The Battle of Tewkesbury was fought on 4 May 1471 during the Wars of the Roses. The battle, fought in Gloucestershire, was the decisive battle of the first phase of the war, with the main Lancastrian military leaders and Edward, Prince of Wales being killed. This allowed for King Edward IV of England and the House of York to rule England with a secure line of succession and a stable political situation until 1485.
Background[]
In 1471, Queen Margaret of Anjou and Richard Neville, Earl of Warwick invaded England from France with a Lancastrian army, intending to depose the Yorkist king Edward IV and restore King Henry VI to the throne. Warwick arrived in England first, and he was slain at the Battle of Barnet, which saw the utter destruction of his army. Queen Margaret arrived at Dorset at around the same time, joining forces with the Duke of Somerset. Upon hearing of the death of Warwick at Barnet, Queen Margaret decided to march north to Wales to join forces with her ally Jasper Tudor, Duke of Bedford. By the time her army had reached Bristol, King Edward had marched from London to Cirencester, and he sent word ahead to the Governor of Gloucester, ordering him to close the crossings at the River Severn. This forced Margaret and her army to march further north to attempt a crossing at Tewkesbury, where her army was met in battle by the Yorkist royal army.
Battle[]
On 4 May 1471, the two armies met in an area of small woods, hedges, and marshlands, with the Lancastrians assuming favorable defensive positions. Edward IV placed a small cavalry ambush in the woods to the extreme left, and the Yorkists also had the advantage of artillery support. The Duke of Somerset attempted to attack King Edward's division as the Yorkists advanced disorganized through the unfavorable terrain, pushing back Edward and his troops. However, the charging Lancastrians were ambushed by the Yorkist horsemen, and most of the Lancastrians were cut down. Somerset managed to return to his main line and kill the commander of the center who failed to support him. The Lancastrians began a retreat which turned into a massacre, and the Yorkists killed most of the Lancastrian leaders, including Somerset and the young Edward, Prince of Wales; Queen Margaret was captured.
Aftermath[]
Edward's decisive victory at Tewkesbury was a great blow to the Lancastrian cause. The remaining Lancastrian nobles, chief among them Jasper Tudor, were still active in Wales and northern England, so King Edward led his army to Coventry to prevent his enemies from uniting their forces. Meanwhile, Thomas Neville, one of the last representatives of the Neville family, landed in Kent and started recruiting troops on his march to London. By 14 May, he had 15,000 troops under his command, and he attacked London in an attempt to free King Henry. The Londoners not only sent messengers to King Edward IV, but also repulsed all of Neville's attacks. On 21 May, Edward entered London and had Henry VI executed. Neville, who had learned of this and Tewkesbury, fled to the south, but his demoralized troops decided to surrender; at the same time, the rebellion in the north also fizzled out.
Henry VI's execution ended the House of Lancaster, and the near-extinct Lancastrian cause was taken over by Henry Tudor, whose mother Margaret Beaufort was a descendant of Edward III of England through John of Gaunt. Jasper and Henry Tudor attempted to flee to France, only to be shipwrecked in Brittany. Duke Francis II of Brittany planned to use the young Henry as a bargaining chip in his dealings with France and England, and the Tudors became both hostages and guests in Brittany. From 1471 to 1485, England was mostly at peace, as Edward had no more real opponents to his rule.
In 1478, George, Duke of Clarence, the King's brother, was executed by his other brother Duke Richard of Gloucester for plotting against the King, and, when King Edward IV died (possibly of poisoning) in 1483, his young son Edward V became King with Gloucester as his regent. As King Edward V travelled to London, Gloucester had the relatives of Queen Elizabeth Woodville arrested, and the King and his brother were placed in the Tower of London, where they were declared illegitimate and murdered. Richard then claimed the throne, becoming "King Richard III". Queen Elizabeth began plotting with Henry Tudor's mother Margaret Beaufort, Margaret's new husband Thomas Stanley, 1st Earl of Derby, and Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham to overthrow King Richard, and, from 1483 to 1484, England was once again thrown into turmoil. Storms prevented Henry Tudor from arriving in England, and Buckingham's army was defeated and the Duke executed for treason. Richard III then demanded that Francis extradite Henry, but his demands were rebuked, and Richard responded by sending the Royal Navy to blockade Brittany. As Francis grew ill, his ministers showed a willingness to extradite Henry to Richard in exchange for a bribe, so Henry escaped to France. At the end of 1484, Henry Tudor publicly promised to marry Henry IV's daughter Elizabeth of York to unite the dynasties, which would strengthen his position. Henry also gained the support of King Charles VIII of England and hired mercenaries. Back in England, Richard's wife passed away, and there were rumors that he wanted to marry his niece Elizabeth. Henry responded by landing in Wales on 7 August 1485 and rallying Welsh supporters to his cause before invading England through Shrewsbury. Richard and Henry's armies rallied before meeting at the Battle of Bosworth Field, where Richard was slain.