Topic 3.3 Flashcards
what is the significance of the Yorkists and the Lancastrians?
They were the two families who claimed the throne during the 15th century were both descended from sons of Edward III: John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, and Edmund, Duke of York.
The Houses of York and Lancaster and their supporters became rivals for the throne in the 1450s; this led to the Wars of the Roses, a civil war which disrupted England until 1487.
what house was Henry VII part of?
he was part of the Lancastrian family.
why was John de la Pole significant?
he was heir presumptive because Richard III had no surviving children. (nephew of Richard III and Edward IV) He was a real threat to Henry as a potential figurehead of a Yorkist rising and rapidly became the focus of opposition to Henry in the first two years of the reign.
why was Edward Plantagenet (Earl of Warwick) significant)?
he was also Edward IV and Richard III’s nephew. He was placed in the tower - where he was to spend the rest of his life - though this did not stop him from becoming the focus of plots against Henry.
Who were the Princes in the Tower and why are they considered significant?
Edward and Richard (sons of Edward IV) they were significant because Henry’s enemies attempted to use the princes as a focus for rallying support against the king.
how were the daughters of Edward IV more of heir presumptive?
though they could not themselves rule they could pass their claim to the throne to their children - which made them dangerous to Henry.
who placed Richard and Edward in the tower?
Richard III their own uncle.
why was it significant in society that Richard III locked his own nephews in the Tower?
due to the fact that it shifted the support of the many Yorkists from Richard III to Henry VII.
when was the battle of Bosworth fought?
22 August 1485.
how great was Henry vII’s army?
c.5000 men - Richard III is said to have had about twice this number.
why did Richard III lose the battle of Bosworth?
although his army may have been decisive he lost because of his miscalculation and the actions of some of his leading nobility (Thomas, Lord Stanley, Stanley’s brother, Sir William, and Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland).
was Richard III a usurper?
yes - he took the throne from his nephew (Edward V) by locking him in the Tower.
how did members of the nobility betray Richard III?
they did not fight although they were expected to - this because Thomas Stanley married Henry VII’s widowed mother Margaret Beaufort.
what did the Stanleys do instead of fight?
they chose to watch the battle from the sidelines, before Sir William eventually committed his troops in support of Henry.
What were Richard III’s miscalculations that eventually led to his usurpation?
he attempted to kill Henry and he became separated from the majority of his troops as they started supporting Henry.
why was Henry paranoid after the battle of Bosworth?
because Richard’s trusted nobility ended up betraying and ultimately killing him - which meant that the nobility could easily perform in the same way toward Henry VII.
how did Bosworth enhance Henry VII’s position?
during the 15th century it was believed that God’s will dictated events. Though Richard III was considered as a king anointed by God - his defeat was seen as God’s punishment for him for the tactics he used in usurping the throne (imprisoning his nephews).
How was Richard III’s death important for Henry VII?
it was important because it meant that Henry’s potential political rival and focus for Yorkist support was removed.
who were some of the powerful supporters of Richard’s who were killed?
John Howard, 1st duke of Norfolk, and Sir Richard Radcliffe.
how great was the amount of nobles supporting Richard at battle?
less than 1/4 - which suggested that support for Richard was lukewarm at best.
what measures did Henry VII use to secure his throne?
- he had a formal coronation (to prove that he was anointed by God)
- he had his first parliament (where he was declared king)
- he had parliament declare that his reign had begun on the 21 august 1485 (in order to punish the nobles who supported Richard III as traitors and to make Richard the usurper)
- Henry cancelled the titulus regius
- through his carrot and stick approach
- he married Elizabeth of York
what was the titulus regius and why was it significant?
it was passed by Richard III and it declared that Edward IV’s marriage to Elizabeth of Woodville was invalid. It was significant as it made all their children (including Henry VII’s wife Elizabeth of York) illegitimate.
why did Henry cancel the titulus regius?
he cancelled it because Elizabeth would be considered illegitimate under the law and Henry wanted legitimate children from her to be able to inherit the throne.
why was Henry VII marriage to Elizabeth of York so significant?
because it united the feudal families
and made it less likely for Yorkists to want to overthrow their own bloodline (their kids)
what were some of the ‘carrots’ Henry did to secure his throne?
Henry made his uncle (Jasper Tudor) Duke of Bedford as a result of his lifelong support.
His stepfather (Thomas Stanley) he made Earl of Derby.
Sir William Stanley was given the trusted position of Lord Chamberlain of the Royal Household.
Sir Thomas Lovell (a Yorkist who rebelled against Richard III) was made Treasurer of the Household.
What were some of the ‘sticks’ Henry used to secure the throne?
Henry seized the lands of men who had actively supported Richard III
what was the significance of the progress Henry took?
he embarked on a progress to the Midlands and the North, where Ricardian support was particularly strong. -> this indeed was significant because it boosted Henry’s support instead
due to Henry’s fear of the nobles’ retaining what was required of the nobles to do?
swear an oath that they would not retain men illegally.
what was the Act of Resumption of 1486 and its aims?
a way to take back all Crown lands which were granted away since 1455. The aim of this act was to increase the wealth of the Crown and to give Henry more spending power compared to his nobility.
Yorkist supporters of Richard III
Thomas howard - earl of Surrey
John de la pole, earl of Lincoln
lord Lovell
Thomas and Humphrey Stafford
Margaret, duchess of Burgundy
Lancastrian supporters of Henry
Margaret of Beaufort (his mother)
Jasper Tudor, duke of Bedford
John de vere, earl of Oxford
Edward Courtenay, earl of Devon
anti-ricardian Yorkists who supported Henry at Bosworth
Elizabeth Woodville
John morton, bishop of ely
Thomas grey, marquess of Dorset
sir Thomas lovell
sur giles daubeney
nobility with mixed loyalties
Thomas, lord Stanley, earl of derby
sir William Stanley
Henry Percy, earl of northumberland
where did Henry spend his youth?
in exile abroad
who were in exile with henry?
John de vere and jasper tudor
what did jasper Tudor become in Wales as a result of being an immediate relative to Henry?
Chief Justice
what did John de vere become as a result of being close to Henry (were in exile together)
he was prominent in henry’s council and in east anglia
what was Thomas Stanley issued with?
the custody of the Cheshire estates of the earl of Stafford
which hard-line supporters of Richard began to cause problems?
Thomas and Humphrey Stafford as well as Lord Lovell - they hoped to restore a Yorkist monarchy
what rumour was there that was threatening to Henry and quite a tool for stafford brothers and lord lovell?
the rumour that earl of Warwick , a potential rival for the throne, had escaped from the tower and fled to the Channel Islands; agents of the earl of Lincoln were caught smuggling gold and silver out of the country, perhaps to raise an army abroad using the money.
what was plotted by Stafford bros and lovell?
to rebel against Henry
what did Stafford bros do in 1486 and why was it so significant?
they tried to raise a rebellion in the midlands in the name of the earl of Warwick- significant due to the fact that the region was the heartland of the Warwick estates; loyalty to the young earl could have brought out Yorkist support for him.
where was Henry as the bros were plotting?
he was near York at the time and when he heard news of the plotting he began to advance to the midlands
what did the bros do and what consequently happened to them?
they fled, having failed to raise any supports and tried to take refuge in sanctuary again - but they were forcibly removed by Henry -> sir Humphrey Stafford was executed whereas sir Thomas was pardoned.
meanwhile, what was lovell attempting to do?
he tried to raise a rebellion in Yorkshire, exploring loyalties in this region to Richard III.
was there support for the rebellion lovell was trying to raise?
there was little support and the attempted revolt was suppressed by jasper Tudor
what did lovell do after his attempt at rebellion was suppressed?
he fled to burgundy where he was able to find refuge with another key Yorkist - Margaret of burgundy.
threat post-victory at Bosworth
although the attempted plots resulted to nothing there was yet a great sense of threat due to de la pole being implicated in many plots (though he swore loyalty to Henry) and because of lovell being on the loose.
since John de la pole, henry’s main rival for the throne, was not up to risk everything in open rebellion what did the Yorkists do instead?
they found a solution which was a suitable figurehead, a young boy called Lambert Simnel, who could be manipulated and used to focus opposition against Henry
who was Simnel and who was his puppet-master?
he had no royal blood and was an imposter - Simnel was the 10 yo son of a joiner from Oxford who was trained by a priest, Richard Simons, to act as if he was a prince.
who did the plotters make Simnel impersonate and why was it a blunder?
they made him impersonate the earl of Warwick and it was an error because Henry was able to produce the real earl from the tower of london and parade him through the streets.
Simnel gathered momentum in which manner?
John de la pole fled to burgundy where he joined lovell - Margaret of burgundy used her money and power to help Lovell and de la pole to raise troops
how much support was issued by Margaret to de la pole and lovell?
c.2000 mercenaries, led by the experienced Martin Schwartz
after their support from Margaret what did de la pole and lovell do?
the rebels and their troops then sailed to Ireland (a traditional Yorkist power base) In Ireland they met with members of the Irish nobility such as the earl of Kildare, who were sympathetic to their aims.
what did the Irish and English Yorkists do?
they crowned Simnel as king in Dublin and then launched a combined invasion of England
what did Henry Percy do to the rebel army and why was this significant?
he did nothing to stop the rebels, though he was the local lord supposed to be first in line of defence against rebellion.
This was significant because it is the same man who watched Bosworth from the sidelines. - his ambivalence was a worry for the king
this proved that he was more interested in staying neutral and protecting his own interests.
what was a significant mistake Henry made?
as an unexperienced king he failed to scrutinise de la poles behaviour - he trusted him even though there were rumours that he was involved in plots
what did Henry do by April of 1487?
he had been alerted of de la poles involvement and was starting to raise troops to meet the potential challenge.
Henry showed considerable tactical awareness - but in what way?
-ordered the coasts to be guarded (though rebels managed to land)
-as he began to receive intelligence that the rebels would invade from Ireland, Henry gradually moved northwards and westwards, gathering men and supplies as he went
-by may 8th, Henry arrived at Kenilworth castle, which he adopted as his base - here he waited for news of the rebel landing and when he received it he marched north meeting rebels at stoke.
what is the battle of stoke often considered?
the end of the war of the roses.
