The Tewkesbury Medieval Festival, the largest of its kind in Europe, has become one of the most popular events in the calendar for the people of Gloucestershire. This year’s festival, running on the weekend of 14-15th July, promises a great day out as the Tewkesbury battle of 1471 is brought back to life, on the original battle ground.

The festival attracts thousands of re-enactors, entertainers and traders who flock to the Gloucestershire town every year to celebrate the rich history of Tewkesbury. Peggy Clatworthy, who has been involved with the Tewkesbury Medieval Festival since its inception back in 1894, is relishing the chance to submerse herself in ancient culture. She said: “The festival is so much fun, it’s simply staggering to think how big it has become since the first one all those years ago. It’s a wonderful day out for the whole family, full of exciting events. The battle re-enactment is always the highlight but there’s a lot of other events that are well worth seeing.”

The centre piece of the two-day festival comes when the battle of Tewkesbury is replayed by a host of enthusiastic visitors to the town. Peggy explained: “The festival is a commemoration of the battle of Tewkesbury. It takes place on the same field that the battle took place in 1471. All the actors dress up in medieval attire, it’s a stunning spectacle, and very exciting to watch. The reenactors do such a wonderful job, they work so hard in replicating what happened in the battle of 1471. There will be knights in armour, ladies in medieval dress and even the children wear clothes that would have been worn in the fifteenth century. A lot of the people involved in the battle re-enactment camp here for the weekend, but they don’t use a modern tent, they will be sleeping in an authentic medieval tent and cooking over a fire like the people of the fifteenth century would have. It’s just like stepping back into history.”

Peggy, who helped establish the medieval festival back in 1984, says the impact the weekend has on the local community is massive. Peggy said: “All the hotels sell out months in advance which is great for the local economy. You can visit a supermarket and see families dressed up in medieval costumes, it’s quite a sight! We launched the festival purely with the aim of trying to get more visitors into the town.

“Tewkesbury has got such a rich history, we wanted to showcase that off to as many people as possible. It’s great to sit back and reflect on how big it has become. Every year we welcome people who have travelled from all over the world which is extremely humbling.”

As well as the feature battle re-enactment there’s a host of other activities to keep visitors to the festival busy. Peggy explained: “There’s a big market with stalls selling all sorts of things that would have been sold in medieval England. There’s also a beer tent that is always busy. We’ve also got a number of music acts, a real mix of genres and styles. There are so many things for the children to do as well, they can dress up and really get in the spirit of things. We are a festival that focuses on medieval England but there will also be fairground rides and more modern attractions as well.”