‘I do desire an alliance with the finest Burgundy, says Edward the king’.

‘But Warwick disagreed and the benefits of  aligning with France he did sing!’

The seeds of a Lancastrian return to power were already been sown. There were tensions at Court. King Edward agreed with his father in-law Richard Woodville, Earl Rivers that an alliance with Philip of Burgundy rather than France was the best option for England. However, Warwick disagreed and advocated an alignment with King Louis XI of France.

‘Listening to father-law Richard, well best to keep it in the family way!’

Does this mean that Warwick’s influence has had its day?

Anyway despite these differences good news was on its way!

Richard Woodville, Earl Rivers.

In the summer of 1465:

Cometh the good news!

The fugitive king, Henry VI who had been in hiding in the north!

Was found lurking in Lancashire and to the Tower was brought forth!

Henry, escorted by Warwick was brought south and confined in the Tower of London. His wife Queen Margaret of Anjou was distraught, her hatred of Warwick became even more vehement.

King Henry VI in happier days.

However tensions at King Edward’s court were rising.

Loyalties sometimes firm, may with time begin to drift!

In June Edward’s action would widen the King Edward-Warwick rift!

The Lord Chancellor was Warwick’s younger brother, Archbishop George Neville. In June 1467, King Edward felt that the archbishop was less than trustworthy and dismissed him.

‘The widening gulf between the two men continued at quite a pace!

‘In the summer of 1468, Warwick received an almighty slap in the face?’

Margaret of York, the king’s sister married Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy. Warwick was beside himself with rage and a gnawing sense of acute disappointment.  So furious was he that he kept away from court for some considerable time.

Warwick’s dream of an Anglo-French alliance now seemed further away than ever. In his anguish, Warwick proclaimed:

‘Ah, ha! So he is known as Charles the Bold!

Well, I hope that he is in his tomb before he is not so old!’

Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy

Nevertheless, there were reasons for Warwick to be cheerful. Certain developments calculated to undermine the king had had come to the fore.

Merry England was not exactly brimming with merriment at the close of the 1460s. King Edward had promised peace and prosperity but this had yet to materalise. Taxation was high and this caused the usual resentment.

Lawlessness stalked the land, the English people feared for life and limb as well as their hard earned possessions. Brigands were making their appearence at many a corner in England’s fair land.

‘Tis a pity that in this land of ours so green and fair!’

That many would like to venture out at night but they do not dare!

All of this and more brought the scent of rebellion to the air!’

 

By secretly marrying Elizabeth in the merry,merry month of May!

King Edward knew that very soon would come the stormy confrontation day!

By September 1464, King Edward realised that he could keep his marriage a secret no longer. Richard Neville (Dickie) earl of Warwick had been working assiduously to reach an alliance with France through a marriage with Edward. On the 14th of the month at a meeting of the most powerful nobles in England, Edward announced that he had married that spring. This was a shock in itself, after all, Warwick had worn himself out trying to finalise a marriage between Edward and a member of the French royal family. But worse was to come!

Their lordships recoiled in a manner like men unable to breathe!

But what the king said next made each man Jack of them seethe!

The king then announced the name of his bride.

‘The name of my bride!’

And I say her name with a great deal of pride!’

Is Elizabeth Woodville

With great love and wisdom, my life she will fill!’

We do not know how King Edward behaved when he informed the peers of the realm of his dastardly deed. However we can imagine how the assembled lords reacted.

‘But Dickie Neville, Earl Warwick has been working his hind quarters off for a French alliance through marriage!’

‘Yes, poor Dickie!’

‘Then this bounder announces that he is already married!’.

‘Yes, and Lizzie Woodville is a commoner!’

‘A commoner and a Lancastrian at that!’

‘A lacky of Margeret of Anjou’s, a lady in waiting to her!’

Their lordships were totally stunned! Some shocked into silence, others, greatly traumatised began to exclaim utter gibberish!

The offending commoner, Elizabeth Woodville.

But that was not all! The king’s mother, Cecily Neville was particularly irate!

Mum’s the word!

Elizabeth Woodville is a low born bird!

Tis a terrible insult to the House of York!

My son the king speaks with a tongue fashioned as a fork!

Cecily Neville, the king’s mother.

What Edward had shown was that he was very much his own man. Warwick was extremely angry at having not being consulted. The king’s action had dispelled any suggestion that he was strongly under Warwick’s influence.

Much to Warwick’s displeasure, King Edward enthusiastically advanced the status of the Woodville family. This was done to a large degree by the arranged marriages of Queen Elizabeth’s sisters to ranking members of the aristocrcy.

On Friday May 24th 1465 Elizabeth Woodville was crowned Queen of England at Westminster Abbey.

Elizabeth Woodville in her coronation robes.

Warwick had still been in contact with King Louis of France with a view to securing an alliance between the two countries. However, as time passed, this appears to have become a lost cause. By the beginning of 1466, Warwick must have become a rather disillusioned man. Nevertheless, through his various high offices he remained a most powerful figure in England.

So divisions abound within the Yorkist camp. Warwick versus the Woodvilles. But what of the Lancastrians? How were Henry VI and his queen Margaret faring?

Edward steps forth wearing England’s ancient and much coveted crown!

The news of which causes Henry VI and his queen, Margaret to angrily frown!

After his coronation in June of 1461, Edward IV settled into the position of monarch. Of course this now meant that England had two annointed kings vying for control of the country.

The new king had a vision for the government he wanted and soon began his reforms. Edward was a great believer in law and order. Of course an orderly, calm England would benefit the country as a whole.  For example the king took measures to tackle piracy on the seas around England.

Pirates being pirates!

This helped to promote trade but also had the pleasing effect of filling the royal coffers with the increased tax revenue. Both the profits of English merchants and the treasurey benefited from the suppression of piracy as a consequence.

The new king would need a wife.

Edward was known for indulging in sins of lust!

He had little heed of  the quote ‘man thou art but dust!

The new king cut a magnificent portrait of young regal manhood. He stood some 6 feet 4 inches in height and always took care to be attired in the finest clothes. Women unmarried or otherwise found him irresistable and he took full advantage of their affections in order to satisfy his rampant passions. If this meant a trail of cuckolded husbands within the court and without, then so be it. Edward had many conquests and any relationship was always on his terms. The women were discarded as soon as the fancy took him.

Step forth Elizabeth Woodville.

However, there was but one exception to his lusty games. One woman, and of her affections, the king most certainly did not wish to trifle. Elizabeth Woodville was her name, a widow aged twenty seven, some four years older than Edward. The king was completely infatuated with her.

Elizabeth Woodville.

Edward had many women from whom to pick and discard as he chose!

But his true love was a woman who had once worn the Lancastrian red rose!

King Edward was determined to make Elizabeth his bride and this was to cause problems. The first difficulty was that Elizabeth was not of royal blood but a commoner. No king of England since 1066 had married a commoner.She also had a strong Lancastrian pedigree. Her late husband had stood, fought and died in the Lancastrian ranks and Elizabeth had been a lady-in-waiting to Henry Vl’s queen, Margaret of Anjou.

Edward wearing his crown and royal robes.

But there was a further consideration, the magnates of England wanted an alliance with France. The earl of Warwick was spending a great deal of time and energy in attempting to secure a marriage between Edward and Bono of Savoy, Louis XI’s sister-in-law. If this could be arranged, England and France would become aligned  and the French king would be an invaluable ally against any future Lancastrian threat. The nobility of England led by Warwick had high hopes of English-Franco alliance.

Edward really puts the cat amongst the pigeons.

As far as Edward was concerned there was but one suitable choice for a wife and that was Elizabeth Woodville. However he baulked at telling Warwick and the Privy Council. Edward decided that he would marry Elizabeth in secret and then inform Warwick and the English nobility at a later date.

Edward’s secret marriage ceremony to Elizabeth Woodville.

On the first day of May 1464, Edward secretly married Elizabeth in a low key ceremony with few witnesses. This event was to cause a huge political upheaval.

The Lows!

At York Henry VI and queen Margaret of victory did talk!

But when news of Towton came, out of their quarters with sad hearts did they walk!

In York, King Henry VI and his queen waited for news from Towton. The suspense was nerve-wrackinging but the word when it came, was like a  dagger thrust into the heart at point blank range. Henry must have been emotionally shattered by this catastrophic event. A nervous man, his powers of resilience, less than considerable, he must have cut a most forlorn figure in the depths of defeat.

King Henry VI in a rather sad frame of mind. Perfectly understandable given the circumstances.

As the shock of the disastrous defeat at Towton sunk in, Queen Margaret considered her options for the Lancastrian cause. How to dislodge Edward and the Yorkists? Perhaps the answer lie in the land on the other side of the Channel?

In the summer of 1461 Margaret decided to approach the King of France, the newly enthroned Louis XI.

Louis XI of France.

King Louis expressed support for Queen Margaret which heartened her greatly. Nevertheless the future for the Lancastrian cause was uncertain.

The Highs -Meanwhile down south.

Edward sat in London and prepared for his coronation!

Basking in the adulation of most of the English nation!

Things were going swimingly for Edward in London. He began to prepare for his coronation, which would be a lavish affair. The people of London appeared to adore him and swooned at his manly appearence and kingly bearing. The late June days of 1461 were ones of veritable fiesta in the city of London. There was a sense of tremendous joy abroad in every dwelling place, lane and thoroughfare.

It was a case of immense, great expectations for the young, outrageously handsome, new king Edward IV.

London was gripped in a frnzy of delireous joy!

Felt by every man, woman, girl and boy!

Edward’s coronation as Edward IV.

Edward’s coronation in Westminster Abbey on Sunday June 29th was a sumptuous occasion. Few monarchs could have hoped for a more auspicious beginning to their reign.

The only fly in the ointment was that the emotionally unstabe, Henry VI and his formidable queen, Margaret still lurked north of the border.

This Battle was one of slog, terrible bloody slog!

Man after man died a death unworthy for even a dog!

The afternoon brought a mass bloodletting stalemate. Thousands of men on both sides died that afternoon never knowing if their sacrifice was in vain or not.

Death in the afternoon!

Came to the brave, the clever and to the unintelligent goon!

Which side would carry the day? That would not be known until evening came. And so it continued, a gigantic bloody throng of men with metal swinging back and forth, the agonising cries of the injured punctuating the air. Many wounded fellows calling for help, but knowing full well that none would come. Only death with its accompanying pain would give them relief from their terrible agonies.

The driving sleet which stung their eyes and greatly affected their sight!

Their hearing distorted by the clash of steel on steel and the howls of strong men in pain as they fought with all their might! 

Those still standing were unaware if the sodden mess beneath their feet was sleet covered soil, or the blood and tissue of those already killed. Most likely a ghastly, slippery white and red mixture of both. A truly living and dying hell on freezing cold, bloodsoaked earth.

The ground of the battlefield was littered  with a truly horrible stew!

An ankle high covering of blood, bones and guts from the many, not just a few!

Richard Neville the earl of Warwick stoutly stood his ground for the Yorkist side but he knew only too well that it was touch and go.

Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick.

As darkness began to fall, the turning point came. The Yorkists received reinforcements who inflicted serious damage on the Lancastrians, forcing them to concede ground. Also the Yorkist archers maintained a murderous fusillade of arrows which caused havoc in the Lancastrian ranks. The Lancastrians knew they were defeated and began to flee the field. However, fleeing disaster was easier said than done. Further horror awaited them in their hour of defeat.

The Lancastrian’s only means of escape was to cross the bridge over the stream known as Cock Beck. In their rush to escape, many Lancastrians slipped on the snow covered banks of Cock Beck and plunged into its icy waters.

The river of Cock Bec which became the watery cemetery for so many Lancastrian soldiers.

The Yorkists too, were making for the bridge in an attempt to head off the defeated Lancastrians. The two sides met on the simple wooden bridge which was not built to sustain the weight of so many men. So the inevitable happened, the bridge collapsed sending men of both sides into the freezing depths of Cock Bec. The stream was packed tightly with the bodies of living, dying and dead soldiers. So much so that their crammed bodies and corpses would act as a bridge for the pursuing Yorkists. The hooves of the horses battering the bodies of both Lancastrians and Yorkists and pummeling them further down into the icy hell of a deep Yorkshire stream. Their shed blood mingling together, turning the clear frigid water into the colour red.

A bridge of skin, bone and blood!

All stuck together in the icy red flood!

T’was a terrible sight, men struggling to break free of the fast flowing current, their voices but howls of despair. But no matter,the victorious Yorkists must have said, the day is ours.

Men, both Lancastrian and Yorkists so brave!

Were consigned to a horrible watery grave!

The Yorkists had achieved a great victory but it was an expensive one.

 

‘My dear Queen Margaret, Richard, Duke of York may now be dead!

But he has a son, Edward, who will fight the Yorkist cause in his father’s stead!

On March 4th 1461, Edward of York was proclaimed king as Edward IV. England now had two kings, a source, no doubt of great anxiety to much of the populace. To King Henry VI, the matter was but a trifle, he was now so mentally withdrawn that this disturbing fact did not register with him in his distracted state.

Of we kings, there are two!

Who is the rightful monarch? Me or you?

There was no doubt in Edward of York’s mind as to who was the rightful monarch. However, the country was divided. The north backed the Lancastrians and the south supported the Yorkists.

The country is split into a north-south divide!

The north support the Lancastrian king, Henry VI, the south backed Edward on the Yorkist side!

Edward IV intent on wiping out Lancastrian opposition, northwards does take a ride!

What does this mean?

Under these most unusual circumstances, the only solution to the uncertainty was military victory. One side would have to decisively defeat the other on the field of battle.

The Battle of Towton.

The Battle of Towton would prove to be probably the bloodiest and longest battle ever to be fought in England. The two armies combined numbered between 50,000 to 65, 000 soldiers. Towton was a long, bitter slog war of attrition,which for much of the duration, no side appeared to be gaining the upper hand. It has been estimated that the death toll was some 28,000 men. Due to the horrific carnage wrought there, the battlefield was referred to as the ‘Bloody Meadow.’

Edward arrived at Pontefract castle in Yorkshire the day before Palm Sunday, March 29th.

‘A day in the Bloody Meadow.’

Hostilities commenced the next morning in the midst of a huge snowstorm. This slaughter would be known as the Battle of Towton.

This proved to be a decisive victory for the Yorkists. The outcome was due in no small part to the weather, which aided the Yorkists but hampered the efforts of the Lancastrians. Another factor was the leadership of Edward IV. Although only a fledging of eighteen years he proved himself a most competent commander.

The Lancastrian archers found themselves in a position where they were forced to discharge their arrows against the strong wind. This meant that their volleys, slowed by the wind, failed to reach as far as the Yorkist ranks.

King Edward might have said that his best commander was the weather!

Due to the direction of the icy strong wind, the Lancastrian arrow was of much use as a feather!

As the Lancastrian arrows landed harmlessly in front of the Yorkist ranks, the soldiers gathered them up for ammunition to fire back at the Lancastrians. Yes, the Lancastrians were now being killed by their own arrows.

Return to sender! Return to sender!

Position well known! 

It’s great to hear those horrible Lancastrians grown

Later, the battle moved to dreadful hand to hand combat.

The two armies enveloped in smothering thick snow!

Twas King Edward who proved himself to be the man in the know!

Edward showed himself to be very much a hands on, resourceful commander. Showing great courage he moved amongst his men, giving orders and shouting words of encouragement. He remembered how his father and brother had died at Lancastrian hands and wished to return the dreadful compliment with heartfelt relish. The tale of his father’s head being paraded around to Lancastrian jeers and sneers drove him to tears of both anger and sadness. He had to exorcise the terrible memory, and the only avenue available was blood revenge.

You placed my father’s head upon a pole on which you all did spit!

For your actions I will see to it that you are all buried together in one great pit!

True to his word, Edward did exactly that.

 

‘You ask what is my most earnest and sincere goal?

‘Tis to have the Duke of York’s severed head placed high upon a pole!’

Then upon his traitorous head we will place a paper crown!

Thus having been duly crowned, he will wear no smile, but instead a deadly frown!’

 

So sayeth Margaret of Anjou, Queen of England.

Queen Margaret of England

 

The Queen did not have to wait long for her revenge on the Duke of York.

Round 4: The Battle of Wakefield, December 30th, 1460.

A Lancastrian army engaged the Duke of York at Wakefield in Yorkshire. The battle was keenly watched by the Queen and her son, Edward. The Yorkists were defeated.

Result: A major Lancastrian victory.

The Queen and Prince Edward watch the battle.

‘Of this battle dear son, you are the most interested spectator!

See how victory and justice has come to us sooner, rather than later!’

Learning of her victory, and that York had been killed, the Queen could hardly contain her delight. Of course this was royal business, but it was also personal, very personal. She now issued her instructions:

‘From Richard of York’s lifeless body, his traitorous head, you must tear!

He has long sought England’s jewelled crown, but now it is a paper one that he will wear!’

The Queen was granted her greatest wish. Richard, Duke of York’s corpse, was  beheaded and then mounted high on a pole. Upon his severed head, Lancastrian soldiers, as they had been ordered, placed a paper crown.

Round 5: The second Battle of St Albans February 17th, 1461.

Margaret, greatly heartened by her victory at Wakefield and the death of York, marched south with a view to taking London. Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, rode out of the capital with a Yorkist army to engage Margaret.

Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick.

Warwick decided to take the captive Henry VI with him. Perhaps he thought that when Margaret realised that her husband, the king, was actually in the Yorkist camp she would lose heart and beat a hasty retreat.

‘When Queen Margaret learns that we have the king here in tow!

She will become distressed, and with her forces, retreat and northwards go!’

If this is what Warwick was thinking, he was badly mistaken. When the two armies met at St Albans on February 17th, Margaret urged her Lancastrian army forward with gusto.

The Second Battle of St Albans.

Inflicting heavy casualties upon the Yorkists, the Lancastrians drove the enemy from the field. The king was found nearby, sitting under a tree and singing to himself.

‘The king was found under a tree, singing softly as he sat!

As for the savage sights and sounds of the battle, not an eyelid did he bat!’

Result: A resounding Lancastrian victory.

Margaret had removed the obstacle preventing her from reaching London. With Henry at her side, the Queen smiling broadly, rode up to the city gates.

‘Oh! Oh! The joy of once again, seeing London town!

But soon Margaret’s smile turned into a frown!

However, the Londoners had heard bloodcurdling stories of the rapacious conduct of the Lancastrian soldiers and refused to open the city gates to them.

Queen Margaret, your men had proceeded to pillage

Every hamlet, town and village!

The Queen had no choice but to turn and ride northwards. Margaret was later to learn that when another of royal blood approached the gates of London, he was accorded a most warm welcome.

‘Queen Margaret, you may have rid yourself of one Duke of York!

But he had a son, Edward, who with great fanfare, through London’s gates would walk!’

With Queen Margaret’s retreat, Edward saw his chance. On February 27th, the eighteen year old Edward of York entered the gates of London, the citizens applauding him as a conquering hero.

‘He was York’s favourite son, was Duke Dick!

Now it looked like he was becoming the national pick!’

However, York had a formidable adversary in the Queen, Margaret of Anjou. She was convinced that York was planning to secure the throne for himself. This was something that Queen Margaret would oppose with every fibre of her being. The Queen was determined that her infant son, Prince Edward would succeed his father, the emotionally fragile Henry VI.

Margaret of Anjou.

‘My son, the Prince Edward will inherit his father’s regal role!

To this noble endeavour, I hereby pledge my heart and soul!’

As a precaution Queen Margaret persuaded Henry to move the court from London, which was Yorkist in its sympathies, to Coventry, which was close to the Lancastrian heartlands. For all practical purposes the Queen was the reigning sovereign as Henry’s mental state continued to deteriorate. In March 1458, a Mass of reconciliation between the Lancastrians and Yorkists was held at St Pauls Cathedral in London. It was entitled a ‘loveday’, and characteristically, it was the idea of the king.

Henry VI, present in body, but barely in mind, presides over what remains of his court.

As both factions entered the Cathedral, they were led by the Queen and the Duke of York who proceeded hand in hand. However, this mood of love and reconciliation was not to endure.

‘Queen Margaret and Richard of York walked into the House of God holding hands!

Despite the smiles of all those present, rancour ran rife amongst their respective loyal bands!’

Conflict was not long in coming.  The Queen had been preparing for war for quite some time. There followed a series of battles, beginning with the Battle of Blore Heath at Market Drayton, Shropshire in September 1459.

Round 2: The battle of Blore Heath, September 23rd 1459.

The Battle of Blore Heath.

Result: A Yorkist victory.

 

 Round 3: The Battle of Ludlow Bridge, October 12th 1459.

The Lancastrians were not long in making the score even at the Battle of Ludford Bridge, also in Shropshire the following month.

The Battle of Ludlow Bridge.

 

Result: A Lancastrian victory.

 

Round 3: The Battle of Northampton, July 10th 1460. 

This was a most humiliating defeat for the House of Lancaster, King Henry was taken captive. This relatively small scale military engagement had important consequences and York intended to press his advantage.

 

Result: A major Yorkist victory.

The king’s mental health meant that he could no longer function effectively and York demanded that he become the monarch in Henry’s place.

‘Tis clear that the king has lost all sense of reason!

I will be your king for this, and every one of, the four seasons!’

This was too much for the House of Lords as Henry, whatever his mental state, was still the anointed king. It was agreed that York would become king in the event of Henry’s abdication or death.

This of course meant that Henry’s own son, Edward the Prince of Wales had been disinherited. Queen Margaret’ fury knew no limits, her hatred of York reaching boiling point. Having once taken York’s hand in friendship, she now set about seeking his head in order to it place upon a pole.

 

 

 

‘At the king’s lamentable performance as monarch, the whole of England did frown!

With most of England’s French possessions lost, Henry suffered an enormous physical and mental breakdown!’

Although Cade’s rebellion had been put down and the leaders executed, further trouble was on its way. By the summer of 1453, all of England’s French lands, save Calais, had been lost. The news struck Henry in the manner of a thunderbolt, and left him an emotional and mental wreck. But, there were glad tidings that autumn as the Queen was delivered of a baby boy and thus a royal heir, named Edward. However, the king was in a terrible condition and a worried parliament appointed Richard, Duke of York as regent to rule in the king’s name. This would be York’s first protectorate.

‘Richard, Duke of York!

You are the man, who can walk the walk!

And spout the regal, royal talk!’

 

Richard, the third Duke of York.

The King recovers!

Come Christmas 1453, Henry had recovered his emotional and mental composure, thus ending York’s protectorate. York was now out of the power loop. The king now placed his trust in Edmund Beaufort 2nd Duke of Somerset. York was enraged at his banishment from court and Somerset’s elevation to the inner circle.

‘Richard, Duke of York was furious at his dismissal from power at court!

He concentrated his fury at the 2nd Duke of Somerset, Edmund Beaufort!’

The Duke of Somerset banishes Richard of York from the king’s presence.

The Duke of York and the Duke of Somerset were bitter enemies, and this enmity would precipitate the dreadful conflict known as the Wars of the Roses. England’s nobility now split into two factions. Those who supported the Duke of York were known as Yorkists and the supporters of the Duke of Somerset were referred to as Lancastrians.

The of the Roses, the Red Rose of Lancaster and the White Rose of York had begun.

Round 1 The Battle of St Albans – The opening salvo of the Wars of the Roses.

In May 1455, a great Council was to be held at Leicester led by the king, with Somerset at his side. Sensing danger at what he perceived as Somerset’s scheming, York decided to intercept the royal party en-route at St Albans. He wished to detach the Duke of Somerset from the king with a view to restoring himself to his former position.

Of course, detaching the Duke from the side of King Henry meant the detachment of Somerset’s head from his body, something that the king would not agree to. It was this disagreement that led to the first armed conflict of the long running military saga known as the War of the Roses.

At St Albans on May 22nd, York’s forces, and those of the king clashed at St Albans.

Result : A Yorkist victory.

The skirmish in which a mere 75 men were killed, was a decisive victory for the Yorkists. Somerset was killed and the king, who had taken refuge in a tanner’s cottage, was now effectively in Yorkist custody. Richard of York was jubilant as he escorted King Henry VI back to London.

‘The sun on Somerset’s ambitions of power, at St Albans had indeed set!

Many considered that rule by Richard of York was now the surest bet!’

As he journeyed south, the Duke of York considered himself solidly back on the path to power.

Henry VI

It was 1437 and Henry had decided, at the age of fifteen, to take the reins of royal power. He was still smarting at his mother’s incredibly unwise dalliance with Owen Tudor.

‘Oh Queen Catherine, my most dearest mama!

Your antics with Owen Tudor caused the entire realm to laugh, and cry ha-ha!

Dear mother, I shall miss you greatly, although I am now almost a man grown!

But I could not bear to have that ghastly Welshman, Tudor anywhere near me whilst I sit on my throne!’

However, his mother was dead, and weighty matters awaited the young king’s attention. The situation in France had deteriorated with Charles VII having taken Paris in 1436 and Normandy falling increasingly under threat. Henry, who resembled his military orientated father Henry V in no way whatsoever, was inclined to favour a peaceful resolution of the French question. Old king Hal must have been turning in his tomb!

Henry V

‘Dad, to give us both our rightful due!

You ain’t me and I ain’t you!’

The king was a pious soul, preoccupied with learning, so he established a number of educational institutions such as Eton. He was horrified at the news of bloodshed in France and wanted it ended. He took the view that the time was right for peace and a truce was arranged with Charles VII in 1444. As part of the deal, Henry was to marry Margaret of Anjou, the King of France’s niece.

The marriage of King Henry VI and Margaret of Anjou.

‘The way to stop the war in France and get a piece of much needed peace!

Is to marry pretty Margaret of Anjou, the French king’s niece!’

Oh well, why not, the king was an age at which to marry. The marriage took place in the spring of 1445, Margaret was 15 and Henry, 23. Margaret was a forceful, somewhat devious character, the polar opposite of her new husband.

‘King Henry, one of the gentlest creatures ever to the throne, born!

Queen Margaret possessed talons as sharp as any thorn!

This was a happy time as the king’s subjects welcomed the union and the prospect of an heir to the throne. It also appeared that peace with France had now been finalised.

The situation in France goes from bad to worse.

However, the pleasant interlude was to be brief, as storm clouds were gathering on the horizon. The English people were really quite disturbed that part of the peace treaty involved England ceding Maine to the French. What was this? The big give away?  Pretty soon much of Normandy was overrun by the French and by 1451 they had grabbed Gascony as well!

‘Bringing it all back home!

In Kent, did trouble quickly grow and greatly roam!’

The Kentish economy depended largely on its maritime commerce. However, this had been adversely affected by the situation in France. Also French marauders, without the English navy to stop them, were now attacking England’s southern coastline and causing havoc. This, combined with high taxation and accusations of corruption at court, confirmed in many minds that the country was without an effective government. This was the cause of an uprising beginning in Kent which would be known as Cade’s Rebellion. Henry was fast losing control!

‘The rebels of Kent were led by an Irishman, one Jack Cade!

They entered London and much destruction and slaughter was made!’

When the rebels marched to London and ransacked the city in June, Henry fled the city and sought sanctuary in the midlands.

‘As the rebels advanced on the city, the king ran away!

Leaving the people of London to stand alone and save the day!

Eventually the rebellion was defeated, but the king had played no part in reasserting royal authority. The people had expected leadership in the hour of crisis, but Henry had shown them only fear and abject cowardice.