EDWARD IV 1461 - 1483 (minus period 1470-71) (E4) Life 1442

EDWARD IV 1461 - 1483 (minus period 1470-71) (E4) Lived 1442 - 1483

HENRY VI period in 1470 - 1471 (H6)

xxxxxAs we have seen, Edward took up the Yorkist cause when his father, Richard, Duke of York, was killed at the Battle of Wakefield in 1460 (H6). He marched to London and in 1461 proclaimed himself king, an appointment clearly confirmed in March of that year when he won the decisive and bloody Battle of Towton against the Lancastrians and was crowned Edward IV. Henry VI, declared a traitor by Parliament, fled to Scotland with his wife and son, but was captured in 1465 and imprisoned in the Tower of London.

xxxxxEdward IV, known as Earl of March before his accession, and the first monarch of the House of York, proved a popular and able king and, apart from a brief period of seven months, he remained in power until his death in 1483. In the early years of his reign, however, the Wars of the Roses rumbled on. Lancastrian resistance was continued by the redoubtable wife of Henry VI, Margaret of Anjou, and matters became worse in 1470 when he quarrelled with the Earl of Warwick. He had been one of the Edward's strongest supporters and had virtually put him on the throne, but a bitter disagreement developed after the king's secret marriage to a commoner, Elizabeth Woodville.

xxxxxWarwick, turning traitor to the Yorkist cause, freed Henry VI from the Tower and restored him to the throne in 1470, but it was never a popular move. Edward was forced to flee to Holland, but with the support of his brother-in-law, Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, he returned in 1471. In April he routed Warwick's forces at the Battle of Barnet and killed Warwick the Kingmaker, as he aptly came to be known. He then followed this up with a victory over Margaret of Anjou at Tewkesbury, a battle in which Margaret was captured and her son Edward, Prince of Wales, was killed. These victories, plus the capture of Henry VI himself and his subsequent murder in the Tower (probably by Richard, Duke of Gloucester), made safe Edward's throne, and finally provided the nation with a brief respite from the battles and skirmishes of the Wars of the Roses.

xxxxxDuring this period of comparative calm, the country prospered, assisted by the introduction of the silk industry and a marked increase in trade with France, Burgundy and the Hanseatic League. This increased the wealth of the nation as well as the size of Edward's own coffers. In 1475 he added to his wealth by a brief war with France. This ended with the French king, Louis XI, agreeing to pay Edward a large ransom and an annual pension in return for Margaret's freedom. He was certainly the first English king for many a day who died with his accounts in the black! In addition, he improved law enforcement, particularly along the Welsh Marches (borders), and, as a man interested in books, he was a friend and patron of the printer William Caxton.

xxxxxIt was quite a successful reign, but, as was so often the case, the succession did not run smoothly. On his death at the age of 40 - probably of typhus - he left two young sons, Prince Edward and Richard, Duke of York. He willed that his crown should pass to Edward, and that, until the prince came of age, his brother, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, should act as Protector. As we shall see, in 1483 (E5) Edward did become king as Edward V but not for long.

xxxxxIncidentally, each year a service is held in the Tower of London to mark the anniversary of the murder of Henry VI.

Acknowledgements

Edward IV: date and artist unknown – National Portrait Gallery, London. Caxton: date and artist unknown – private collection. Coat of Arms: licensed under Creative Commons. Author: Sodacan – https://commons.wikimedia.org.

E4-1461-1483-E4-1461-1483-E4-1461-1483-E4-1461-1483-E4-1461-1483-E4-1461-1483-E4

1462

Gibraltar, in Muslim hands since 711 AD, is captured by the Kingdom of Castile. A rock fortress in southern Spain, it commands the western entrance to the Mediterranean Sea.

1464

Sonni Ali, leader of the small Songhai State in West Africa, embarks upon a series of brilliant campaigns and takes over much of the land once belonging to the Mali Empire.

1466

1467

The Inca Empire of Peru, growing bigger and ever more powerful under its leader Pachacuti and his son Topa, attack their northern neighbours, the Chimu, and take over their lands and their advanced civilisation.

In Japan, the Onin War breaks out following a dispute over the shogun's successor, and soon the country is plunged into a civil war that lasts for more than a hundred years.

1468

Mehmed II conquers Karaman, the last surviving Turkish emirate. At his death the Ottoman Empire extends from the Danube to the Euphrates, and from the Crimea to the Aegean Sea.

1469

Lorenzo, grandson of Cosimo de' Medici, and, like him, a great patron of art and learning, starts his rule in Florence. Known as Lorenzo the Magnificent, he rules until 1492.

The marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile lays the foundation for the making of modern Spain. In the south-east, however, Granada remains in Muslim hands.

1470

Le Morte d'Arthur, a series of Arthurian legends, is compiled by the English writer Sir Thomas Malory. It is generally regarded as the first outstanding work in English prose.

The Earl of Warwick frees Henry VI from the Tower, and Edward takes refuge in Holland. The demented Henry VI is restored to the throne but his reign only lasts for seven months.

1471

Edward returns and at the battles of Barnet and Tewkesbury both Warwick and Henry's son, Edward, are killed. These victories, plus the murder of Henry VI, secure his throne.

1473

The Aztecs take over the prosperous market town of Tlatelolco following the killing of its ruler. The Empire now stretches from the Atlantic to the Pacific Oceans.

1474

1476

The German astronomer and mathematician Johannes Müller (later known as Regiomontanus) writes Ephemerides, a nautical almanac describing how longitude can be determined by using lunar distances.

William Caxton sets up the first printing press in England - at Westminster, London - and begins to print the works of English poets such as Chaucer, Malory, Gower and Lydgate.

1477

By the marriage of Maximilian, son of Emperor Frederick III, and Mary of Burgundy, heiress of Charles the Bold, the Habsburgs of the House of Austria take over the Netherlands.

1478

The Florentine artist Sandro Botticelli completes Primavera (Allegory of Spring) one of his early masterpieces. He later produces three frescoes for the Sistine Chapel in Rome.

Pope Sixtus IV endorses the creation of an Inquisition in Spain. Tomas de Torquemada is appointed Grand Inquisitor and becomes a byword for intolerance, terror and torture.

1480

Ivan the Great of Moscow refuses to pay tribute to the Golden Horde and beats off Mongol attacks. Much of Russia is united under his control, including a vast new area in the north.

1481

1482

In the Vatican Palace, the building of the Sistine Chapel is completed and work begins on the wall frescoes. Among the artists employed are Botticelli, Perugino, Cosimo Rosselli, and Ghirlandaio.

The Portuguese explorer Diogo Cão becomes the first European to reach the mouth of the Congo River during the first of his two expeditions along the west coast of Africa.

1483

Edward dies while at Windsor, leaving his son, twelve-year-old Edward V, as his heir. In his will he appoints his brother, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, as Protector.

1483

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