Overview
Wars of the Roses
The Wars of the Roses were a series of dynastic conflicts fought in England between 1455 and 1487. The struggle developed between two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet: the House of Lancaster and the House of York. Both houses traced their claims to the English throne through descendants of King Edward III.
The conflict later became associated with two roses: the red rose of Lancaster and the white rose of York, although the term Wars of the Roses was not commonly used during the period itself.
Origins of the Conflict
The political crisis intensified during the reign of King Henry VI, a Lancastrian king whose government was weakened by political divisions, military losses in France, financial problems, and periods during which Henry was incapable of governing.
During Henry's illness, Richard, Duke of York, became one of the most powerful figures in the kingdom. Richard was himself descended from Edward III and possessed a significant hereditary claim to the throne.
Competition between the supporters of Henry VI and the Duke of York eventually developed into open warfare.
The First Battle of St Albans
The traditional beginning of the Wars of the Roses is the First Battle of St Albans, fought on 22 May 1455.
Yorkist forces defeated the Lancastrians and captured Henry VI. Although periods of peace followed, the rivalry between the two factions continued.
In 1460 Richard, Duke of York, formally asserted his claim to the English throne. The resulting Act of Accord allowed Henry VI to remain king but recognized Richard and his heirs as successors, disinheriting Henry's son, Edward of Westminster.
Queen Margaret of Anjou refused to accept the arrangement and continued the Lancastrian struggle.
Richard was killed at the Battle of Wakefield on 30 December 1460, but his claim passed to his eldest son, Edward.
Edward IV and the House of York
Richard's son was proclaimed King Edward IV in 1461.
His position was secured following the Yorkist victory at the Battle of Towton on 29 March 1461, one of the largest and bloodiest battles fought on English soil.
Henry VI and his supporters were driven from power, establishing the House of York on the English throne.
Edward's early reign depended heavily upon Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, later remembered as “the Kingmaker.” Their relationship eventually collapsed, however, and Warwick rebelled against Edward.
Warwick then formed an extraordinary alliance with his former enemy Margaret of Anjou.
In 1470, Edward IV was forced into exile and Henry VI was briefly restored to the throne.
Edward IV's Restoration
Edward returned to England in 1471.
At the Battle of Barnet on 14 April 1471, Edward defeated Warwick's forces and Warwick was killed.
Only weeks later, the Yorkists defeated the Lancastrians at the Battle of Tewkesbury on 4 May 1471. Henry VI's only son, Edward of Westminster, was killed during or shortly after the battle.
Henry VI died in the Tower of London later that month.
Edward IV once again controlled England, and the kingdom entered a period of relative stability.
Richard III and the Princes in the Tower
Edward IV died unexpectedly on 9 April 1483.
His twelve-year-old son succeeded him as Edward V, while Edward IV's brother Richard, Duke of Gloucester, was appointed Lord Protector.
Edward V and his younger brother, Richard, Duke of York, were lodged in the Tower of London. Before Edward could be crowned, his parents' marriage was declared invalid and the children were declared illegitimate.
Their uncle took the throne as King Richard III.
The two young princes subsequently disappeared. Their ultimate fate remains unknown, and the mystery of the Princes in the Tower continues to be debated.
Richard III's accession divided the Yorkist establishment and encouraged opposition to his government.
Henry Tudor
Opponents of Richard increasingly supported Henry Tudor, whose mother, Margaret Beaufort, descended from the Lancastrian branch of the Plantagenet family.
Henry invaded England in 1485.
On 22 August 1485, his forces confronted Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field.
Richard was killed during the fighting, becoming the last English king to die in battle.
Henry Tudor claimed the throne as King Henry VII and founded the Tudor dynasty.
Union of Lancaster and York
Henry VII strengthened his claim by marrying Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV, on 18 January 1486.
Their marriage symbolically united the houses of Lancaster and York.
The Tudor Rose, combining the red rose of Lancaster with the white rose of York, became a powerful symbol of this reconciliation and of the new Tudor monarchy.
The End of the Wars
The Battle of Bosworth did not completely eliminate Yorkist opposition.
In 1487, supporters of the pretender Lambert Simnel challenged Henry VII. Their forces were defeated at the Battle of Stoke Field on 16 June 1487.
Stoke Field is generally regarded as the final major battle of the Wars of the Roses.
The victory strengthened Henry VII's position and helped establish the Tudor dynasty, which would rule England until 1603.
Legacy
The Wars of the Roses transformed the English monarchy and brought the long Plantagenet era to an end.
The conflict resulted in the deaths or political destruction of numerous members of England's aristocracy and royal family. It produced the rise and fall of kings, shifting alliances among powerful noble families, and repeated challenges to the succession.
Most importantly, the struggle ultimately produced the Tudor dynasty.
Through the marriage of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York came a new royal generation that included Henry VIII and, eventually, Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I.
What began as a struggle among descendants of Edward III therefore reshaped the English monarchy and helped create the political world of Tudor England.