Not many people know that just an hour-or-so’s drive from Bradford are the scenes of the two bloodiest battle to be fought on British soil.

It’s hardly surprising, though, because unlike the scenes of some other conflicts, there are no visitor centres or gift shops to guide those seeking the sites of the battles of Towton or Marston Moor, themselves only seven miles apart on either side of the A64 York road.

While that’s a shame for anyone interested in the history of England – as both marked turning points in our country’s development during, respectively, the Wars of the Roses and the English Civil War – it’s not to say that both are not worth a day exploring; indeed, their proximity makes a couple of battlefield walks an excellent idea.

Travelling from Bradford, the first battlefield we came across was Towton. The battle was fought in a snowstorm on Palm Sunday in 1461, between the Yorkist forces of Edward IV and their Lancastrian foes, commanded by the Duke of Somerset.

It is estimated that as many as 30,000 died during the battle, in which the Lancastrians were routed and butchered as they fled.

That seems a massive casualty list today – greater than the first day of the Somme in the First World War – but then it was an incredible one per cent of England’s population, equivalent to around 600,000 now.

There are several points of interest, starting with the memorial stone cross part-hidden behind a solitary holly bush on Towton moor on the B1217 between the villages of Saxton and Towton. Inscribed on its base is the date March 28, 1461, but that is a day out as Palm Sunday in that year was March 29.

Standing at this isolated spot, with only the occasional passing car to break the silence, it was incredibly moving to look around and imagine the horrific scene some 550 years ago.

We took a short stroll from the cross between fields and came to a colourful information board produced by the Towton Battlefield Society, showing a map of the area and how the opposing forces were deployed.

It directs you to other areas of interest connected with the battle, including the church at Saxton, where slain Lancastrian leader Lord Dacre was buried with his horse and, in 1996, the remains of bodies discovered at Towton were re-interred.

The sign also directed us to the Crooked Billet pub, where the Towton Battlefield Society has its headquarters in the car park. This band of enthusiasts is dedicated to keeping alive the memory of the battle.

The pub is a useful stopping-off place for a bite to eat or liquid refreshments, as are the Rockingham Arms in Towton and Greyhound at Saxton.

In a field across the road from the Crooked Billet – over the gently meandering River Cock, little more than a stream when we were there, but at the time of the battle swollen by melting snow, and reputed to be clogged by bodies which caused the waters to run red with blood – is the tiny Lead Church.

Just 18ft long, with tiny wooden pews and pulpit, the church is open all year round, with a box in the walls for donations. We visited as the sun was setting, when it was easy to believe the rumours that some of those escaping the battlefield sought sanctuary in it; whether or not they were shown mercy is not clear.

Next weekend, Palm Sunday, the Battlefield Society is commemorating the battle with a series of events based at Towton Hall. Along with guided four-mile battlefield walks between 9.30am and 10.45am, there will be a Wars of the Roses camp, archery and sword-fighting displays and a service of remembrance at 1pm. Admission is £2, with under-12s free.

A 15 or 20-minute drive took us across the A64 into the Vale of York and the second of our battlefield walks, that of Marston Moor.

This is centred around another stone memorial on the road between the villages of Long Marston and Tockwith. Apart from this monolith and an adjoining information board, there is no other sign that the fields here were the scene of a titanic clash on July 2, 1644, between the Royalist army of Prince Rupert and the Earl of Newcastle, and their Parliamentarian foes, led by Lord Fairfax and Oliver Cromwell.

The information board – sadly defaced – at the centre of the battlefield gives you a potted history of the battle, telling how after several hours’ hard fighting, the Royalists were beaten, with 4,000 or so casualties.

Gaining our bearings for the battlefield from the board, we could see opposite us what is known as Cromwell Plump, a rise crowned by a solitary tree, from where the Parliamentary commanders directed the battle.

We opted for a circular, clockwise walk from the lay-by next to the monument, from where the Parliamentary army would be on our left. We strolled toward Tockwith, turning right after about a mile into Kendal Lane, marking the right wing of the Royalists.

A good half-mile brought us to a footpath on our right, alongside a ditch, which we followed towards a wood to take in a route behind where the Royalist army started the battle. We emerged in Atterwith Lane – the left wing of the Royalists – and then back to the main road.

A footpath on our left took us towards Long Marston, then a track to the right led to the lower reaches of Cromwell Plump. Retracing our steps, we could have continued to the Sun Inn in Long Marston for refreshments, but returned to the monument.

We still had the energy – just – to walk up the rough track to the side of the monument to take in the view from the centre of the battlefield.

A tiring but enjoyable day, which brought to life two landmark episodes from our country’s history which happened on our doorstep.