Well, I've always been intersted in this period of time, and earlier on today, I decided to start a small timeline starting @ the Battle of Bosworth Field. Tell me what you think...
1485- After 30 years of intermittent civil war between the two houses of York and Lancaster, a final claimant rose to the challenge of King Richard III's control over the English throne. Henry Tudor, the son of Margaret Beaufort and Edmund Tudor, raised in Brittany after Edward IV rose to the throne of England, and the most threattening claimant for the Lancastrian house, had collected an army of French mercenaries, and landed on the Welsh coast on August 7.
King Richard, growing paranoid after Henry's landing in Wales, used his royal powers and relieved Lord Thomas Stanley and his brother, Sir William Stanley of their control over their feudal armies. However, under the Magna Carta, he was trampling on the rights of the feudal lords, but with the two armies of the Stanley brothers under his control on top of his 6,000 man royal army, the lords did not wish to anger Richard any more than he already was. With the loss of their armies, the Stanley brothers could do little to intervene in the most important battle of the Wars of the Roses, the Battle of Bosworth Field.
August 22, 1485- With 15,000 men on his side against Henry's 6,000, King Richard believed that he was assured victory. However, the Earl of Northumberland, Henry Percy, decided not to answer the king's call to join the battle, and kept his 3,000 men out of the fight, leaving King Richard with 12,000 men to Henry's 6,000.
After five hours of vicious fighting, Richard decimated Henry's army of 6,000, and by the end of the day, had the head of Henry Tudor collected and placed on a pike outside of his tent.
With the Yorkist victory at the Battle of Bosworth Field, the Lancastrian claim to the throne was decimated. Henry Tudor, the last hope of the Lancastrians in their claim to the throne of England, lay dead at Bosworth, along with nearly 5,000 men who came with him to Bosworth Field.
1486- One year after the disasterous battle of Bosworth Field, the last Lancastrian heirs and supporters had fled England for asylum in France, Scotland, and the German states. With this, Richard III now had total dominion over all English lands, and intended to keep it this way for the time being. However, he was still without a wife whom he could produce a male heir to the Yorkist House. Although upon his wife's death, he had named her nephew, the Earl of Lincoln, as the next King of England, he still wished to produce a male heir of his own to replace his dead son. However, it was not to be.
1487-1494- Over the next six years, King Richard continued to rebuild the nation after years of civil war, and continued to hunt down additional heirs to the Lancastrian claim to the throne of England. But thanks to the years of Civil War and the stress of reigning alone, Richard died in February, 1495, leaving his nephew, John de la Pole, the First Earl of Lincoln, to inherit the throne of England.
1495- John de la Pole, the First Earl of Lincoln, is crowned King John II of England. Immediatly, as King John began planning out his next strike into Scotland, he petitioned Pope Alexander VI to redraw the Line of Demarcation to include England in the division of the world. After months of consideration, and extensive talks with the Kings of Portugal and Spain, the pope accepted John's petition to redraw the line of demarcation.
In the end, England was given domain over the northern areas of the Americas, splitting Spain's claim on the new world in half, but at the same time, denying Portugal's claim to Brazil. However, upon hearing this, the King of France was infuriated with the Pope's decision to allow England a place in the new world, while France was not allowed any claims in the west. This issue would come to haunt the papacy in years to come.
1485- After 30 years of intermittent civil war between the two houses of York and Lancaster, a final claimant rose to the challenge of King Richard III's control over the English throne. Henry Tudor, the son of Margaret Beaufort and Edmund Tudor, raised in Brittany after Edward IV rose to the throne of England, and the most threattening claimant for the Lancastrian house, had collected an army of French mercenaries, and landed on the Welsh coast on August 7.
King Richard, growing paranoid after Henry's landing in Wales, used his royal powers and relieved Lord Thomas Stanley and his brother, Sir William Stanley of their control over their feudal armies. However, under the Magna Carta, he was trampling on the rights of the feudal lords, but with the two armies of the Stanley brothers under his control on top of his 6,000 man royal army, the lords did not wish to anger Richard any more than he already was. With the loss of their armies, the Stanley brothers could do little to intervene in the most important battle of the Wars of the Roses, the Battle of Bosworth Field.
August 22, 1485- With 15,000 men on his side against Henry's 6,000, King Richard believed that he was assured victory. However, the Earl of Northumberland, Henry Percy, decided not to answer the king's call to join the battle, and kept his 3,000 men out of the fight, leaving King Richard with 12,000 men to Henry's 6,000.
After five hours of vicious fighting, Richard decimated Henry's army of 6,000, and by the end of the day, had the head of Henry Tudor collected and placed on a pike outside of his tent.
With the Yorkist victory at the Battle of Bosworth Field, the Lancastrian claim to the throne was decimated. Henry Tudor, the last hope of the Lancastrians in their claim to the throne of England, lay dead at Bosworth, along with nearly 5,000 men who came with him to Bosworth Field.
1486- One year after the disasterous battle of Bosworth Field, the last Lancastrian heirs and supporters had fled England for asylum in France, Scotland, and the German states. With this, Richard III now had total dominion over all English lands, and intended to keep it this way for the time being. However, he was still without a wife whom he could produce a male heir to the Yorkist House. Although upon his wife's death, he had named her nephew, the Earl of Lincoln, as the next King of England, he still wished to produce a male heir of his own to replace his dead son. However, it was not to be.
1487-1494- Over the next six years, King Richard continued to rebuild the nation after years of civil war, and continued to hunt down additional heirs to the Lancastrian claim to the throne of England. But thanks to the years of Civil War and the stress of reigning alone, Richard died in February, 1495, leaving his nephew, John de la Pole, the First Earl of Lincoln, to inherit the throne of England.
1495- John de la Pole, the First Earl of Lincoln, is crowned King John II of England. Immediatly, as King John began planning out his next strike into Scotland, he petitioned Pope Alexander VI to redraw the Line of Demarcation to include England in the division of the world. After months of consideration, and extensive talks with the Kings of Portugal and Spain, the pope accepted John's petition to redraw the line of demarcation.
In the end, England was given domain over the northern areas of the Americas, splitting Spain's claim on the new world in half, but at the same time, denying Portugal's claim to Brazil. However, upon hearing this, the King of France was infuriated with the Pope's decision to allow England a place in the new world, while France was not allowed any claims in the west. This issue would come to haunt the papacy in years to come.
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