The Wars of the Roses were a series of battles in fifteenth century England between two rival branches of the Plantagenet family: the houses of Lancaster and York. The title "Wars of the Roses" would have been unfamiliar to contemporaries. The term was coined later, and became enshrined after Shakespeare's portrayal of the Duke of York and the Duke of Somerset plucking a rose in the gardens of the Inns of Temple in London. The white rose was only one of several badges of the House of York, and there is no evidence that the House of Lancaster used the red rose at this time.

The Wars of the Roses were not a civil war in the true sense of the word. The conflict can not be compared to the English Civil War of the seventeenth century or to the civil strife that ensued during the twelfth century between King Stephen and Maude. Despite later Tudor propaganda, the Wars did not bring thirty years of continual anarchy and destruction. The general populace did not greatly feel its effects and the battles caused only minimal disruption of the economy and society. Over the thirty years, only about eleven months in total (about 2% of the time) was spent in active campaigning and with a population of roughly two million, only 50,000 soldiers took part at any one time.

The conflict was mainly one of the nobility, and was particularly deadly for those of royal or noble blood. Although the Battle of Towton in 1461 carries the grim epithet of being the bloodiest battle every fought on English soil, both sides usually gave the order to spare the common soldiers.

The armies were raised mainly through levy and from tenants, and, as such, could not be kept in the field for long periods of time. The Wars relied on quick campaigns and victories. There were no sustained sieges or conquests of territory.

Dates of the Wars

In the twentieth century, historians have largely turned away from this date, and have instead come to use a variety of dates in the 1450s.

1450 itself is a contender for a start date. In this year, William de la Pole, Duke of Suffolk, a prominent Lancastrian, was assassinated, the rebellion of Jack Cade shook the foundations of Lancastrian government and the Duke of York returned to England from his political exile in Ireland.

With all the goings on of 1453, it cannot be without its own claims to be the beginning of the Wars. In this year, the Hundred Years War ended, with humiliating consequences for England, Henry VI had his first bout of insanity, and it was also the year the conflict between the Nevilles and the Percies became a serious disturbance.

1455, however, is the most common beginning date. This is the year in which the powerful alliance of the Duke of York and the Earl of Salisbury first took up arms against Henry VI at the battle of St Albans. This battle can be considered as an isolated event, only becoming linked to the civil war through hindsight. But this battle may have set off a series of blood feuds that could not be resolved, except through combat. Edmund Beaufort, Duke of Somerset, Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland, and Thomas, Lord Clifford, all fought for Lancaster and were killed. They all left behind sons thirsting to avenge their deaths.

There is less discussion over the end date for the Wars. 1485 provides a very neat ending. This was the year that the last Plantagenet king was killed, and is generally regarded as the end of the medieval era in England. Again, for obvious reasons, this end date was very popular with Tudor historians. The Yorkist claim to the throne did not end at the battle of Bosworth, however. There were still many people living with better claims to the throne than Henry VII. In the year 1487, Henry was required to do battle with supporters of these claimants. The Battle of Stoke is often regarded as the final battle of the Wars of the Roses, and 1487 is more and more being used as the end date for the Wars.

The Wars of the Roses have also been divided into two parts: the first part, Lancaster against York, starts with St Albans in 1455 and ends in 1471 with the death of Henry VI and Prince Edward. Had it not been for divisions within the house of York, that would have been the end of the Wars. The second part, York against Tudor, begins with Richard of Gloucester's usurpation of the throne in 1483 and ends with Stoke in 1487.

Reasons for the Conflict

1. Henry IV's usurpation of the throne in 1399

The usurpation of the throne by Henry of Bolingbroke has long been regarded as one of the main reasons for the eruption of civil war half a century later. Yorkist propaganda describes the Wars as God's punishment on England for the unnatural deposition of God's anointed, Richard II, and Edward IV's usurpation as righting a wrong.

Tudor historians are also fond of the dynastic origins of the Wars, portraying Henry Tudor as the agent of divine retribution at Bosworth, and rescuing England from decades of bloodshed and internecine conflict by uniting the red and white roses in his marriage to Elizabeth of York.

This is not the only reason for the Wars, however and the dynastic element of the conflict became an issue only after the first battles had already been fought. The so-called Mortimer claim to the throne had laid dormant for half a century, and may have stayed that way had not other circumstances brought the matter to a head.

2. Quarrel between the Nevilles and the Percies.

Many historians see the Wars of the Roses as being both a conflict between Lancaster and York, and Neville and Percy. The quarrel between the Nevilles and the Percies was closely linked with the developments at court, and as such, was a significant factor in the origins of the Wars. Although not on a large scale, the conflict brought about the alliance between the Duke of York and Earl of Salisbury and it was this powerful alliance that culminated in the fall of the house of Lancaster.

At the end of the fourteenth, and early into the fifteenth century, the Percy earls of Northumberland ruled the north like kings. Henry Percy, 2nd Earl of Northumberland, had supported Henry IV in his usurpation, but rebellion early in the century cost them dearly. At the battle of Shrewsbury in 1403, Northumberland's son, Henry Percy, known as Hotspur, was killed and in 1405 Northumberland was condemned for treason and his estates forfeited. His grandson, later 3rd Earl of Northumberland, was restored to the title by Henry V in 1416, but was never able to recover all the estates or to wield the same power as had the 1st Earl of Northumberland.

This 3rd Northumberland was was killed at Towton, and the Percy estates were again forfeited. The 4th Earl was restored by Edward IV in 1471, but he was murdered by a gang during a tax revolt in 1489. The Percies, therefore, did not have much luck building up their power during the fifteenth century.

The Nevilles of Middleham, by contrast, were able to build up an enormous amount of power during the century. Ralph Neville, Earl of Westmorland, took as his second wife, Joan, daughter of John of Gaunt. Westmorland was a loyal retainer to the house of Lancaster, and was instrumental in holding the north secure during the Percy rebellions. He was succeeded in power by his eldest son by Joan, Richard Neville, Earl of Salisbury, who worked relentlessly to extend and consolidate Neville power in the north. His brothers were granted the northern baronies of Latimer, Fauconberg and the Bishopric of Durham. Salisbury was also granted the earldom of Richmond and in 1450 Salisbury's son became earl of Warwick through marriage. The lesser peerage of the region, including Lords Dacre, Greystoke, Fitzhugh and Scrope of Bolton attached themselves to the Nevilles. By the middle of the century, the Nevilles enjoyed royal favour, no doubt assisted by their Beaufort blood, and unassailable power in the north. The control of the king was limited in the north, and as there was a need to protect the border against the Scots, magnates in the north were given extraordinary powers and allowed to retain on a scale unknown in the rest of the country.

The Percies were jealous of the dominance of the Nevilles, but until 1453 the animosity between the two families had been under control. The differences between the two families flared into conflict in the summer of 1453, when Salisbury's second son, Sir Thomas Neville, announced his forthcoming marriage to Maud Stanhope, niece and joint-heiress of Lord Cromwell. Under the terms of this marriage, the castle of Wressle, an ancient Percy manor which had been granted to Cromwell, was to pass permanently to a member of the Neville family. This castle was part of the forfeited estates that the 3rd Earl of Northumberland had failed to recover. That it would now go permanently to a Neville was something that could not be countenanced by the younger Percies.

On 1 May 1453 the king issued a licence to allow the marriage and Thomas Percy, Lord Egremont, Northumberland's second son, began to recruit men and distribute illegal liveries. After Egremont had refused several royal commands to submit, Sir John Neville, another son of Salisbury, took matters into his own hands and raided a Percy manor, Topcliffe. The Yorkshire region fell into disorder as a series of tit-for-tat attacks on property and retainers followed.

The final incident of this riotous period was an attack on the wedding party itself as it travelled to Sheriff Hutton. By now, the earls themselves were involved and, after calling on their retainers, both sides met in battle at Sand Hutton. A fight was avoided by the intervention of the Archbishop of York and both sides agreed to suspend hostilities for the winter.

This localised conflict between two nobles soon became caught up in the factionalism at court and matters were brought to a head with the king's first bout of mental incapacity in August 1453. During the power struggle the followed, Salisbury came to support the Duke of York. This unlikely alliance was brought on by several reasons: 1. Salisbury needed to remain close to royal power because of his fight with the Percies; 2. At the end of 1452 Henry VI had created his half brother, Edmund Tudor, Earl of Richmond, a title that had previously been given to Salisbury; 3. The leader of the alternative faction was Edmund Beaufort, Duke of Somerset, who was quarrelling with Salisbury's son over the Beauchamp inheritance; 4. York was Salisbury's brother in law, married to Salisbury's younger sister, Cecily.

Neville backing of York's bid for the protectorate was crucial in his achieving this office. The Nevilles, thereby retained their royal favour temporarily, but risked losing it if the king recovered.

With York as Protector, the Nevilles gained the authority of the crown in their struggle with the Percies. In May York marched north with Salisbury, the new Chancellor of England, and crushed their enemies. A commission of Oyer and Terminer sat in York in July that condemned the violence of the Percies earlier in the year, but little was done to restore order. In October 1454 Egremont and his brother and their followers were attacked by Sir Thomas and Sir John Neville at Stamfort Bridge. The Percy brothers were captured, condemned for trespass, and being unable to pay the huge fines, were sent to Newgate prison as debtors.

In December 1454, everything turned around when the king recovered his senses and York was removed from the office of Protector. Somerset and Exeter were restored, and Northumberland was able to secure a position of favour at court. York and Salisbury were now in a vulnerable position and in order to win back the initiative, planned rebellion. In May 1455 they took up arms against Henry VI at St Albans. The battle was a victory for the rebels: Somerset and Northumberland were killed and the king was taken into their custody.

The previous conflicts between the Percies and Nevilles had never reached the point of full scale war. It was not until the death of Northumberland at St Albans that a blood feud between the two families began. This was fuelled by the deaths of Egremont at Northampton, Salisbury and Sir Thomas Neville at Wakefield, the 3rd Earl of Northumberland at Towton and Sir Ralph Percy at Hedgeley Moor. It did not finally end until Warwick and his brother, John, lay dead at Barnet more than fifteen years later.

3. Henry's inability to govern effectively

Probably more than any other reason, Henry VI's inability to govern his realm effectively was the greatest cause of the outbreak of civil war. As K.B McFarlane, a leading historian on fifteenth century England, put it, "Henry VI's head was too small for his father's crown." In a political system where power is concentrated in the hands of one person, ie the monarch, the consequences if that person is unfit to rule can be disastrous.

In the fifteenth century the monarchy was responsible for controlling the nobility, and at the same time was reliant on them to control the country. A good working relationship with the nobility was essential to govern effectively and Henry VI's failure to control his nobility was one of the causes of his downfall.

Medieval kings were also expected to lead their armies into battle, and a great military victory secured their reputations. Henry VI, unlike his popular and successful father, had no interest or aptitude for warfare. Henry was "more given to God and to devout prayer than to handling worldly and temporal things". These characteristics, and Henry's general incompetence to rule, culminated in an woefully bad medieval king. Demonstrations against misgovernment increased during Henry's reign, and came to a head with Jack Cade's rebellion of 1450.

Henry's inability to maintain law and order made possible the feuds between the great magnates of his realm and his reliance on favourites, to the exclusion of others, fostered rivalry between nobles.

Henry's toleration of his favourites raiding the royal finances also increased quarrels. Those whose influence was strongest would receive royal funds and in the early 1450s, it was only Somerset who could be confident of receiving payment. By the 1450s the royal finances were in chaos and the crown was virtually bankrupt. Added to his personal ineptitude for ruling, Henry was hampered by his own health. In 1453 Henry suffered a major mental breakdown, and was incapable of ruling for a year and a half. During his incapacity, York was appointed Protector, but Henry's recovery saw the return to power of the court clique (the Lancastrians) and forced the now vulnerable York and Salisbury into the decisive step of rebellion.

4. The end of the Hundred Years War

The loss of the English possessions in France were a blow to national pride and undermined the legitimacy of the house of Lancaster.

There are frequent contemporary references to the losses in France as a cause of unrest at home. Polydore Vergil, Henry Tudor's official historian, said fall of Bordeaux was "the end of the foreign war, and likewise the renewing of civil calamity, for when the fear of outward [was] enemy gone from the nobility... the people were divided into two factions."

The end of the war made Henry even more unpopular with his subjects, but the idea of demoralised soldiers returning from France looking for a fight has long been disregarded as an explanation for the origins of the Wars.

5. Bastard Feudalism

The term "bastard feudalism" was coined by the historian Charles Plummer in 1885 and refers to the maintenance by nobles of retainers who wore his livery and fought his battles, while he in turn protected them and furthered their interests. This resulted in large private armies that could be called upon by nobles, and had more reason to be loyal to him than to the king.

In the mid fifteenth century, Henry VI was not able to maintain rule over his mightiest nobles and they fell into quarrels which they settled with violence: the quarrel between the Nevilles and the Percies being the most famous, but certainly not the only one of its kind. As the gentry lacked confidence in the process of law, which had become corrupt without royal control, it became more important to have a noble protector. They then fought their patrons' wars and ultimately became embroiled in the larger conflict between Lancaster and York.

Bastard feudalism had been in existence in England since the early fourteenth century, and can only be considered one factor in the escalation of the conflict. Uncontrolled retaining and the increasing number of private feuds were simply a consequence of the weakness of royal power.

History

People

Battles

Richard III

Music

Timeline

Links

Bibliography