Gone Medieval - The Wars of the Roses: Origins

Episode Date: May 7, 2022

The Wars of the Roses is a complex and fascinating period of English history that dominates the second half of the 15th century and leads to the rise of the Tudor dynasty. It’s often characterised as a dynastic struggle between Lancaster and York, but it was much more than that.In this first part of three special episodes, Matt Lewis details the origins of the conflict and how it erupted into open war. Episodes 2 and 3 will explore the events of the conflict, but this is a chance to get to grips with how, and why, it all began.The Senior Producer on this episode was Elena Guthrie. The Producer was Rob Weinberg. It was edited and sound designed by Annie Coloe.For more Gone Medieval content, subscribe to our Medieval Monday's newsletter here. If you'd like to learn even more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe today! To download, go to Android or Apple store. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From long-loss Viking ships and kings buried in unexpected places to tales of murder, power, faith, and the lives of ordinary people across medieval Europe and beyond. Join me, Matt Lewis, Dr. Eleanor Jarniger, and some of the world's leading historians as we bring history's most fascinating stories to life, only on history hit. With your subscription, you'll unlock hundreds of hours of exclusive documentaries

with a brand-new release every week exploring everything from the ancient world, to World War II. Just visit historyhit.com forward slash subscribe. Welcome to this special episode of Gone Medieval. I'm Matt Lewis. Over the next few weeks, we're going to be taking a deep dive into my favourite period, the Wars of the Roses. I should warn you, when I told our brilliant senior producer Elena that I could do a quick explanation of the conflict, I lied. Sorry Elena and thank you for indulging me in this. And I owe Annie and Aden, who have had to edit all of this a huge apology for going on for so long,

as well as a big thank you for all their fantastic work. The Wars of the Roses is a complex period that is open to differing interpretations. This, then, is my version. In this first episode, we'll take a look at the origins of the Wars of the Roses in some depth. Understanding the roots of this conflict is critical to getting to grips with what happens later, so I'm not rushing through this. In episode two, we'll deal with the dynastic conflict between Lancaster and York that rocked a kingdom to its core. The third part, we'll explore the implosion of the House of York, and we'll try to work out when the Wars of the Roses ended,

which is every bit as thornier point as when it began. But enough about roots and thorns, let's get stuck in to the origins of the Wars of the Roses. The Wars of the Roses, a 30-year dynastic struggle for the Crown, between the royal houses of Lancaster and York. That's the story everyone knows, or thinks they know. But just about every word of that first sentence is incorrect. The Wars of the Roses is a hugely complicated series of disputes. It's long periods of peace punctuated by brief but often bloody flashpoints of violence.

Precisely what the Wars of the Roses was is hard to encapsulate in a punchy tagline because it changed over its course several times. Few things are ever as simple as they appear on the surface, and local feuds were played out on a national stage, with propaganda so rampant and so effective that it can be hard to get to the truth. In the next four Saturday episodes of Gone Medieval,

we're going to take a deep dive into this complex civil war. We'll begin with my attempt to explain the Wars of the Roses. bits will necessarily be missing because it's a vast subject. The idea here is to offer an explanation of not only what happened, but why. If your favourite person or moment is missing, then I'm sorry, but do get in touch on social media, and I'd be glad to chat about it. Right, I've barricaded the doors so the producers can't stop me. I hope you've brought something to drink and a good supply of food.

We might well be here for some time. Perhaps we should begin by clearing up what we should call this conflict. The Wars of the Roses is the name that has stuck, though it wasn't coined in its final form until it appeared in Sir Walter Scott's novel Anne of Geersstein, published in 1829. The name is based on the premise that the House of Lancaster was represented by a red rose and the House of York by a white one. The White Rose was a symbol that was used by the House of York in the 15th century, but the House of Lancaster never used a red rose.

The appearance of red and white roses closely followed the Battle of Bosworth and the accession of Henry the 7th as the first Tudor King. Henry VIII was positioned as the embodiment of the union of the red and white roses, signifying the end of conflict between Lancaster and York. So roses were very soon used to talk about the period of the conflict. The Cousins War is a later still creation, the earliest known reference at the moment appearing in the mid-20th century. The bottom line here is that those living through this series of crises

probably didn't give it an overarching name. It was just life, just today. I call it the Wars of the Roses, but feel free to use another name if you wish. There's no right or wrong answers here. Part of the problem with studying the Wars of the Roses is the Lack of clear, incontrovertible source material, which means understanding the events is always a subjective assessment. So this is my version of the Wars of the Roses. The first question that's impossible to answer is where to begin. To give the fullest picture, we probably need to briefly visit 1399 and the

deposition of Richard II by his first cousin Henry Bollingbrook. Richard had become king aged 10. and his reign had proven a battle with his senior nobility that descended into tyranny in the 1390s. When his uncle John of Gournes, Duke of Lancaster, died with his son and heir Henry in exile, Richard tried to grab the valuable inheritance for himself. Henry returned to England to press his claim and found support from those disillusioned with Richard and unnerved by his tinkering with the laws of succession. If he deprived Gaunt's heir, who might be next? Richard was deposed on the 29th of September 1399 and replaced by Henry, who became King Henry the 4th, the first Lancasterian king, the dynasty taking its name from the primary title it held before taking the crown.

This was the first time since 1154 that the crown had not passed from father to son, or at least from brother to brother. Edward II had been deposed, but in favour of his son and heir. Richard had no children, and his cousin Henry was not considered by many to be his heir presumptive. An heir presumptive is one who holds the position of air, but who might be displaced. An heir apparent is one whose position cannot be taken by the better claim of another. So usually, an heir apparent will be the reigning monarch's oldest son. And an heir presumptive will be the one most likely to follow the king if no son arrives to displace them. The Mortimer family were considered by many to be Richard II's heirs presumptive,

but in 1399, that claim rested in the seven-year-old Edmund Mortimer. In no position to press his own claim, Henry took the throne. The whole question of the entail of the Crown by Edward III and Richard II is a complex and much debated matter in itself, so even this is far from clear cut. The point is really that in 1399, an unpopular failing king was deposed and replaced by a family member drawn from a pool wider than brothers or sons. A dangerous precedent had been set. Henry V. Henry V was succeeded by his son, Henry V, who in turn was succeeded by his only son, Henry VI, who became King of England aged just nine months.

Henry the 6th is the only person in history to have been crowned King of England and King of France in both respective countries, but his reign would prove riven by faction, poor leadership and mental health problems. Skipping ahead, the 23rd of February 1447 is a date that I make a case for being the real start of the Wars of the Roses. It's usually well outside the bounds of the wars, but as I hope we'll see, that neat 30 years really is a myth and history is all about context. On the 23rd of February 1447, Humphrey Duke of Gloucester died. Humphrey was the last surviving paternal uncle of Henry 6th, so the youngest brother of Henry 5th and youngest son of Henry the 4th. Humphrey had been at the Battle of Agincourt in 1415,

aged 25. He'd been knocked to the ground at one point and as French knights loomed over him to deliver a barrage of blows sure to kill him, a gleaming figure stepped across his prone body and beat the French forces back while Humphrey was dragged to safety. That figure was none other than his big brother, King Henry V. It's believed to have been at this point that Henry was so close to danger that a piece of his crown was hacked off, all to save his little brother's life. I don't think Humphrey ever forgot that, and after his brother's premature death in 1422, he decided the only way he could repay Henry was to keep the gains made in France safe for his son, the infant Henry VI. Humphrey became the face of the pro-war party in England

during the reign of his nephew. Opposed to this was a peace party, nominally led by Henry Beaufort, Cardinal Bishop of Winchester. This Henry, let's call him the Bishop of Winchester for the sake of clarity, was Humphrey's uncle, an illegitimate son of Henry IV by Catherine Swinford,

who had later been legitimised, along with his siblings, the other members of the Beaufort family. Humphrey and the Bishop of Winchester became bitter rivals in what was a forerunner to the disputes of the wars of the roses. Two irreconcilable factions emerged and as Henry VI grew into a man it became clear that he was obsessed with peace. One faction held sway and Humphrey effectively became the leader of the opposition. He identified several senior nobles with his cause mainly because they were like him being actively excluded

from government without apparent good reason. The first name on Humphrey's list was always Richard Duke of York. There's no evidence that York particularly agreed with Humphrey, but he was being excluded. This may well have been because of his position and his blood. Humphrey was Henry VI heir presumptive, next in line to the throne until the king had a son. York was Henry's second cousin once removed by their shared descent

from Edward III. After Humphrey, he was, arguably, and that's important, the senior male of the Plantagenet line. The arguably bit is because there were the Beauforts who were descended from John of Gaunt and had been legitimised. Despite the commonly held belief that they were barred from the throne, this wasn't actually the case. That's something we'll explore in a later episode. Of perhaps more significance was the identity of York's mother. She had been Anne Mortimer, the sister of Edmund, who we met earlier when he was too young to press his claim to the throne in 1399. Edmund died childless in 1425,

and York inherited the earldom of March and the other Mortimer titles, as well as their vast wealth, and their lingering claim to the throne that Henry VI now occupying. I think York was viewed with suspicion before he even entered the political arena because of the blood in his veins. By 1446, Henry VI was suspicious of his uncle Humphrey. When he arrived at Barry St Edmund's, the heartlands of Henry's favourite, the Duke of Suffolk, in February 1447, Humphrey was arrested and charged with treason for plotting to murder his nephew and take the throne for himself. It was a pattern of paranoia based on little or no evidence that would mark Henry's reign.

Humphrey, age 56, died in custody. It seems most likely he suffered a stroke brought on by the stress, but rumour abounded almost immediately that he'd been poisoned, murdered. If the Bishop of Winchester felt he'd won, his victory was short-lived. He died within a few weeks of Humphrey on the 11th of April 1440. The reason I suggest this as a pin in the timeline that begins the Wars of the Roses is that all of Humphrey's support smoothly transferred to the man he had identified most closely with his cause, the man who was also now heir-presumptive in the minds of many,

a man who had mortimer blood in his veins, the new leader of the opposition to the king's policies. York. There's no signal York wanted this. But smoke was now billowing from around him, and it was enough for Henry to see flames. For the first time, opposition to the House of Lancaster had a focus outside the House of Lancaster. Henry VI had created a problem that would torment him for the rest of his life. 1450 would also prove a critical year for Henry's kingship.

It began with the murder on the 9th of January of Adam Moline, the Bishop of Chichester, who had been Lord Privy Seal in Henry VI's government at Portsmouth. He was killed by soldiers waiting to embark for France in a reminder that England wasn't isolated from foreign policy problems and that the collapse of the Hundred Years' War imported problems back to England's shores. Things continue to go badly with the exile and murder of Henry's favourite, William de la Poul, Duke of Suffolk. He was sailing into exile after Henry had been in.

been forced to deal with accusations against his friend when he was dragged from his ship and beheaded. His body was dumped on Dover Beach with his head on a spike next to it. I hope you're not having your breakfast or anything at this point but if you are or you're thinking about it that isn't the end of the gore I'm afraid. Incidentally as part of the charges laid against Suffolk it was claimed that he tried to marry his son John to Lady Margaret Beaufort in order to position himself as an heir to the throne. In 1450, Beaufort Blood was seen as a legitimate route to the crown. In June 1450, William Iskhoff, the Bishop of Salisbury, was also murdered by his congregation at Eddington in Wiltshire. After celebrating Mass, they dragged him from the church

to the top of a nearby hill and beat him to death. His only offence seems to have been having officiated at the wedding of Henry 6th and Margaret of Anjou. By early July, a popular revolt known as Cage Rebellion was occupying London after Henry and his court retreated to the Midlands. How can toilet training cows help save the planet? Should we start renting our clothes and why on earth is beds from the Happy Mondays now keeping bees? I'm Jimmy Doherty, TV presenter, Farmer and Conservationist.

And these are just a few of the questions we'll be answering on my new podcast on Jimmy's Farm from History Hit. Join me on the farm to hear from the likes of the founder of the Eden Project, Sir Tim Smith, Professor Dieter Helm on how to stop climate change, and my old friend, Jamie Oliver. Listen to On Jimmy's Farm Now, wherever you get your podcasts. Jack Cade is a shadowy character, but once in London, he began to use the name John Mortimer,

in a move that rang alarm bells in Henry's troubled mind. The rebellion was defeated, but the episode left deep scars. So 1450 had seen the murder of a duke, two murdered bishops, and a popular revolt occupying the capital, but it was barely even the beginning of the increasingly unpopular Henry's problems. In the wake of these disasters, York returned to England. He had been appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland and had been there performing the role, probably as much to get out of the way after Humphrey's death as anything else. Before that post, he'd twice acted as Lieutenant General in France.

Despite performing well, he'd been replaced there by Edmund Beaufort, Duke of Somerset, a nephew of the Bishop of Winchester. The intense rivalry between Humphrey and the Bishop had entered the next generation in York and Somerset. When York tried to land in Wales, he was threatened with arrest. Henry later confessed he had ordered York's detention because he was uncertain of the Duke's intentions. York swore he had returned only to help the king restore order. To his consternation, he found Somerset had beaten him to the king's side.

Somerset had lost control of France and retreated to England only to find himself at the king's right hand in high favour. Was he whispering against his rival? York certainly thought so. Before the end of 1450, when Parliament met in London, there was rioting and Somerset was attacked. York took to the streets and successfully enforced law and order. The question, Somervast, is whether he restored peace so easily, because he had instigated the troubles, precisely so that he could save London from them. By 1452, York was raising an army at his base at Ludlow Castle on the Welsh border,

the heart of the Mortimer Power Base. He wrote to surrounding towns directly naming and accusing Somerset, saying, The said Duke ever prevaileth and ruleth about the king's person, and that by this means the land is likely to be destroyed. York marched his army to London, but found the city's gates closed to him. He skirted the walls and made camp at Dartford, just east of London and on the south bank of the River Thames. One account states that York had 8,000 men at arms and 3,000 gunners. He was supported by the Earl of Devon with 6,000 men and Lord Cobham with a further 6,000. Seven ships were on the Thames to keep them supplied and provide transport if needed.

Henry sent a delegation to find out what York wanted. Strikingly, it included the father and son Earls of Salisbury and Warwick, both named Richard Nell. Salisbury was York's brother-in-law, his sister was Duchess Cecily Neville of York. The Neville family were still at this point firmly in the King's camp. York demanded Somerset's arrest and trial for treason and mismanagement in France. Henry agreed. York disbanded his force and went to the King. As he entered Henry's presence, he was horrified to see Somerset at the King's side, without a smiling at his victory.

It was York, who was the prisoner. He was forced to parade through the streets of London as a captive and to swear a long, humiliating oath at St Paul's Cathedral, that he would never again raise an army or challenge Henry. Now, if you don't already know, my sympathies in the Wars of the Roses tend to lie on the Yorkist side of things. Nevertheless, this could, probably should, have been an end to it. If Henry had executed York for his treason at Dartford,

that might well have been the end of the whole matter. As it was, a rumour came from the West that York's 10-year-old son, Edward Earl of March, was raising an army to attack London, and York was released in a panic. The story seems incredibly unlikely, but the threat of it, the propaganda, worked wonders. In 1453, England was spiraling towards cancer,

In the north, the Percy family of the Earl of Northumberland attacked a wedding party of the Neville family of Salisbury and Warwick as part of a dispute over property. The long-running feud between the Courtney and Bonneville families in the south-west had spilled over into violence. There was also a siege developing at Cardiff Castle between the Earl of Warwick and the Duke of Somerset. Henry was pulled in all directions by local feuds, but these would all feed into the national situation soon enough. The king could only deal with one of these threats. Unsurprisingly to many, he opted for the one involving Somerset

and came down on the side of his new favourite. Somerset and Warwick were married to half-sisters and Somerset now claimed part of their father's inheritance that Warwick had held for years. Henry ordered Warwick to hand it over and Warwick refused, digging in at Cardiff, castle, the focus of the disputed properties. Warwick and his father Salisbury now swung the might of the Neville family, behind York. As Henry travelled west to force Warwick to obey, he reached

the Royal Hunting Lodge at Clarendon in Wiltshire. Here, in August 1453, the king had a complete breakdown. Precisely what afflicted him is hard to judge at this distance, but we know he stopped speaking or moving, he couldn't support his own weight or acknowledge anyone around him. It's possible Henry received news of the defeat and death of John Talbot, the Earl of Shrewsbury, at the Battle of Castion on the 17th of July 1453, a crushing loss considered by most the last action of the Hundred Years' War. Henry's grandfather, Charles I 6th of France, had suffered from episodes of poor mental health, though these tended to be manic, and sometimes violent, Henry just absented himself from a world too full of troubles.

In a medieval society, when all power and authority flowed from the crown, a catatonic king was utterly disastrous. The council, the body of the king's closest advisers, hid the problem for as long as they could. After eight years of marriage, Queen Margaret gave birth to a son on the 13th of October 1453. When the baby was presented to the king, he failed to recognise the child or claim him as his own, a vital step in his acceptance as heir apparent to the throne. A crunch moment arrived when John Kemp, Archbishop of Canterbury, died on the 22nd of March 1454. The king's involvement was required to appoint a successor.

The secret could be kept no longer. A decision had to be made. Margaret of Anjou, Henry's Queen, made an ill-judged claim to the authority of a regent. Not only was she a woman in a misogynistic England, but she was French too, the embodiment of the old enemy, with whom England was still technically at war. The council frantically looked for an alternative to Margaret and Somerset. They offered York, the role of Lord Protector, responsible for the military security of England, and also offered him a leading role on the ruling council. York accepted after ensuring some safeguards were built in and he couldn't be

accused of grabbing at power, which he has been ever since nevertheless. York ruled with a remarkably even hand. Somerset was arrested on charges of treason brought by the Duke of Norfolk, though York refrained from a trial that would almost certainly have seen Somerset executed. York had Henry's baby son installed as Prince of Wales in a clear signal that he had no designs on the Crown. He retained many of Henry's closest advisers on the Council, including the King's half-brothers, Edmund and Jasper Tudor, earls of Richmond and Pembroke, respectively. Some key offices, such as Lord Chancellor, went to York's allies, most notably among his Neville in-laws. On Christmas Day 1454, an unexpected event shocked all.

of England. King Henry 6th rose and spoke, beginning to move. It was branded as a Christmas miracle, though more cynical commentators have suggested that if Henry's illness was a disaster, then his recovery was a catastrophe. As soon as he was able to form the words, Henry dismissed York and ordered Somerset's release and restoration. Those installed in office by York were sacked. Henry was reportedly shocked and delighted to learn that he now had a son, proclaiming that he had no memory of the child at all. A tent stalemate set in again, when York, Salisbury and Warwick were summoned to a great council meeting in the Midlands in 1455. They were cautious. This was precisely how Humphrey had died. They gathered armed

retinues and approached the king as he travelled north, taking care to write at every stop to tell him where they were and what they were doing. When York and his allies arrived outside the walls of St Albans, they found the king and an army inside the walls. The gates shut firmly against them. On the morning of the 22nd of May 1455, York sent word that he wanted to speak to the king. A refusal came back, along with a threat that if they didn't leave immediately, I shall destroy them every mother's son and they be hanged and drawn and courted that may be taken afterwards. York contended that these were not the words of the king, but those of Somerset, who had prevented York's messages from reaching Henry. He may have been right, but the talking was over.

York and Salisbury assaulted the gates, which were stoutly defended by Lord Clifford. Warwick, now 26, took his men around the walls and found. found a gap in the defences that let him clamber into some gardens. Slipping through the streets, they weaved their way to the Market Square. There stood King Henry, not wearing his armour, and surrounded by men that thought they were safe from any immediate danger. With the battle cry of, Aworick! A Warwick! The archers unleashed a storm of arrows into the marketplace, wreaking havoc.

Humphrey Stafford, Duke of Buckingham, was struck in the face, and the king was wounded in the neck by an arrow. As he was taken to a tanner shop for treatment, the battle raged in the narrow streets. Those protecting the gates were unsure what was happening and as their concentration failed, the defences fell. Lord Clifford was killed and in the fighting that followed, the Earl of Northumberland, the great rival to the Neville family, also fell.

The Duke of Somerset was cut down outside the castle in after a valiant last stand. His son, Henry Beaufort, now the new Duke of Somerset, was so severely injured that he had to leave St Albans in a cart. The battle won, York burst into the Tanner's shop. Now, I'd suggest that if he had any designs on the throne at this point, it was the work of a moment to widen that wound at Henry's neck and mourn his death. Instead, York fell to his knees, pledged his fealty to the king and removed him to St. Albans Abbey to rest. better care at the hands of the monks. The whole place was filled with corpses of the slain, wrote John Wietamsted, abbot of St Albans. He described walking the streets of the town in the

aftermath and seeing dead bodies in the roads that he knew, broken bones and split skulls and cobbles stained in blood as the Yorkist army plundered. The First Battle of St Albans, spoiler alert, there's another one, on the 22nd of May 1455, is often cited as the start date of the Wars of the Roses. This, though, was no fight for the right to wear the crown. York believed he had a right and was better qualified to be at Henry's right hand. He believed Somerset had whispered against him and harmed his reputation. St Albans was about the right to be the chief minister to a weak king, and it was about settling local feuds like that between the Percy and Neville families. If it began the Wars of the Roses, it was only in solidifying hatreds and creating even more bitter

grudges. The sons of St Albans wanted their vengeance. In the aftermath of the battle, York was appointed as Lord Protector again, though this time there's no evidence that Henry was ill, only that his competence to rule was severely doubted. The second Protector of was brought to an abrupt end when York brought before Parliament an act of resumption. This would take back some of the ridiculously extravagant gifts Henry had been giving, plunging the crown into debt. Spooked at the thought of personal loss, the lords recalled the king and had him send York packing. They wanted reform, but not reforms that dented their fortunes, thank you very much.

Another stalemate set in, until Henry had a burst of decisive, energy and committed to resolving all his kingdom's problems once and for all. In 1458, a series of negotiations were held in London. The Yorkist lords were made responsible for what had happened and ordered to pay reparations to the families of Somerset, Northumberland and Clifford, which they did. Throughout, the new Duke of Somerset, the new Earl of Northumberland and the new Lord Clifford were spoiling for a fight, setting ambushes for York and his allies. The culmination of the talks was what Henry called a love day, when the two sides paraded through London holding each other's hands

and professing that they'd kissed and made up. I imagine a lot of sweaty hands, gritted teeth and competitive hand-crushing. Henry was probably the only person in the kingdom who was fooled. A new Cold War set in across England. Salisbury went to his fortress in the north at Midland Castle. York went to Ludlow. Warrick based himself in Calais where he was captain. Queen Margaret was viewed as leading Henry's faction by this point, supported by Somerset and Northumberland. Whether they were particularly loyal to Henry or just bitterly opposed to York and the Nevels is unclear and probably irrelevant.

An English Chronicle complained that the Queen, with such as were of her affinity, ruled the realm as she liked. lines had been drawn in Henry's England. All that remained was to see who would cross them first. In the summer of 1459, it was York's faction that blinked. Salisbury mobilised his forces, moving from Yorkshire towards Ludlow. Warwick brought the Calais garrison, the closest thing to a professional army in medieval England across the channel. York called in retainers from across England and Wales.

On the 23rd of September 1459, Salisbury was intercepted by a force raised by Margaret in the name of her son, Edward Prince of Wales, wearing his swan badge. At the Battle of Blore Heath in Staffordshire, Lord Audley's royalist forces were larger than that of Salisbury. The experienced Salisbury ensured a narrow but deep brook separated the two armies. An archery jewel opened the fighting with only a few casualties on Salisbury. Salsbury's side, but 500 reported dead on Audley's. Lord Audley ordered a charge and Salisbury's force broke and fled. As the cavalry gathered pace, Salisbury's men turned and unleashed a storm of arrows. The withdrawal had been a trick. Fierce hand-to-hand fighting lasted half an hour, but Audley's larger force was slaughtered, the Baron himself

amongst the slain. As Salisbury prepared to leave the battlefield, there were worrying reports of of another royalist army nearby. Salisbury's solution was to leave behind one of his cannon and pay a local friar to fire it at regular intervals throughout the night to confuse the enemy into thinking a battle was still taking place on the heath. Under cover of the friar's gun, Salisbury's army made its way on to Ludlow. In early October, York marched his massed forces out of Ludlow,

heading for London. He probably planned to repeat his actions at Dartford, seven years earlier, though once bitten, twice shy, he wouldn't be so easily fooled by Henry's promises anymore. They'd just left Worcester when news arrived that a royal army was heading their way, probably twice their number, and led by the king himself, wearing his armour and flying the royal standard of England. If they'd managed to rationalise what they'd done to this point, facing the king under his banner was undoubtedly treason. The Yorkist, backpedaled all the way to Ludlow and began to dig defensive earthworks.

Late in the evening of the 12th of October 1459, the Royal Army came into view outside Ludlow. An offer arrived of a pardon for all who sought the King's mercy, with the exception of Salisbury for taking the field against the Prince's army. This caveat must have made the deal unpalatable to Warwick and probably impossible for York too. Later stories told of Yorkist guns firing on the king's position and York spreading a rumour that Henry was dead. Now how accurate those charges are is unclear since they come from a parliamentary session about to take place that would transform this conflict into the dynastic struggle that we view it as today. One group did avail themselves of the pardon. The Calais garrison scaled the earthworks in the night and fled into the king's

mercy. They took with them the plans of the Yorkist defences and tactics. York, Salisbury, Warwick and York's two oldest sons, Edward Earl of March, let's call him March for now, and Edmund Earl of Rutland, who can be Rutland, withdrew to the castle for an emergency council of war. When the sun rose in the morning, they were all gone. The lords had probably left via the Postern Gate in Mortimer's Tower at Ludlow Castle. York and Rutland made for Ireland and Salisbury, Warwick and March headed for the south coast and across to Calais. They'd chosen to flee rather than fight the king. Perhaps that's a signal they knew they couldn't win, or that they still didn't want to directly challenge Henry. The Royal Army fell on Ludlow,

looting the town. York's wife, Cecily, and their three youngest children, Margaret, George and Richard, were left behind and taken into custody. There may well have been a plan here to leave Cecily to pave the way home for York, and certainly the young children were deemed safe from any reprisals. They were placed into the care of Cecily's sister, Anne, Duchess of Buckingham. The Parliament that opened on the 20th of November 1459

had been summoned on the 9th of October before the events at Ludlow. It would later be dubbed the Parliament of Devils, It was this that irreversibly altered the face of the disputes that had racked England for a decade. York, March, Rutland, Salisbury and Warwick were attainted for treason, tried in Parliament and declared guilty. They were stripped of all their lands and titles and left with nothing for themselves and nothing to hand to the next generation.

It was utterly devastating to a medieval noble dynasty. Now, and only now, I think, York was put. backed into a corner and felt compelled to take the ultimate step, the one he'd worked to avoid even the suspicion of for 10 years. Warwick, a famous sailor, which in this context means pirate, sailed from Calais to Ireland to collect his mother who was with York. It seems impossible that plans for what would come next weren't finalised during this visit.

I hope that's wet your appetite and that you'll join me again next time as we move deeper into the Wars of the Roses. You can join Dr Kat Jarman on Tuesday for another brand new episode. Don't forget to also subscribe wherever you get your podcasts from and tell your friends and family that you've gone medieval. If you have a moment, please drop us a review or rate us wherever you listen to your podcasts, including Spotify. It really does help new listeners to find us.

If you're enjoying this and looking for a bit more medieval goodness in your life, then subscribe to our Medieval Monday's newsletter. just follow the links in the show notes below. Anyway, I'd better let you go. I've been Matt Lewis, and we've just gone medieval with history hits.