History of War: Wars of the Roses - July 2019

English | 150 pages | PDF | 176 mb



As English troops set sail for home shores after their devastating defeat during the Hundred Years' War in 1453, few could gladly contemplate the prospect of conflict once more. Yet before the decade was out, England was engaged in a bloody civil war that reshaped the nation's ruling elite. Incapacitated by mental illness, King Henry VI had retreated from the royal court, his power divided among his most trusted allies. In time he recovered but his advisors had experienced a taste of true power and wanted more. In May 1455, Richard, Duke of York, marched on St Albans. The first clash of the Wars of the Roses had begun.

Over the following pages, discover the key battles that shaped the course of the conflict, meet the people who sought power whatever the cost, and find out how the family feud between York and Lancaster gave rise to a new dynasty altogether.



CONTENTS

08 A gathering storm

How can we account for one of the most famous conflicts in English history?

LANCASTRIAN RULE

22 Key players 1455-60

Meet the men and women who shaped the Wars of the Roses

24 Battle and bloodshed 1455-60

Uncover the decisive battles waged during the Lancastrian reign

26 Mad King Henry

In an already troubled realm, Henry Vl's descent into illness fanned the flames of discord and provoked conflicts that would bring England ever closer to the brink of civil war

34 Margaret of Anjou: Warlady

How the daughter of an impoverished duke of France became one of the most controversial queens in English history

38 Battle of Wakefield

Richard of York's death in battle did not, as might have been expected, end the war

40 Warwick the Kingmaker

During an era crowded with dynamic personalities, Richard Neville stood out as one of England's most powerful figures

YORKIST RULE

48 Key players 1461-82

Meet the men and women who shaped the Wars of the Roses

50 Battles and bloodshed 1461-82

Uncover the decisive battles waged during the Yorkist reign

52 Edward IV's victory at Towton

How the Lancastrians were crushed by the passionate young king's brute force

62 The White Queen's black magic

Was witchcraft behind the fairy-tale marriage of Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville?

72 The Yorkist court

Splendid and lascivious, the royal court was enough to repel some of the king's closest confidants

76 Retreat and revenge

Expelled from England, the Lancastrian forces plotted and schemed their way back

80 Death of a turncoat

In his quest to regain the throne, Edward IV went head to head with the Earl of Warwick

88 A clash of crowns

How the Battle of Tewkesbury sounded the death knell for the Lancastrians

94 Crushing the enemies

With the Yorkist victory cemented, Edward IV turned his mind to destroying his foes

100 Murder in the Tower

When two young princes disappeared more than 500 years ago, it sparked one of the most controversial and debated murder mysteries in history

106 Richard III: Saint or tyrant?

Was the last of the Plantagenet dynasty the villain history makes him out to be? The truth is much more complex

116 Dawn of the Tudors

How an unlikely claimant silenced the battle drums at Bosworth to become king of England

TUDOR RULE

124 Key players 1485-87

Meet the men and women who shaped the Wars of the Roses

126 Battles and bloodshed 1485-87

Uncover the decisive battles waged during the Tudor reign

128 Purge of the Plantagenets

Amid treachery, treason and scheming plots, the Tudors fought tooth and nail to keep hold of their crown

138 War of words

How Shakespeare manipulated and twisted history to paint the Tudors as the heroes and the Plantagenets as the villains