All the fire in Margaret's nature was aroused at hearing how the rights of her boy had been surrendered, but she was without an army, and what could she do? Suddenly it occurred to her to seek assistance from the King of Scotland. He was the son of a Lancaster princess, and his wife was a friend and relation of Margaret. She caused a report to be circulated that she was raising an army in France, then went secretly to Scotland, and within eight days after her husband's order for return had been received she crossed the Scottish border at the head of the forces she had gathered there, and unfurled the banner of the Red Rose. Her numbers were increased by knights from all the northern counties of England, and before the leaders of the White Rose party were aware of her being in the country at all, she presented herself at the gates of York. The duke was so taken by surprise at this bold movement on the part of the queen that he shut himself up in his strong Castle of Sandal to await the arrival of his son. But Margaret followed him up, and defied him day after day to meet her in the field, calling him a coward for being afraid of a woman, until he arranged his forces for battle, hoping to {305} [Illustration: 0309] {307}frighten her away. He soon saw his mistake though, for Margaret was not in the least daunted at the sight of his warriors. She did not play the Amazon herself by fighting, but she directed her own forces, under the command of Somerset, in such a way as to enclose the Yorkists from all sides in a net, as it were, and in less than half an hour two thousand of them lay dead on the field, the duke himself among the number. Lord Clifford cut off the dead leader's head, crowned it with paper, and presented it on the point of his lance to Queen Margaret, saying: "Madam, your war is done; here is your king's ransom." She shuddered at first and turned away, then suddenly remembering all the trouble this man had given her, she looked again and smiled in satisfaction. She then ordered the head to be placed over the gates of York, and that of the Earl of Salisbury, who was her prisoner, to be placed beside it, adding, that room must be left for those of the Earls of March, York's son, and Warwick, which she intended should keep them company. This was a grave mistake, and added much to the fury of her enemies, who stopped at no deed of cruelty and horror after that.