Editing Border reivers (section)

===The Wars of the Roses===
During the [[Wars of the Roses]], the [[Percy family|Percy]] family expanded their influence in the eastern regions, while the Neville family grew in power in Cumbria, fostering a bitter rivalry. The two families supported opposing factions in the conflict, with the [[House of Neville|Nevilles]] aligning more successfully with the [[House of York|Yorkist]] cause. This strategic advantage allowed the Nevilles to claim the Percy earldom in 1463 following the Percys’ poor choice of allegiance.

During the Wars of the Roses, southern English communities viewed northern Borderers as a constant threat. The [[Battle of Towton|campaigns of 1460–61]] were seen by figures like [[John Whethamstede|Abbot Whethamstede]] as a northern rebellion, with chroniclers describing northerners as a "plague of locusts" feared for robbery and devastation, particularly in London.<ref>Whethamstede, J. Register, in H.T. Riley (ed.), Registra quorundam Abbatum Monasterii S. Albani, Vol. I. London: Longman & Co., 1872, pp. 171ff, 386ff.</ref> This perception of the north as a militarized and hostile frontier region reinforced southern anxieties about the Borderers.<ref name="auto6"/>

Despite the ongoing civil war between the houses of Lancaster and York, truces with Scotland were maintained and periodically renewed. A 40-year truce was agreed upon in 1479.<ref name="auto20">Cynthia J. Neville, ''Violence, Custom and Law'' (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 1998).</ref>

However, despite the agreement, raiding resumed the following year. During the so-called ''Gloucester's War'', The [[Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Angus|Earl of Angus]] led a deep raid into the East March, prompting a retaliatory campaign by Richard, Duke of Gloucester, who launched a raid into Scotland.<ref>Armstrong, Jackson W. "Local Society and the Defence of the English Frontier in Fifteenth-Century Scotland: The War Measures of 1482." The Scottish Historical Review, Vol. 87, No. 1 (2008), pp. 1–26.</ref> This outbreak of violence was short-lived, concluding by 1484.<ref name="auto20"/> Nevertheless, the devastation was so extensive that the Barony of Gilsland, held by Lord Dacre, was assessed at only 15% of its previous value in the aftermath of ''Gloucester’s War''.<ref>Ellis, Steven G. Tudor Frontiers and Noble Power: The Making of the British State. Oxford University Press, 1995, p.90.</ref> To note, [[Richard III of England|Richard, Duke of Gloucester]], was the only individual to be granted a Wardenry as a hereditary title, having been appointed hereditary Warden of the West March by his brother, [[Edward IV]].<ref name="Neville, Cynthia J. 1998, p. 173">Neville, Cynthia J. ''Violence, Custom and Law: The Anglo-Scottish Border Lands in the Later Middle Ages''. Edinburgh University Press, 1998, p. 173.</ref>

This brief conflict was significant for one key reason: it marked the final time [[Berwick-upon-Tweed]] changed hands, solidifying English control over the strategic town. Additionally, it saw the Duke of Albany cede control over much of South West Scotland, although this concession proved short-lived, with the territory returning to Scottish hands not long after.<ref name="auto20"/>