House of Plantagenet, royal house of England, which reigned from 1154 to 1485 and provided 14 kings, 6 of whom belonged to the cadet houses of Lancaster and York. The royal line descended from the union between Geoffrey, count of Anjou (died 1151), and the empress Matilda, daughter of the English king Henry I.

July 6, 2015 is the 532nd anniversary of one of the most controversial events in English history. Many historians and Wars of the Roses enthusiasts continue to debate Richard of Gloucester’s motivations and intentions when he took the crown of England from his young nephew, who was already being called Edward V. I will leave that debate for another day as we look at what the coronation of Richard III may have looked like. Richard’s coronation was shared with his wife, Anne Neville, who was crowned queen at his side. Their son, another Edward, remained in the north. Did they fear for his health or safety? It is unknown, but the fact remains that he died less than a year later so poor health is a possibility. Richard’s brother Edward IV had been a boisterous and glamorous king, probably not unlike his grandson, Henry VIII. Except that Edward had better luck with the fertility of his queen, Elizabeth Woodville, and therefore never experienced the frustration to beget a son that defines so much of Henry’s reign. Edward had set a high standard for pageantry and magnificence that Richard’s coronation met and exceeded. Anne’s dress was handcrafted out of 27 yards of white cloth of gold, trimmed in ermine. Over it, she wore a velvet robe and mantle in royal purple. This purple stretched behind Anne in the form of a stunning train created from 56 yards of the precious velvet. With her proud Neville background, Anne surely looked every bit a Queen of England. Richard was dressed no less magnificently than his bride in his own purple velvet mantle that was exchanged for one in glimmering cloth of gold once the ceremony at Westminster Abbey was completed. He and Anne had been reverently anointed with holy oil, recognizing them as monarchs of England and representatives of God. The banquet following the solemn mass was another example of amazing ceremony, especially considering the brief period of time that had been taken to plan it. Course after course of savory foods and delicate desserts were served to the most important people in the land. Richard and Anne were served from dishes of rich gold and silver. Contrary to what some may believe about Richard’s reputation as a villain and usurper, great rejoicing took place at his coronation. Though Edward V may or may not have been the legitimate heir (that, too, is a discussion for another day), the people of England had suffered through too many years of civil war that were the result of a child king who never truly grew up. Rather than taking the chance that young Edward would become a second Henry VI, many nobles were eager to back the capable brother of the previous king. More than 3,000 people including most of the nobility attended the coronation feast in a celebration that has not seen its equal since. Since I have a particular interest in her, I have often wondered what Elizabeth of York was thinking as Richard III’s coronation took place. Still in sanctuary with her mother and sisters, Elizabeth would have still been in shock at the death of her larger than life father and the bastardization of herself and her siblings. Did she see Richard as a grasping villain? Nine more months would go by before Elizabeth and her sisters would leave sanctuary with their mother. In this time, Richard ruled well, but somehow misplaced Elizabeth’s brothers. Did he have them murdered to solidify his own strength and eliminate future heads of rebellion? Did someone else do away with them, thinking they were doing Richard a favor? Possibly a member of the Lancastrian remnant rid the country of two more York boys, or they simply sickened and died. Many authors have written in the hope that the boys didn’t die at all but escaped or were sent away by Richard for their own safety. We do not know the truth to this day, but this is an issue that Elizabeth would have struggled with. When she went to court, no longer as a princess but as the bastard daughter of the king’s brother, what thoughts were coursing through her mind? Maybe Elizabeth believed the story of her father’s precontract. After all, she was old enough to know that he had been many things, but monogamous was not one of them. To overhear one conversation between her and Richard is a privilege that I wish there was a way to obtain. Whether Elizabeth hated Richard, was in love with him, or had a relationship that fell somewhere in between, his reign was not to last. Shortly following the deaths of his heir and then his queen, Richard fell in a courageous charge at Bosworth, defending his crown from Henry Tudor on August 22, 1485. Henry had promised to marry Elizabeth the previous Christmas and made good on that promise on January 18, 1486.

www.constantinroman/continentaldrift The emblem of King Henry VIII was the Tudor rose and the Beaufort portcullis. The red and white Tudor rose represented the combination of the House of York and the House of Lancaster. The Beaufort portcullis relates to his Tudor ancestors. When Henry Tudor took the crown of England from Richard III in battle, he brought about the end of the Wars of the Roses between the House of Lancaster (whose badge was a red rose) and the House of York (whose badge was a white rose). His father was Edmund Tudor from the House of Richmond, and his mother was Margaret Beaufort from the House of Lancaster; he married Elizabeth of York to bring all factions together. On his marriage, Henry adopted the Tudor Rose badge conjoining the White Rose of York and the Red Rose of Lancaster. The Tudor Rose is occasionally seen divided vertically (in heraldic terms per pale) red and white.[1] More often, the Tudor Rose is depicted as a double rose[2], white on red. [edit] Role and uses [edit] Historical uses 16th century woodcut of the coronation of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon shows them with their badges, the Tudor rose and the pomegranate. 16th century woodcut of the coronation of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon shows them with their badges, the Tudor rose and the pomegranate. During his reign, Henry VIII had the "Round Table" at Winchester Castle — then believed to be genuine — repainted. The new paint scheme included a Tudor Rose in the centre. The Tudor rose badge might be slipped and crowned, that is, shown as a cutting with a stem and leaves beneath a crown; this badge appears in Nicholas Hilliard's "Pelican Portrait" of Elizabeth I. The Tudor rose might also be dimidiated (cut in half and combined with half another emblem) to form a compound badge. The Westminster Tournament Roll includes a badge of Henry and his first wife Catherine of Aragon with a slipped Tudor rose conjoined with Catherine's personal badge, the pomegranate[3]; their daughter Mary I bore the same badge.[4] James I of England and VI of Scotland used a badge of a Tudor rose dimidiated with a thistle and surmounted by a royal crown.[5] [edit] Contemporary uses The Tudor rose is used as the plant badge of England, as Scotland uses the thistle, Ireland uses the shamrock, and Wales uses the leek. As such, it is seen on the dress uniforms of the Yeomen Warders at the Tower of London, and of the Yeomen of the Guard. It features on the British Twenty Pence coin and the Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom. It also features, albeit subtly, on the Coat of arms of Canada. It is also notably used (albeit, confusingly enough in a monochromatic form) as the symbol of the English Tourist Board[1]. It is used as the name of a brand of fortified wine. ------------------------------------------------- The Ancestors of King Henry VIII The parents of Henry Tudor were Margaret Beaufort and Edmund Tudor. Edmund Tudor was the son of Owen Tudor and Catherine of Valois who was the former wife of King Henry V of England. Margaret Beaufort was a descendant of King Edward III through his son, John of Gaunt (1340 - 1399), and his third wife Katherine Swynford (1350 - 1403). The liaison between John of Gaunt and Katherine produced four illegitimate children who were given the name Beaufort. John of Gaunt eventually married Katherine Swynford in 1396 and their children, by this time adults, were legitimised. However, it was seen as an illegitimate line and therefore no descendents could have a claim on the English throne. How secure was King Henry VIII on the throne of England? Our view of King Henry VIII was all powerful but in his early years the security of the Tudor dynasty constantly worried his father Henry Tudor who had become King Henry VII. Henry Tudor was a member of the House of Lancaster. England had entered a period of Civil war called the War of the Roses between the two powerful noble factions of England called the House of York and the House of Lancaster. A final Lancastrian rebellion rose against the Yorkist King Richard III following the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower ( the two young sons of King Edward IV and the brothers of Elizabeth of York). Henry Tudor defeated the Yorkist leader King Richard III in the Battle of Bosworth Field and claimed the throne of England. The Tudor Dynasty was born, but it was was shaky claim based on an illegitimate line. King Henry VII cemented his claim by marrying Elizabeth of York, the Yorkist daughter of King Edward IV. But his reign was threatened by pretenders to the throne such as Lambert Simnel and Perkin Warbeck who assumed the identity of Richard Duke of York (one of the Princes in the Tower). Measures taken by King Henry VIII to secure the throne of England With this as his background King Henry VIII was wary of powerful English nobles and during his reign added Imperial concepts of Kingship to existing Feudal concepts and substantially decreased the power of the nobles and increased the power of Parliament and the monarchy. English nobles were no longer allowed to build privately owned castles which were built as power bases and strongholds to threaten the monarchy. English castles in the time of King Henry VIII were built as magnificent and palatial residences of the wealthy, not as fortresses. To combat any possible threats of invasion and to the throne, from Europe, King Henry VIII created a great chain of coastal fortresses and increased the size of the English navy from just 5 ships at the beginning of his reign to about 60 ships. Political Executions ordered by King Henry VIII to secure the throne of England According to Raphael Holinshed (died c. 1580) the English chronicler, who compiled the work commonly known as Holinshed's Chronicles, the number of executions in his reign amounted to 72,000. Anyone who disobeyed the orders of King Henry VIII were executed for treason. These executions also included every living descendent from the Plantagenet line of English Kings. His ruthlessness even extended to Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury (1473-1541) who was the last direct descendant of the Plantagenet line - she was as descendent of King Edward III and 68 years old when she was cruelly executed on the block.

"From the Devil we sprang, and to the Devil we shall return" - king Richard the Lionheart, referring to his Plantagenet family. Many contemporaries thought there was something demonic about England's Plantagenet Dynasty (1154 - 1485), who named themselves after the planta geneste, or common broom, and went at everything…

(photo from a tapestry) The woman to whom "The Book of the Duchess" by Geoffrey Chaucer is dedicated to, Blanche of Lancaster, was th...

There is a widespread myth that Britain has only been successfully invaded three times: by the Romans, the Saxons, and the Normans. (Maybe they were invaded four times, if we count the Nazi occupation of Guernsey during World War II.) Of course, this isn't true, and today, we're here to tell you about ten times

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REBEL. LEADER. BROTHER. KING. 1179. Henry II is King of England, Wales, Ireland, Normandy, Brittany and Aquitaine. The House of Plantagenet reigns supreme. But there is unrest in Henry's house. Not for the first time, his family talks of rebellion. Ferdia - an Irish nobleman taken captive during the conquest of his homeland - saves the life of Richard, the king's son. In reward for his bravery, he is made squire to Richard, who is already a renowned warrior. Crossing the English Channel, the two are plunged into a campaign to crush rebels in Aquitaine. The bloody battles and gruelling sieges which followed would earn Richard the legendary name of Lionheart. But Richard's older brother, Henry, is infuriated by his sibling's newfound fame. Soon it becomes clear that the biggest threat to Richard's life may not be rebel or French armies, but his own family... 'A rip-roaring epic, filled with arrows and spattered with blood. Gird yourself with mail when you start.' Paul Finch'Ben's deeply authoritative depiction of the time is delivered in a deft manner.' Simon Scarrow; 400 pages; Published: 18/02/2021

Queen Eleanor of Castile. Portrait by Joos Van Cleve, c.1530s-40s. Eleanor, the daughter of Philip of Burgundy and Juana of Castile and sister to Emperor Charles V, was the second wife of François I of France. Her marriage to François was part of peace negotiations between the Valois and the Habsburgs, although such peace was short term. Prior to her marriage to François, Eleanor was married to Manuel I of Portugal. Her only surviving child from the marriage was a daughter, Maria.

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King Richard III, the last English king to die in battle, was likely kneeling or prone on the battlefield when the fatal blow came.

This article was written by Kelly. Eleanor Eleanor of Aquitaine is often remembered as one of two things: the sassy consort of King Henry II of England or Richard the Lionheart’s valiant mother. While neither of these descriptions is wrong – they fall short in illustrating the magnanimity of this 12th century Queen. Eleanor of [read more]

It has indeed been confidently asserted that [Richard the 3d] killed his two Nephews & his Wife, but it has also been declared that he did not kill his two Nephews.

Details of a large English flag with embroidered heraldic decorations Circa Tudor period.

The Hundred Years War was a series of connected conflicts between England, the Valois kings of France, factions of French nobles and other allies.

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