Henry VII’s Claim to the Throne & Consolidation of Power (AQA A Level History: Component 1: Breadth study): Revision Note

Summary

• The Wars of the Roses (1455–1485) were a series of dynastic civil wars between the Houses of Lancaster and York, ending at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485

  • Note: Some Historians claim that the Wars of the Roses were not over until the Battle of Stoke Field, 1487

• Henry VII's claim to the throne was weak – he relied on conquest, parliamentary title and his marriage to Elizabeth of York to legitimise his rule

• Henry was cautious and shrewd

  • His primary aims were to secure the dynasty, restore order and build royal finances

• His position was threatened by pretenders – most notably Lambert Simnel and Perkin Warbeck, as well as surviving Yorkist nobility

• Historians debate how secure the Tudor dynasty truly was by 1509

  • While Henry left a stable crown and strong finances, the dynasty rested on a single male heir and the Yorkist threat had not been fully extinguished

The Wars of the Roses: Causes & Consequences

• Throughout much of the 15th century, England experienced political instability

  • The Wars of the Roses started in 1455 between the House of York and the House of Lancaster due to the unsuccessful reign of Henry VI

• Between 1455 and 1485, England saw five changes of monarch and periods of civil war

  • Many nobles took advantage of this instability to gain more control over their local areas

• The Wars of the Roses ended at the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, which saw Henry Tudor (Henry VII) become king

The Battle of Bosworth, 1485

• The Battle of Bosworth (22 August 1485) is seen as the last major battle of the Wars of the Roses

  • It was fought between the unpopular Yorkist King Richard III and the Lancastrian claimant Henry Tudor

The forces

Positioning

• Richard: Positioned his army on Ambion Hill

  • This was a strong defensive position

• Henry Tudor: At the bottom of the hill

  • This was a weak position (they would have to run uphill into the archers)

• Stanley Family: Stood off to the side, weighing up who to support

Decisive moments

• Richard led a cavalry charge against Henry's forces

  • He spotted Henry exposed and charged directly at him to end the battle

• The Stanleys intervened in Henry's favour at this critical moment

  • Richard became isolated and was killed (the last English king to die in battle)

• According to legend, the crown was found by a soldier under a hawthorn bush

  • Thomas Stanley placed it on Henry's head, proclaiming him King Henry VII

Why is this important?

• The Stanleys acted out of self-interest, not loyalty

  • This is exactly the kind of noble power Henry would spend his reign trying to control

  Henry backdated his reign to 21st August ( the day before the battle)

  • This meant that Richard's supporters could be treated as traitors

Henry VII's Claim to the Throne: How Strong was it?

• Henry Tudor's claim to the throne was weak

  • Henry's claim came through his mother, Margaret Beaufort

Margaret Beaufort

• A direct descendant of Edward III

• However, the Beaufort line came from John of Gaunt's illegitimate children

  • They were born before John of Gaunt married their mother

  • This meant Henry’s claim was legally weak and open to challenge

Edmund Tudor

• Henry’s father, Edmund Tudor, had no royal blood claim

• His mother, Catherine of Valois, had previously been married to Henry V

  • This made Edmund the half-brother of King Henry VI

  • Henry VII was therefore the half-nephew of Henry VI

• This gave Henry royal connections and status, but not a legitimate claim to the throne

The reality of Henry's claim

• He was the only viable Lancastrian claimant remaining

• His victory at Bosworth was seen as a sign of divine approval

• He strengthened his claim further through:

  • Conquest:

    • Defending his crown in later battles

  • Parliamentary title:

    • Parliament recognised his right to rule

  • Marriage to Elizabeth of York:

    • Uniting the two rival houses

Character & Aims of Henry VII: What Kind of a King was he?

• Henry VII had lived in exile in Brittany since the age of 14

  • This followed the Battle of Tewkesbury, in which many of his Lancastrian relations died or were executed

  • Many of his character traits stem directly from these years as a fugitive

Henry's character traits

• Shrewd

  • Henry chose the practical option in most situations

  • He prioritised long-term security over dramatic or forceful action

    • Example: when Lambert Simnel was captured after the Battle of Stoke (1487), Henry pardoned him and put him to work in the royal household. Publicly executing a child would have made him look weak and insecure

• Cautious and suspicious

  • Years in exile left Henry deeply suspicious of other people's motives

    • He trusted very few people

    • This became more pronounced after the death of Prince Arthur (1502)

• Financially astute

  • By the end of his reign, he had built up a substantial treasury surplus

  • This was remarkable given the near-bankruptcy of the Crown in 1485

• Respected, but not popular

  • Henry relied on authority rather than personal appeal

  • A Florentine visitor noted he was "more feared than loved"

Problems facing Henry on taking the throne

• When Henry ascended the throne, there were some particular problems he was facing:

• The nobility

  • The nobility had gained significant power, wealth and influence during the Wars of the Roses

  • Due to their strength, their power often rivalled, and challenged the Crown itself

    • This posed a threat to royal authority

• Administration

  • The distribution of royal power was uneven

  • It was strong in the south and east, but vulnerable in the borders and north

• Finances

  • The Crown was significantly short of money

  • It had been drained by years of war at home and abroad

Henry's aims

• Henry therefore aimed to:

  • Establish and consolidate his right to the throne

  • Control the nobility to strengthen royal government (and to remove potential rivalries)

  • Create a strong financial foundation to secure the future of the monarchy

Establishing & Consolidating the Tudor Dynasty: Marriage, Coronation & Legitimacy

• Henry had to act quickly to secure his throne and establish his dynasty

  • He used a series of deliberate steps to consolidate his position in the months after Bosworth

Coronation, October 1485

• Henry arranged his coronation for the week before Parliament met

  • This meant he was king by divine right, not by parliamentary decision

  • It could never be said that Parliament had made him king

Acts of Attainder, October 1485

• Parliament passed acts that declared nobles guilty of treason without a trial

  • The Crown could then seize their land and titles

• Henry dated the start of his reign to 21st August 1485 – the day before Bosworth

  • This meant Richard III and his supporters could be declared traitors

  • It removed the most immediate threat to Henry's position

Marriage to Elizabeth of York, January 1486

• Henry married Elizabeth of York, the daughter of Edward IV

  • She was the main Yorkist claimant to the throne

• This united the Houses of Lancaster and York

  • It discouraged many Yorkists from challenging Henry

• It also produced one of the most powerful pieces of Tudor propaganda

  • The Tudor Rose combined the red rose of Lancaster with the white rose of York

Securing an heir, September 1486

• Prince Arthur was born in September 1486

  • This helped establish the dynasty

  • It further solidified the union between Lancaster and York

  • It also showed divine favour

Threats to Henry VII: Pretenders to the Throne – Simnel & Warbeck

• Henry's position remained insecure after 1485

  • He still faced serious threats from Yorkist claimants and foreign-backed pretenders

Lambert Simnel

• Who was he?

  • He claimed to be Edward, Earl of Warwick – a genuine Yorkist claimant

  • The real Edward was already locked in the Tower of London

  • Henry had imprisoned him precisely because of his strong claim

• Who supported Simnel?

  • John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln – cousin of Richard III

  • The Earl of Kildare – a powerful Irish noble

  • Maximilian I – Holy Roman Emperor

  • Margaret of Burgundy – sister of Richard III

• What happened?

  • Henry publicly paraded the real Earl of Warwick to expose Simnel as a fraud

  • Simnel's forces were defeated at the Battle of Stoke, 1487 (sometimes seen as the firm end date of the Wars of the Roses)

    • The Earl of Lincoln, Simnel's main backer, was killed

  • Henry spared Simnel's life and put him to work in the royal household

    • Executing a child would have made Henry look insecure

Perkin Warbeck

• Who was he?

  • He claimed to be Richard of Shrewsbury, one of the Princes in the Tower

  • His claim was recognised by several European courts

• Who supported him?

  • Charles VIII of France

  • James IV of Scotland

  • Margaret of Burgundy – again

• What happened?

  • Warbeck made several attempts to land in England

  • The most significant attempt was in 1497, landing in Cornwall to exploit the Cornish Rebellion

  • Henry's forces captured him

  • Henry initially treated Warbeck leniently and kept him in the Tower

  • In 1499, Warbeck attempted to escape and was subsequently executed

Threats to Henry VII: The Yorkists

• In 1485, several key Yorkists still had a significant claim to the throne

  • Henry had to deal with each one carefully

Edward, Earl of Warwick

• Edward was just 10 years old when Henry took the throne

• He was sent to the Tower of London

  • He was kept in reasonable conditions

• Edward remained imprisoned until 1499

  • He was executed after attempting to escape alongside Perkin Warbeck

John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln

• John was initially invited to join Henry's government

  • He became a member of the king's council

• He remained loyal until spring 1487

  • He fled and joined the pretender Lambert Simnel

• John was killed at the Battle of Stoke, June 1487

How Henry dealt with the remaining Yorkist nobles

• Pardoned: Henry pardoned nobles who could prove useful and were willing to work with the new regime

  • This included Thomas Howard, Earl of Surrey, and Henry Percy, Earl of Northumberland

• Executed: Henry executed nobles who were unwilling to cooperate, using their deaths to set a powerful example

  • This included Humphrey Stafford, a Yorkist noble who opposed Henry’s rule

  • It also included Edmund de la Pole, Earl of Suffolk, who was imprisoned by Henry VII and later executed by Henry VIII in 1513

How Secure was the Tudor Dynasty by 1509?

• Historians disagree about how far Henry VII had secured the dynasty by the time of his death.

• The debate centres on two issues:

  • The strength of the Crown by 1509

  • Vulnerabilities that remained

The dynasty was substantially secure by 1509

• All pretender crises were contained, with no active claimant at large

• Royal finances were transformed, with a strong treasury left upon his death

Key historians:

The dynasty remained vulnerable in 1509

• Prince Arthur's death (1502) had destroyed the original succession plan

  • A single male heir, Prince Henry, was the only guarantee against a new succession crisis

• Edmund de la Pole was still alive in the Tower

  • The Yorkist threat had not been fully extinguished

Key historians: