It's bloody and sad and horrific and sad. I recommend other works if you are new to the 1455-1485 period in England. Tons of names, battles, and character studies of kings and notables are extant. Well even though I spelled this out in horribly simplistic terms, do NOT assume that this book is anything simple. Well, until Richard III kills all the Heirs and crowns himself king until Henry VII smites him down, but that's all ancient history, right? Right? Both were pretty much the heroes that stopped all the previous stupid conflicts that was dragging England through the mud.Īnd then, after some really great women power between a few queens including Margaret, the impossible eventually happens. Edward IV is crowned king with the help of Warwick even though Henry VI is still kicking, and even though it begins well, Warwick and Edward start baring fangs at each other and yet MORE war happens. Then somewhere down the line, after Margaret of Anjou, his wife, is pregnant, Henry VI has a mental breakdown and she takes over, impressively, but not flawlessly. Only this time, Henry VI was set up on his mother's side to madness, a common malady of kings, and that, combined with horribly overbearing uncles and 'helpers' to the throne, a power struggle begins, pulling this way and that and nobody really blames the poor king when the conflicts break out. Leaving another kid to be the king, just like Richard II. People loved Hal, later to become King Henry V, and they were all amazed at how much of France he had won for England, capping off a truly heroic entry and the close end of the Hundred Years War.Īnd then he died. You can trace its roots back to Richard II when Henry IV deposed him, setting up the later battles between York and Lancaster, but this is somewhat disingenuous. First of all, no amount of quick re-telling can ever do actual history any justice, but suffice to say, The War of the Roses was a ROYAL MESS.

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