The Tudor Rose

The Tudor Rose is one of the most famous English symbols, from one of England's most famous dynasties. The Rose symbolizes the union between the House of Lancaster (Red Rose) and the House of York (White Rose), with the two roses forming the Tudor Rose. The Tudors ascended to the English throne after Henry VII, from the House of Tudor (a Lancastrian descendant and supporter), defeated Richard III of York at the Battle of Bosworth Field, ending the War of the Roses.

The War of the Roses was a struggle for power between the House of Lancaster and York that lasted from 1455 until 1485 (or 1487 according to some historians). Both Houses were branches of the House of Plantagenet, which ruled England until 1399. The war received this name because of the roses each House used to represent them, but the name was only given much later in the 19th century. In fact, only the House of York used the rose as a symbol during the war, and even so it wasn't their most important emblem.

The House of York was founded by Edmund of Langley in 1385. He is believed to have chosen the white rose as one of its badges. The white color has a religious meaning, it represents the Virgin Mary (purity). And even though the white rose became a symbol of York, most nobles in Yorkshire supported their opponents, the Lancastrians. The House of Lancaster was created in 1267, when the Edmund Crouchback was made Earl of Lancaster by Henry III. The red rose is a representation of the Rosa gallica officinalis and was used as a royal badge. However, during the War of the Roses, this badge wasn't used until the end of the war in 1485.

When Henry Tudor became King Henry VII he united both Houses by marrying Elizabeth of York, and he merged the two roses, creating the Tudor rose that contains both the red and the white rose. The Tudor rose is one of England's most famous symbols and it's still used to this day as a royal symbol and for decorative purposes.

The Princes in the Tower

Edward IV died at age 40 on April 9th 1483, leaving two sons, Edward V of England (age 12) and Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York (age 9). His eldest son was to be King of England, with his brother, Richard III, being the Lord Protector of the Realm until his son reached the age of 18. However, the events that followed in 1483 led to the death of the two boys, and even though there is no definite proof of who killed the boys, Richard III is believed to be responsible for their deaths.

The two boys were seen for the last time playing outside the Tower of London in the summer of 1483, when they were kept in the inner apartments of the Tower (which was still used as royal residence at that time). Many historians believe that Richard III was the one who ordered their death, in an attempt to consolidate his power. Although Richard tried to suppress the power of the family from the boys’ mother (Elizabeth Woodville), even executing one of her family members, there is no absolute evidence that he ordered the death of the boys. To Richard’s favor, the marriage between Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville was declared illegitimate by Parliament in 1483, meaning that the boys were no longer heirs to the throne, allowing Richard to become King of England without having to kill them.

Thomas More wrote History of King Richard III around 1513 (during Henry VIII’s reign), blaming Richard for the princes’ death. The book served as the base for William Shakespeare play’s Richard III. The negative image most people tend have of Richard is based on the works of More and Shakespeare, and the two authors were supporters of the Tudor dynasty (who were enemies of Yorkists like Richard) that reigned after Richard. Therefore, historians nowadays believe the image of Richard portrayed in those works is exaggerated. 

But if Richard III didn’t kill the princes, who did? Some theories suggest that Henry Tudor (who later became Henry VII of England) ordered the murder of the boys, thus clearing his way to the throne. Others believe that Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham is responsible for their death. Stafford would have done it after switching sides from supporting Richard to supporting Henry Tudor. There is also the theory that Edward would have died from an illness, since he was constantly visited by his doctor.

Nevertheless, the death of the princes did not allow Richard to be king for long. On August 22nd 1485, Henry Tudor defeated and killed Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field, thus becoming Henry VII, the last king of England to win his throne on the field of battle. In order to strengthen his claim to the throne, Henry made the marriage between Edward IV and Elizabeth Woodville legitimate once again and married their daughter, Elizabeth of York. This united the Houses of York and Lancaster (his House), and ended the war between the two Houses, the War of the Roses.