At the end of the 17th century, the English throne was taken over by Henry Tudor of the Lancaster family, the founder of the new royal dynasty, which remained in power for a century. This was preceded by a bloody dynastic conflict between the descendants of two branches of the ancient royal family of Plantagenets - Lancaster and York, which went down in history as the Scarlet and White Rose war, a brief historical description of which is the topic of this article.
Symbols of warring parties
There is an erroneous opinion that the war owes its name to roses, allegedly depicted on the arms of these warring aristocratic clans. In fact, they were not there. The reason lies in the fact that, going into battle, supporters of both parties as a distinctive sign fastened a symbolic rose on their armor - Lancaster - white, and their opponents York - red. Elegant and royal.
The reasons that led to the bloodshed -
It is known that the war of the Red and White Roses began due to the political instability prevailing in England in the middle of the 15th century. Most of the society expressed dissatisfaction with the results of the Hundred Years War and demanded fundamental changes in government. Such a situation was exacerbated by the incapacity of the demented and often completely unconscious King Henry VI of Lancaster, in which the actual power was in the hands of his wife, Queen Margarita, and her many favorites.
The beginning of hostilities
At the head of the emerging opposition stood Duke Richard of York. A descendant of the Plantagenets, he had, in his own conviction, certain rights to the crown. With the active participation of this representative of the White Rose Party, the political confrontation soon turned into bloody clashes, in one of which, which occurred in 1455 near the city of St. Albans, the duke's supporters routed the royal troops. Thus began the thirty-two-year-long war described by Thomas More and Shakespeare in the Scarlet and White Rose War. A brief summary of their work gives us a picture of those events.
Good luck on the side of the opposition
Such a brilliant victory of Richard of York over the legitimate authority convinced members of parliament that it was better not to annoy this thug, and they declared him the protector of the state, and in the event of the death of the king, heir to the throne. It is difficult to say whether the duke would have accelerated this death or not, but in the next battle with the troops of the party opposing him, he was killed.
After the death of the instigator of the war, the opposition was led by his son, who had fulfilled his father's old dream, crowned in 1461 under the name of Edward IV. Soon, his troops finally crushed the resistance of the Lancastrians, once again defeating them in the battle of Mortimer Cross.
The betrayals that the Scarlet and White Rose war knew
A summary of the historical work of T. Mora conveys the depth of despair of the ousted Henry VI and his frivolous wife. They tried to escape, and if Margarita managed to escape abroad, then her unlucky husband was captured and imprisoned in the Tower. However, the newly made king was too early to celebrate the victory. Intrigues began in his party, caused by the ambitious claims of the aristocrats closest to him, each of whom sought to get the largest piece in the distribution of honors and awards.
The constricted pride and envy of some of the deprived Yorkers pushed them to betrayal, as a result of which the younger brother of the new king, Duke Clarence and Earl of Warwick, corrected all the laws of honor and sided with the enemy. Having gathered a fair army, they rescued the unfortunate Henry VI from the Tower and returned him to the throne. It was the turn to flee to the thrown Edward IV, who had missed the throne. He and his younger brother Gloucester safely reached Burgundy, where they were popular and had numerous supporters.
New plot twist
The war of the Scarlet and White Roses, briefly described also by the great Shakespeare, this time prepared an unpleasant surprise for the Lancastrians. King Clarence’s brother, who so shamefully compromised himself with betrayal and returned the throne to Henry, having learned with what a powerful army his relative is returning to London, realized that he was in a hurry. To appear on the gallows - the most suitable place for traitors - obviously did not want to, and he, appearing in the camp of Edward, convinced him of his deep repentance.
Having reunited, the brothers and their many supporters from the York party twice defeated the Lancastrians at Barnet and Tewkesberry. In the first battle, Warwick died, the one who committed treason with Clarence, but, unlike the last, did not have time to return to the previous owner. The second battle was fatal for the crown prince. So, the dynastic line of the Lancaster was interrupted by the Scarlet and White Rose war that captured England. A summary of subsequent events, read on.
And what does the story tell us about the following events?
Having won, Edward IV again sent the king he had overthrown to the Tower of the Tower. Henry VI returned to the familiar and previously inhabited chamber, but did not linger in it for a long time. In the same year in the squares of London with deep regret announced his death. It is difficult to say whether it was natural, or the new overlord simply decided to save himself from possible trouble, but since then the ashes of Henry VI, abandoned during his lifetime by both his wife and his subjects, have rested in the dungeon of Windsor Castle. What can you do, the royal throne is sometimes very shaky.
Having rid himself of his predecessor and potential rival, Edward IV ruled until 1483, when he suddenly died for an unknown reason. For a short time, the throne was taken by his son Edward, but was soon removed from power by the royal council, as there were doubts about the legality of his birth. By the way, there were witnesses who claimed that his late dad was not born from the Duke of York, but became the fruit of the secret love of his mother-duchess and a handsome archer.
So it was in reality or not, they did not dig, but just in case, the throne was taken away from the young heir, and the brother of the late King Richard Gloucester, crowned under the name of Richard III, was raised on him. Fate also did not prepare for him many years of calm rule. Very soon, a clear and secret opposition formed around the throne, with all its might poisoning the life of the monarch.
The Return of the Scarlet Rose
The historical archives of the 15th century tell about how the war of the Scarlet and White Roses developed in the future. A brief summary of the documents stored in them indicates that the leading representatives of the Lancaster party were able to assemble a significant army on the continent, consisting mainly of French mercenaries. Headed by Heinrich Tudor, she landed in 1486 on the coast of Britain and began a victorious journey to London. King Richard III personally led the army, which came out to meet the enemy, but died in the battle of Bosworth.
The end of the European Middle Ages
The war of the Red and White Roses in England was drawing to a close. A summary of Shakespeare's account of these events recreates the picture of how, having reached without much trouble the British capital, Tudor was crowned under the name of Henry VII. Since that time, the dynasty of Lancaster firmly entrenched on the throne, and their reign lasted one hundred and seventeen years. The only serious attempt to overthrow the king was made in 1487 by the Earl of Lincoln, the nephew of Richard III, who rebelled, but was killed in the ensuing battle.
It is believed that the war of the Scarlet and White Roses (1455-1487) is the final link in the European Middle Ages. During this period, not only all the direct descendants of the ancient genus Plantagenet were destroyed, but most of the English chivalry. The main disasters fell on the shoulders of the common people, who for all centuries became a hostage to other people's political ambitions.