What is recorded here
Audley's Cross marks the place traditionally associated with James Tuchet, Lord Audley, the Lancastrian commander killed at the Battle of Blore Heath in 1459. The stone cross was erected in 1765, preserving local memory of the first major battle of the Wars of the Roses.
Why it was made
The cross was raised to mark the traditional spot where Lord Audley died while commanding the Lancastrian army.
People and events
Audley's force tried to stop Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury, but Yorkist troops won after hard fighting across the brook.
How it worked
The roadside stone cross fixed an uncertain battlefield tradition to one visible point in the landscape.
What remains
The eighteenth-century shaft and cross stand on a stepped base near the battlefield, with later repairs and inscriptions.
Why it mattered
It kept the battle and its dead in local memory long before the wider battlefield received formal protection.
Sources for this account
Sources checked 16 August 2026.
From OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors) n636028812
Places near here
Photo credits
- James Henry Ramsay (1859–1925) [1], Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
- Andy and Hilary, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Colin Park, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Peter Fleming, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Dave Skingsley, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Espresso Addict, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Rude Health, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Roger D Kidd, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Bob Harvey, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Kevin Waterhouse, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
- Eric Marsh, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Battle of Blore Heath 1459Registered battlefield · 233 yd
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Old Milepost by the B5026, Mucklestone, Loggerheads ParishMonument or public art · 1.5 mi
Burnt WoodWood · 1.6 mi
Ashley HeathMountain / peak · 1.9 mi
Canalside sculpture below Tyrley Locks, ShropshirePublic sculpture · 2.1 mi
Churchyard cross, St Chad's ChurchScheduled monument · 2.2 mi
Dorothy Clive GardenHeritage attraction · 3.8 mi
The waterfall at Dorothy CliveWaterfall · 3.8 mi
The Waterfall in the Dorothy Clive GardenWaterfall · 3.8 miMore memorials and graveyards in Newcastle-under-Lyme · All of Newcastle-under-Lyme
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