On other occasions we have already told you about the history of the United Kingdom, about what some of its Kings have been like Henry VII or also about the Victorian Era. On this occasion we want to talk about one of its dynasties that is known as the House of York.
The house of york It is remembered as one of the best-known royal dynasties in the United Kingdom, although it was born as a dukedom and led to what is known as War of the two Roses.
What was the House of York
The House of York was a dynasty that came from the lineage of the Plantagenet and that although they considered that they were the ones who should follow the line of succession on the throne to England in the fifteenth century, they had a hard confrontation with another royal dynasty, that of the Lancasters, who ended up facing both in the War of the two Roses.
The Origin of the House of York
The name of the house of yorkis because they descended from Richard, Duke of York. It was born as a dukedom that Edward III of England planned so that his son (the fifth), Edmund of Langley (1341-1402), and the one named Duke of York. It was characterized by having a white rose as a symbol.
The plan of Richard of York was to take advantage of the mental weakness of Henry VI (from the house of Lancaster) to be able to snatch the crown from him since he was his successor. The King’s Wife, Margaret of Anjouwas the one who realized the intentions of Ricardo, who quickly ceased his duties, and that ends up leading to the derivative war.
Confrontation with the Lancastrians
The house was thus founded by King Edward III’s fifth son, Edmund of Langley (1341–1402), 1st Duke of York, but Edmund and his own son, Edward, 2nd Duke of York, had for the most part undistinguished careers. Edward, died childless, so he passed the dukedom to his nephew Richard (whose mother was a descendant of Edward III’s second son, Lionel, Duke of Clarence). Richard, 3rd Duke of York (1411–60), was the first Yorkist claimant to the crown, in opposition to Henry VI of the Lancaster family. It can be said that his claim was prohibited by prescription, since the house of Lancaster held the throne for three generations. Neverthelesswas based on strict principles of descent linear, as the 3rd Duke of York was descended from Lionel, Duke of Clarence, the second surviving son of Edward III, while the House of Lancaster was from John of Gaunt, a younger brother of Lionel. One thing that could possibly have been considered an element of weakness in Richard’s claim was that his ancestry was derived from women, an objection raised by Justice John Fortescue (probably a reflection of the increasingly common practice among English nobility). to pass their property to a male heir). But strict legality aside, Richard’s claim was probably supported in popular opinion by the fact that he was descended from Edward III through his father, no less than through his mother.
After seeking for many years to correct the weakness of Henry VI’s government, Richard took up arms and eventually claimed the crown in Parliament as his right. The Lords, or those who did not intentionally stay away from the House, admitted that their claim was impeccable, but recalled the compromise that Henry should retain the crown for life and that Richard and his heirs would reign after his death. This was accepted by Richard, and an act to that effect received Henry’s consent. But the act was repudiated by Margaret of Anjou and her followers, and Richard was killed at Wakefield fighting them. In little more than two months, howeverhis son was proclaimed king in London with the title of Eduardo IV and the bloody victory at the Battle of Towton immediately afterwards drove his enemies into exile and paved the way for his coronation.
The short reign of Edward IV
After his recovery from the throne in 1471, Edward IV he had little else to fear from the rivalry of the House of Lancaster. But the seeds of mistrust had already been sown among members of his own family, and in 1478 his brother Clarence was assassinated, secretly, in fact, inside the Tower of London. In 1483, Edward himself died; and his eldest son, Edward V, after a nominal reign of two and a half months, was cast aside by his uncle, the Duke of Gloucester, who became Richard III, and then, it is said, caused him and his brother Richard, Duke of York, were assassinated. Indeed, in little more than two years, Richard was assassinated at Bosworth Field by the Tudor Earl of Richmond, who, being proclaimed king as Henry VII soon after kept his promise to marry the eldest daughter of Edward IV and unite the houses of York and Lancaster.
The War of the Two Roses
We can say that this war was a conflict that began as a battle between two dynasties for the throne of England and led to a real civil war between the side of those who supported the family Lancaster with those of the Duchy of York. The war took place between 1455 and 1485.
The bad economy of England, the weakness in the troops of Henry VI and the conviction of Richard As a descendant of valid royal lineage, they led Parliament to opt for him as the new king and after fighting the first battles of the war.
The son of Henry VI, Eduardo is disgraced, and although the Lancaster lead in the north of the country, Richard goes there to impose himself as King, something that leads him to end up dying on the battlefield and that makes his son Eduardo ends up taking over the house Yorkallying himself with Earl of Warwick.
Timeline of the Wars of the Roses
- May 22, 1455: First Battle of St Albans. A Yorkist victory during which the Duke of Somerset (one of the Yorkist leaders) was killed. The Duke of York was re-elected, then removed again in 1456. Queen Margaret stoked anti-Yorkist sentiment at court. Richard, the influence of the Duke of York is undermined and excluded from the royal council.
- September 23, 1459: Battle of Blore Heath. A Yorkist victory.
- October 12, 1459: Battle of Ludford Bridge. This time, a Lancastrian victory. The queen declared ownership of York and lives lost. Richard of York fled to Ireland.
- July 10, 1460: Battle of Northampton. A Yorkist victory; King Henry VI captured. Massacre of prisoners ordered by the Earl of Warwick. The queen fled to Wales.
- October 10, 1460. The return of Richard of York, who was declared heir to the throne. In response, the Queen raised a new army.
- December 30, 1460. Battle of Wakefield. The Yorkists were defeated and Richard, Duke of York, was assassinated. He was succeeded by his son Eduardo.
- February 2, 1461: Battle of Mortimer Cross. Richard of York’s son Edward was victorious.
- February 17, 1461: Second Battle of St Albans. A victory for the house of Lancaster. Henry VI rescued.
- March 4, 1461. Edward of York, Edward IV, is proclaimed king in London.
- March 9, 1461. Battle of Towton. Another Yorkist victory for the Earl of Warwick. Journey of King Henry, Queen Margaret and the Prince of Wales to Scotland.
- June 24, 1465: Henry VI is captured and imprisoned in the Tower of London.
- May 1, 1470. After falling out with Edward IV, Warwick fled to France. There he joined forces with Queen Margaret before returning to England and again placing Henry VI on the throne on October 13.
- March 14, 1471. The Yorkist King Edward fled to France and returned with a small army.
- April 14, 1471. Battle of Barnet. A victory for Edward’s Yorkist army. Warwick is killed.
- May 4, 1471. Battle of Tewkesbury. A defeat for the Lancastrian army, led by Queen Margaret and the Prince of Wales. The Prince of Wales was assassinated and the queen was captured.
- May 21-22, 1471. Henry VI was assassinated in the Tower of London. Henry Tudor, the Earl of Richmond and Lancastrian claimant to the throne, fled to France. The Yorkist Edward IV is now the undisputed king.
- April 9, 1483. Death of Eduardo IV, succeeded by his little son Eduardo V.
- June 1483. Edward V and his brother are declared illegitimate by Parliament. Rircardo, Duke of Gloucester, brother of Edward IV, asked to take the throne as Richard III.
- Probably the summer of 1483. Assassination of Edward V and his brother in the Tower of London.
- August 7, 1485. Henry Tudor, the last of the Lancastrians, landed at Milford Haven in Wales.
- August 22, 1485. Battle of Bosworth. King Richard III is assassinated and the Lancastrian Henry Tudor becomes King Henry VII. Henry married Elizabeth of York, uniting the two houses and founding the dynasty Tudor . The Rosa Rose includes red and white roses to symbolize the union of the Houses of York and Lancaster.
Edward IV first king of the house of York (1461-1470 and 1471-1483)
Eduardo is crowned as the new King of England in the abbey of westminster What Edward IVit also makes the house of York has just been imposed in his war against the Lancasters after winning the battle of towton (the bloodiest in all the history of England), and with great influence of the Earl of Warwickwho sees the possibility of reigning indirectly.
Edward IV it will not end well with the count since he is secretly marrying Elizabeth Woodville whose family, poor but ambitious, were until the battle of towtonfamily members Lancaster. Which lead to the earl’s mistrust of Warwick and that will end up presenting battle in front of the King and with the help of his brother George, Duke of Clarence.
Edward IV is defeated which leads to Warwick to want to reign through the king, something that the nobility does not approve of and that returns the throne to Edward IV that far from confronting his brother and the count, he seeks reconciliation. They flee to France where they ally with the wife of Henry VI, Margaret of Anjou.
Warwick and Margaret They managed to defeat Edward IV on this occasion and replaced the former King Henry VI on the throne. But this period did not last long, since Edward IV regains the throne with the help of Charles the Bold, owner of Burgundy also defeating and murdering Edward of Westminster (son of Henry VI).
Edward V 2nd King of the House of York (1483)
After regaining his throne, Edward IV He seems convinced that the battles and confrontations between his dynasty and that of the Lancasters have ended, although the truth is that not everything ends as he wanted since he died in 1483, his son inheriting the crown. Edward V who will not reign for a year.
Edward V He was heavily influenced by the family of the Woodvillewhich leads the Warwicks to distrust him as king and appoint his uncle, Richard III as his tutor (the young Eduardo was only 12 years old), and in fact proclaimed new King of England.
Richard III, third king of the house of York (1483-1485)
The new king had married in 1472 with Anne Nevilleone of the heirs to the fortune of the Earl of Warwick, possessions that he also disputed with his brother, John of Clarencewhom he ended up murdering in the same way he did with his brother’s children Eduardo…