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The War of the Roses led to the end of Plantagenet control in 1485, with the Tudor accession of Henry VII. Under the Plantagenets, England was transformed. The Plantagenet kings had often been forced to negotiate compromises such as Magna Carta, which had served to constrain their royal power in return for financial and military support. The ...
- England, Wales, Ireland, Calais
- Overview
- Competing claims to the throne and the beginning of civil war
The Wars of the Roses were fought between the houses of Lancaster and York for the English throne. The wars were named many years afterward from the supposed badges of the contending parties: the white rose of York and the red rose of Lancaster. Both houses claimed the throne through descent from the sons of Edward III.
What caused the Wars of the Roses?
In the mid-15th century great magnates with private armies dominated the English countryside. Lawlessness was rife and taxation burdensome. Henry VI experienced spells of madness and was dominated by his queen, Margaret of Anjou. In 1453, when Henry lapsed into insanity, a powerful baronial clique installed Richard, duke of York, as protector of the realm. Henry recovered in 1455, reestablishing the authority of Margaret’s party. York took up arms, starting the Wars of the Roses.
How were the Wars of the Roses finally resolved?
Henry Tudor (later Henry VII) defeated and killed Richard III at Bosworth Field on August 22, 1485, bringing the Wars of the Roses to a close. By his marriage to Edward IV’s daughter Elizabeth of York in 1486, Henry united the Yorkist and Lancastrian claims. Henry defeated a Yorkist rising supporting the pretender Lambert Simnel on June 16, 1487, a date that some historians prefer over the traditional 1485 for the termination of the wars.
Wars of the Roses, (1455–85), in English history, the series of dynastic civil wars whose violence and civil strife preceded the strong government of the Tudors. Fought between the houses of Lancaster and York for the English throne, the wars were named many years afterward from the supposed badges of the contending parties: the white rose of York and the red rose of Lancaster.
Both houses claimed the throne through descent from the sons of Edward III. Since the Lancastrians had occupied the throne from 1399, the Yorkists might never have pressed a claim but for the near anarchy prevailing in the mid-15th century. After the death of Henry V in 1422 the country was subject to the long and factious minority of Henry VI (August 1422–November 1437), during which the English kingdom was managed by the king’s council, a predominantly aristocratic body. That arrangement, which probably did not accord with Henry V’s last wishes, was not maintained without difficulty. Like Richard II before him, Henry VI had powerful relatives eager to grasp after power and to place themselves at the head of factions in the state. The council soon became their battleground.
Great magnates with private armies dominated the countryside. Lawlessness was rife and taxation burdensome. Henry later proved to be feckless and simpleminded, subject to spells of madness, and dominated by his ambitious queen, Margaret of Anjou, whose party had allowed the English position in France to deteriorate.
Between 1450 and 1460 Richard, 3rd duke of York, had become the head of a great baronial league, of which the foremost members were his kinsmen, the Nevilles, the Mowbrays, and the Bourchiers. Among his principal lieutenants was his nephew Richard Neville, the earl of Warwick, a powerful man in his own right, who had hundreds of adherents among the gentry scattered over 20 counties. In 1453, when Henry lapsed into insanity, a powerful baronial clique, backed by Warwick, installed York, as protector of the realm. When Henry recovered in 1455, he reestablished the authority of Margaret’s party, forcing York to take up arms for self-protection. The first battle of the wars, at St. Albans (May 22, 1455), resulted in a Yorkist victory and four years of uneasy truce.
Britannica Quiz
A History of War
A new phase of the civil war began in 1459 when York, goaded by the queen’s undisguised preparations to attack him, rebelled for the last time. The Yorkists were successful at Blore Heath (September 23) but were scattered after a skirmish at Ludford Bridge (October 12). York fled to Ireland, and the Lancastrians, in a packed parliament at Coventry (November 1459), obtained a judicial condemnation of their opponents and executed those on whom they could lay hands.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Nov 9, 2009 · The Wars of the Roses were a series of civil wars for the throne of England between the House of York and the House of Lancaster, both members of the Plantagenet family. Learn about the causes, battles, and consequences of this 30-year conflict that ended with the rise of the Tudors.
- Mark Cartwright
- The Name of the Rose. The romantic name for the dynastic conflicts which troubled 15th-century England, the 'Wars of the Roses', was first coined by the novelist Sir Walter Scott (1771-1832) after the later badges of the two main families involved (neither of which were actually the favoured liveries at the time): a white rose for York and a red rose for Lancaster.
- Causes of the Wars of the Roses. The causes of the Wars of the Roses are many and, as the conflict went on, so new actors and motivations arrived to perpetuate it even further.
- The Dukes of York. The barons of England had been increasing their wealth and power as a consequence of the corresponding demise of the Crown. Historians have noted a phenomenon which they call 'bastard feudalism'.
- Richard III & Henry Tudor. Edward IV's younger brother was Richard, Duke of Gloucester (b. 1452), and he would be the next central character in this deadly game of musical thrones.
Wars of the Roses, (1455–85) Series of dynastic civil wars between the houses of Lancaster and York for the English throne. The wars were named for the emblems of the two houses, the white rose of York and the red of Lancaster. Both claimed the throne through descent from Edward III.
May 22, 2015 · Learn about the bloody feud that permanently altered the course of British history, from the Yorks and Lancasters' family tree to the most gruesome battle ever fought on English soil. Discover how the Wars of the Roses started, who were the key figures, and what legacy they left behind.
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Feb 12, 2020 · Learn about the dynastic conflicts between the Yorks and Lancasters that shaped England's 15th century. Explore the factors that triggered and sustained the wars, such as incompetent kings, ambitious nobles, and the Tudor challenge.
