Henry Percy, 2nd Earl of Northumberland was accomplished. In December, the king rallied sufficiently to resume control of government, and York's protectorate was terminated. With Somerset back at the centre of power, civil war seemed imminent. In May 1455, Northumberland was travelling with the king and Somerset to a great council at Leicester, when the party was intercepted by York and the Nevilles. On 22 May 1455, at the First Battle of St Albans, the royal forces clashed with the forces loyal to the Duke of York, in what has been described as the first battle of the Wars of the Roses. The battle was a
The Wars of the Roses (adaptation) into a single piece for a performance at The Old Vic in 1923 as part of the celebrations for the tercentenary of the "First Folio". In 1957, also at The Old Vic, Douglas Seale directed a production of the trilogy under the title "The Wars of the Roses". Adapted by Barry Jackson, the trilogy was again altered to a two-part play; "1 Henry VI" and "2 Henry VI" were combined (with almost all of "1 Henry VI" eliminated) and "3 Henry VI" was performed in a shortened version. John Barton's adaptation would divide the plays up in a new way.