The Battle of Bosworth 1485
Join Chris Green (The History Chap) as to explore one of England’s most important battles - the Battle of Bosworth Field.
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The Battle of Bosworth, fought on the morning of the 22nd August 1485 was the penultimate, but decisive, battle at the end of the Wars of the Roses - a 30 year civil war that had divided the ruling Plantagenet house of England into two faction - the Yorkists and the Lancastrians.
It was fought between King Richard III of England (leader of the House of York) and the leader of the House of Lancaster, Henry Tudor.
Since their victory at the Battle of Tewkesbury in 1471, the Yorkists, under King Edward IV, had been on top.
But in 1483 everything changed.
Edward IV suddenly died, and Richard in a coup seized power from his young nephew - king Edward V - who along with and his brother disappeared.
Richard’s hold on power was not popular Henry Tudor seized his opportunity.
Henry landed with a small army near Milford Haven in south west Wales on the 7th August.
On the 22nd August 1485 the two armies met to the south of the small town of Market Bosworth in Leicestershire.
Richard’s army was twice the size of the rebels - about 10,000 to Henry’s 5,000.
Another army was also present - a force of 4,000 under Lord Thomas Stanley and his brother, Sir William.
One of Richard’s most senior supporters, Stanley was also married to Henry Tudor’s mother - Margaret Beaufort.
Rather than committing to either Richard or Henry they sat on the sidelines to watch which way the battle would go.
As the battle progressed that morning, Richard ordered the Earl of Northumberland to advance forward with his reserve.
Northumberland refused.
We will never know why he didn’t advance (although treachery was common-place during the Wars of the Roses - but his lack of movement was to prove crucial.
With events starting to shift against him, Richard personally led a charge directly towards Henry Tudor.
His attack almost broke through.
Henry’s standard bearer, Sir William Brandon was cut down; for a moment the Red Dragon of Wales fell before being lifted up by another bodyguard.
Henry’s bodyguards surrounded their leader in one last desperate attempt to stave off the inevitable.
And then the Stanley’s (or rather Sir William Stanley) committed themselves and charged into the side of Richard’s attack.
Surrounded, bogged down in a marsh, and unhorsed, Richard fought like an English lion (or a wild boar) against the Tudors and the Stanleys.
But eventually his force was overwhelmed and Richard III was killed.
The Royal army broke,…Henry Tudor had won the Battle of Bosworth.
Lord Thomas Stanley (who had taken no part in the fighting, as usual) rode up to Henry Tudor with Richard’s gold coronet that he had found in a thorn bush and to shouts of “God save King Henry” he placed it on the victors head.
Within 2 months he had been crowned King Henry VII of England.
Richards body was striped naked, and taken back to Leicester for public display.
He was buried in an unmarked grave, which was discovered in an excavation beneath a public car park in 2012.
He now lies in Leicester Cathedral.
By Wars of the Roses standards, the casualties at Bosworth were actually very low. It was the political result that mattered.
The death of Richard, signalled the end of the Plantagenet dynasty, which had ruled medieval England for 331 years and the beginning of a new dynasty - The Tudors.
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Disclaimer: All opinions and comments expressed in the 'Comments' section do not reflect the opinions of Chris Green Communication Ltd t/a The History Chap. All opinions and comments should contribute to the dialogue. Chris Green Communication Ltd does not condone written attacks, insults, racism, sexism, extremism, violence or otherwise questionable comments or material in the 'Comments' section, and reserves the right to delete any comment violating this rule or to block any poster from the channel.
8 сен 2024
