How serious a threat was the Yorkist challenge to Henry's rule? Flashcards
The Yorkist challenge was serious because
Margaret of Burgundy, the sister of Edward IV and Richard Ill, offered safe haven for Yorkist exiles/was willing to fund enterprises and provide/mercenaries to fight against the Tudor state
Why did the lack of Yorkist claims not increase Henry’s security
instead suitable candidates who could impersonate one of the Yorkist ‘Princes in the Tower were found= Simnel’s rebellion of 1486-87/Warbeck’s of 1491-99
Unlikely that the supporters of these ‘Pretenders’ ever genuinely believed they were who they claimed, still able to raise
support from Yorkist supporters/foreign powers who wanted to
destabilise the country
How serious was the Lambert Simnel rebellion
Serious threat as:
-it came within a year of Henry seizing the throne
-Support in the Yorkist stronghold of
Oxford/Ireland (where he was crowned Edward VI)/Margaret of Burgundy who sent money and a force of 2000 mercenaries
-began in the autumn of 1486 but Henry not aware until early 1487
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further indication of his vulnerable position
Why did Simnell not gained widespread support
Ordinary people may have been fed up with
the chaos of the Wars of the Roses or may have disliked the Irish force which
accompanied Simnel and its reputation for brutality
Consequences of Simnel rising
Although Henry won, it should be viewed in a similar light to Bosworth.
-A weak claimant to the throne had been able to attract widespread support and bring the king to battle
-Just as at Bosworth, many of Henry’s men held back from fighting until the outcome appeared clear and at first= had not
been obvious as the royal front line had been put under severe pressure by the experienced mercenaries
-Victory took three hours and, even then, the fate of the monarchy had been decided by a battle whose result could just have easily
been reversed
origins of the Warbeck conspiracy
it is likely that Warbeck’s arrival in Ireland in 1491 was not an accident, but the result of a plan in which Charles VIll of France
and Margaret of Burgundy were involved
Why Warbeck conspiracy serious
-International dimension as Henry’s relations with France and Scotland were poor/both could use Warbeck to undermine the king’s position/exert diplomatic pressure on him not to become too anti-French over their wish to annex Brittany
As with Simnel, the Yorkist element was strong:
-First, Lincoln appeared in the Yorkist stronghold of Ireland
-Second, despite the assumption among some Irish that he was the Earl of Warwick, he claimed to be Richard, Duke of York, who had supposedly been murdered in
the Tower
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Added to Henry’s difficulties - he could not parade the real Richard as he was already dead.
Course of Warbeck rising
-Unable to win large-scale support in Ireland, but was welcomed at the French court where he was joined by about 100 Yorkist
supporters
-Treaty of Étaples (1492) forced Warbeck to move to Flanders where he had the support of Margaret= Henry’s trade embargo
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willingness to sacrifice a considerable income showed big concern
-Also supported by influential Holy Roman Emperor, Maximilian, who recognised him as Richard IV
-However, Maximilian lacked the financial resources to support Warbeck’s plans and, with France more concerned about Italy, Henry was able to act without fear of European intervention
Response to Warbeck rising
Henry found out through his spy network= Parliament passed attainders against those implicated in the plot.
-Most worrying=Sir William Stanley, a leading courtier and Lord Chamberlain of the king’s household
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Conspiracy went right to the heart of Henry’s court
=when Warbeck landed at Deal in 1495 the local militia easily able to defeat the invaders
-Warbeck fled to Ireland, where he failed to capture Waterford
-welcomed in Scotland/married to James IV’s cousin. Once again, foreign support prolonged the challenge and James
provided Warbeck with 1500 troops to invade the northern counties of England
-As with the fiasco at Deal and the failure at Waterford, there was a lack of support in northern England for Warbeck and he was soon forced back to Scotland
-James abandoned him, preferring the offer of marriage between himself and Henry’s daughter, Margaret.
-Warbeck returned to Ireland but even less support
-Sailed for England, to capitalise on the Cornish Rebellion, but was drivenfrom
both Exeter and Taunton and forced to seek sanctuary
- November 1497 gave himself up
-As a foreigner it would have been difficult to convict him of treason, so Henry allowed him to remain at court
-1498 he tried to run away= put him in
the Tower. While there it was rumoured he plotted with the Earl of Warwick= both were subsequently executed
Significance of Warbeck
Never gained much support in England/forced Henry into a pitched battle, unlike Simmel
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suggests position was more secure than in 1487
-Revealed desperate situation of the Yorkists as willing to support a Pretender
-Dragged on for so long only because of foreign support
HOWEVER expensive nuisance/ embarrassment as the king had been unable to capture Warbeck.
Did the defeat of Warbeck signalled the end of the
Yorkist challenge
No
Although the Earl of Warwick
was executed soon after Warbeck there still remained Edmund de la Pole,
who was now the nearest Yorkist claimant
Edmund de la Pole
Despite appearing loyal, he was dissatisfied as Henry refused to make him Duke of Suffolk like his father
As a result, he fled to France in 1499, persuaded to return but he fled again in 1501 to the court of the Holy Roman Emperor, where he was joined by other Yorkists.
How did Herny’s situation deteriorate start of Edmund de la Pole rebellion
in 1500 his third son, Edmund died, then in 1502 his heir, Arthur, died, and finally in 1503
his wife also died= future of the dynasty was dependent entirely on Prince Henry
=imprisoned the Suffolk family that remained
in England and parliament in 1504/passed 51 Acts of Attainders
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Largest number
passed by any parliament in his reign, suggesting that security was decreasing
-His concern for the security
of the dynasty was given further credence by a reported conversation at
Calais in which the succession was discussed: “Some of them spoke of my
Lord of Buckingham, saying that he was a noble man and would be royal
ruler. Others who were there spoke in a similar manner about your traitor,
Edmund de la Pole, but none of them spoke of my lord prince Henry?’
Why did Henry only feel secure in 1506
storms forced Philip of Burgundy to land in England and Henry was able to
persuade him to hand over Suffolk on the condition his life was spared
=few Yorkists left and Henry’s methods of government ensured that they remained loyal
Overall was Henry ever secure from the Yorkist threat?
-Not secure until the last years of his reign but after Simnel he was never seriously challenged
-However, at the time, it was not obvious that the Battle of Stoke signified the end of the Wars of the Roses and that the Tudor dynasty would survive for over one hundred
years
-A Pretender had been able to raise enough support to force the king into battle and even the Cornish tax rebellion had reached London before being defeated
-Unrest largely the result of his seizure of the throne by force/realisation that
his claim was weak: if he could take the throne by force, so could others,
particularly with foreign help.
