THE PEASANTS’ REVOLT (1381)

At the death of Edward III, his grandson Richard II (1377-1399) succeeded him on
the throne of England. Under his reign, the peasants were more and more
oppressed. When a new tax, the so-called Poll Tax (15 shillings for every male of the
family over 15 years old), was imposed on them, a revolt broke out. It was the
“Peasants’ Revolt”, which took place in 1381. In the end the revolt was repressed.

THE WARS OF THE ROSES (1455-1485)

In the last years of his reign, Richard II governed despotically and was eventually
deposed by Parliament and later killed. His cousin Henry of the House of Lancaster
was then appointed King of England with the name of Henry IV (1399-1413). His
successors were the Lancastrian kings Henry V (1413-1422) and Henry VI (1422-
1461). But Henry VI became king when he was a child and England was ruled by a
council of nobles. When he was old enough to rule, he suffered from mental illness.
He was known as the “Mad King”. He was declared unfit to reign and replaced by a
member of the House of York.

However, what had begun as a family rivalry developed into a Civil War between
the House of Lancaster and the House of York. These wars were called Wars of the
Roses, as the red rose was the emblem of the Lancastrians and the white rose was
the symbol of the Yorkists. It lasted thirty years from 1455 to 1485.

In 1461, Edward IV of the House of York (1461-1483) conquered the throne. At his
death, in 1483, he left the crown to his 13-year-old son, Edward V. The dead king’s
brother, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, was made Lord Protector of his two nephews
(Edward V and his little brother Richard). But a few months later, he ordered the
imprisonment in the Tower of London and later the execution of both his nephews.
He took the throne under the name of Richard III (1483-1485). He soon lost the
support of the people and was defeated and killed in the famous battle of Bosworth
by a Lancastrian, Henry Tudor, a nephew of Henry VI of Lancaster, who became King
Henry VII Tudor. He put an end to the Wars of the Roses by marrying Elizabeth of
York (Edward V’s sister and Edward IV’s daughter). That marriage not only brought
peace to England but also marked the beginning of a new dynasty, the Tudors, and
of a new age, the Renaissance.
 THE WARS OF THE ROSES (1455-1485)

Civil War between two Houses descending from Edward III

HOUSE OF LANCASTER (red rose) HOUSE OF YORK (white rose)

Richard II (1377-1399) Edward IV (1461-1483)

Henry IV (1399-1413) Edward V (1483) and his little brother Richard

Henry V (1413-1422) Richard III (1483-1485)

Henry VI (1422-1461) killed in the battle of Bosworth by

was declared unfit to reign for mental illness

Henry Tudor (Henry VI’s nephew) got married to Elizabeth of York (Edward iv’s daughter)

(1485-1509)
The marriage of a Lancastrian and a Yorkist
ended the Wars of the Roses and marked
the beginning of the Renaissance
 QUESTIONS

1) What type of king was Richard II?

2) What was the Poll Tax?
3) What did it cause?
4) How did it end?
5) How did the reign of Richard II end?
6) Who succeeded to the throne?
7) Who were the next two kings?
8) Why was Henry VI declared unfit to reign?
9) Who took the throne?
10) What did this cause?
11) What happened when Edward IV died?
12) How did Richard become king?
13) How did the Lancaster House react?
14) How did the Wars end ?
15) Why was this marriage important?