Consolidation of power

Question 1

What caused the Wars of the Roses?

Answer 1

The successful short reign of Henry V was followed by the disastrous reign of Henry VI. The shortcomings of his rule culminated in the outbreak of the Wars of the Roses in 1455 between the Royal houses of Lancaster and York.
England was then subjected to intermitted civil war for over 30 years and 5 violent changes of monarch.

Question 2

When were The Wars of the Roses

Answer 2

1455-1485

Question 3

What did the white rose represent

Answer 3

House of York

Question 4

What did the red rose represent

Answer 4

House of Lancaster

Question 5

Who was Richard III

Answer 5

Richard III was a member of the Plantagenet family, who had ruled England for almost 300 years by the time of his birth.
Brother of Edward IV
House of York

Question 6

How did Richard III and become King?

Answer 6

Richard III claimed that his nephews lacked legitimacy and he cause controversy with the ‘Princes in the Tower’
Richard’s usurpation in 1483 destroyed the unity of the House of York.

Question 7

Who was Henry Tudor?

Answer 7

Lancastrian
weak claim to the throne- descended through the female line his mother Margaret Beaufort-line came from John of Gaunt’s third wife
In exile in France for most of his life in Brittany and looked after by his uncle Jasper Tudor

Question 8

When was the Battle of Bosworth

Answer 8

22nd August 1485

Question 9

Events at Bosworth

Answer 9

Henry saw an opportunity to return to England after controversy over the ‘Princes in the Tower’
Henry went from being a distant claimant to being Richard’s main rival
Richards allies on the day either switched sides or remained inactive during the battle
Richard was unseated from his horse and killed
Henry was proclaimed King of England on the battlefield by Lord Stanley.

Question 10

Why was Henry 7th claim to the throne weak?

Answer 10

He was descended through the female line represented by his mother, Lady Margaret Beaufort
The line had come from John of Gaunts 3rd wife and their son was born illegitimate
Was seen as a usurper and not a rightful king

Question 11

How did Henry consolidate his power?

Answer 11

Pre-dating his reign- nobles on Rs side guilty of treason
Marriage to Elizabeth of York- united house of York and Lancaster, didn’t marry until crowned king in his own right, birth of Arthur
Crowned King before parliament met- kingly authority stemmed from is own power rather than granted by parliament
Being a progress
Backing of the Pope

Question 12

Who was Edward, Earl of Warwick?

Answer 12

most obvious Yorkist claimant
innocent victim of political manoeuvrings- 10 at battle of B
spent most of his life I confinement before he was executed in TOL in 1499

Question 13

Who was John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln?

Answer 13

Mother was Elizabeth of York who was Richard 3rd and Edward 4ths sister- their nephew
Potential Yorkist claimant
lambert simnel rebellion

Question 14

Who was Margaret of Burgundy?

Answer 14

Sister of Edward 4th and Richard 3rd
Dowager duchess of Burgundy
Yorkist with links and power
Mother in law of Holy Roman Emperor Maximillian

Question 15

When was the Lovell/Stafford rebellion?

Answer 15

1486

Question 16

What were the events of the Lovell/Stafford rebellion?

Answer 16

Viscount Lovell was close ally of Richard 3rd
After Bosworth he sought sanctuary with Sir Thomas and Sir Humphrey Stafford
Lovell tried to raise a rebellion in Richards home area, Yorkshire
Stafford tried to raise a rebellion in the Midlands
Rebellion was crushed and was little enthusiasm
Lovell escaped, Stafford executed and Thomas Stafford was pardoned (showed clemency)

Question 17

When was the Lambert Simnel Rebellion?

Answer 17

1487

Question 18

What were the events of the Lambert Simnel Rebellion?

Answer 18

Following the Lovell rebellion, leading Yorkists realised that a change in strategy was needed- Yorkist figurehead and financial support
Figurehead was Lambert Simnel-impersonating Richard, Duke of York (Edwards nephew imprisoned by Henry)
Put together by John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln
He fled to Margaret of Burgundy’s court so she could pay for 2000 German mercenaries to invade England.
Henry had plenty notice of conspiracy so had time to plan a response
Henry exhibited the real Earl of Warwick in London
Henry took a gamble and reinstated untrustworthy Earl of Northumberland in the North to help neutralise Richard’s old power base and ensured that the Yorkist Howard family had no intention of joining the rebellion as North was one of their descendants

Question 19

Why did Simnel’s rebellion not attract more support?

Answer 19

English put off by wild Irish contingent
Lord’s and gentry cautious after Lovell
Henry not king long so people didn’t have reason to overthrow him
Henry passed the Star Chamber Act so councillors and judges could enforce the law
Majority of people wanted peace rather than further disruption

Question 20

What happened to Simnel

Answer 20

Captured at Battle of Stoke
Spared by Henry and given a job in the royal kitchens

Question 21

How threatening was Lambert Simnel rebellion?

Answer 21

Simnel was clearly an imposter
Simnel seen as a puppet for attempt to restore Yorkist monarchy
Failure to attract English support
They had 8000 men Henry had 12000
Henry made no attempt to negotiate-raised an army
Majority of nobles showed loyalty to King

Question 22

When was the Battle of Stoke Field?

Answer 22

1487

Question 23

Who was Perkin Warbeck?

Answer 23

Cloth trader from Flanders who was a persistent irritant to Henry over a period of 8 years
Claimed to be Richard Duke of York-Prince in tower
Danger came from his ability to gain support from foreign rulers showing other rulers saw Henry’s position as fragile

Question 24

What did Warbeck do in 1491?

Answer 24

Began to impersonate Richard, Duke of York in Ireland
Brief appearance at court of Charles VIII of France-forced to flee to court of Margaret of Burgundy where he was trained as a potential Yorkist prince

Question 25

What happened when Warbeck first attempted to land in England?

Answer 25

1495 proved a fiasco
Henry was informed of Warbeck’s intentions by one of his royal agents, Sir Robert Clifford, who was a spy in Warbeck’s camp
He was defeated and fled to James IV of Scotland’s court

Question 26

Who betrayed Henry by siding with Warbeck?

Answer 26

Sir William Stanley
accomplice of the conspirators
Henry was vulnerable

Question 27

Why was Warbeck unsuccessful?

Answer 27

1497 tried to exploit uncertainties created by Cornish Rebellion but his forces were crushed and he surrendered to the King
Henry allowed him to stay at court but confided him to the Tower after he tried to escape
Allegedly tried to escape with Earl of Warwick- accused of treason and executed
Convenient to get rid of Warbeck at same time as he was the most obvious Yorkist Claimant

Question 28

How threatening was Perkin Warbeck’s rebellion?

Answer 28

Lacked presence of a noble and foreign military support
Origins of rebellion was vague
Aim was to capture or kill Henry but never came close to him
Warbeck never gained widespread or even significant localised support in England
Henry managed to keep one step ahead of Warbeck through his network of informers
Warbeck was a thorn in the side of Henry due to the sheer longevity of his threat

Question 29

Who were the de la Pole brothers?

Answer 29

Edmund de la Pole, Earl of Suffolk
Richard de la Pole (called himself the ‘White Rose’ to show he was a Yorkist pretender)
younger brothers of the Earl of Lincoln
The only credible Yorkist descendants and threat to Henry VII

Question 30

What did the de la Pole rothers do?

Answer 30

Edmund fled to Flanders in 1498 after killing a man due to appear before the King’s court. He fled in 1501 with Richard, seeking refuge at the court of Maximillian (Holy Roman Emperor-son in law of MoB)
Maximillian promised to help the Yorkist heirs.
Henry gave M £10,000 in attempt to hand over the de la Pole bros but he didn’t
Archduke Phillip of Burgundy (Ms son) used Henry’s insecurity about Edmund to force trade concessions from England. 1505 Henry responded by suspending all trade between the countries

Question 31

How did the de la Pole crisis end for Henry?

Answer 31

Unexpected death of Isabella of Castille (mam of Catherine of Aragon) and the freak storm that blew Phillip on to the English coast as he sailed south to claim the Spanish throne
To pay for his expedition to claim the throne, Phillip extracted £138,000 from Henry, in return he surrendered Edmund de la Pole in 1506
Treaty of Windsor 1506 meant more friendly relations were restored
Edmund was executed for treason in 1513 after being in tower of London
Richard was killed fighting for the French at the Battle of Pavia