Earl of Oxford]], was Henry's principal military commander.{{sfn|Chrimes|1999|p=54}} He was adept in the arts of war. At the Battle of Barnet, he commanded the Lancastrian right wing and routed the division opposing him. However, as a result of confusion over identities, Oxford's group came under [[friendly fire]] from the Lancastrian main force and retreated from the field. The earl fled abroad and continued his fight against the Yorkists, raiding shipping and eventually capturing the island fort of [[St Michael's Mount]] in 1473. He surrendered after receiving no aid or reinforcement, but in 1484 escaped from prison and joined Henry's court in France, bringing along his erstwhile gaoler [[James Blount (English soldier)|Sir James Blount]].{{sfn|Britnell|1997|p=101}} Oxford's presence raised morale in Henry's camp and troubled Richard III.{{sfn|Gravett|1999|p=15}}