The Tudor Dynasty

The end of the Wars of the Roses represented the beginning of the Tudor Dynasty which went on to rule over England for 118 years. This time was marked by several major events, such as Henry VIII’s break with the papacy of Rome (1534). However, it is important to know what led to the creation of the Tudor Rose, one of the most distinctive and unmistakable flowers in England, the symbol of the House of Tudor.

The Tudor rose is the superposition of the badges of the two royal houses that became the protagonists of the long-lasting civil wars, known throughout history as the Wars of the Roses(1455-1487). These houses were Lancaster and York.

What is truly important here is actually what the rose represents. It became a symbol of peace and it marked the end of the horrors of civil war, a war that had become a way of life.

Because of king Henry VI’s mental illness, that manifested through bouts of madness or paralysis, Richard, Duke of York staked his claim to the throne and together with Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick, decided to overthrow the king. At the battle of Northampton in 1460 the king was captured by the Yorkist forces and forced to acknowledge Richard as the rightful heir to the throne. In 1461 he lost the throne to Richard's son Edward IV.

Henry VII was briefly restored as ruler from 1470 to 1471, until he was captured by Edward and assassinated in the Tower of London.

Edward was married to Lady Elizabeth Woodville, who gave birth to 3 sons and 7 daughters. Their eldest daughter, Elizabeth, went on to marry Henry Tudor and become queen consort.

The Wars of the Roses came to an end with the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. King Richard III was defeated by the Lancastrian claimant, Henry Tudor, who ascended the throne as Henry VII. King Henry secured the succession and cemented his rather questionable claim to the throne by marrying Elizabeth of York, the daughter of the Yorkist King Edward IV.