'Meeting between Francis I and Henry VIII at the Field of Cloth of Gold on 7 June 1520,' a painting by Friedrich August Bouterwek. The purpose of the agreement was to prevent France from annexing Brittany. [citation needed] Henry also formed an alliance with Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I (14931519) and persuaded Pope Innocent VIII to issue a papal bull of excommunication against all pretenders to Henry's throne. Consultant editor for the. During Henry's early years, his uncle Henry VI was fighting against Edward IV, a member of the Yorkist Plantagenet branch. There's a lot of cloak-and-dagger stuff here, something Henry and certain of his counselors seemed especially skilled at, and it was those parts that I particularly enjoyed. It was propaganda to spread the message that he was the rightful King. The fact that a Cockney could provide a recognisable representation of him gives away part of his enduring appeal; in national memory, Henry was one of the lads, the only English king to have. If Penn's interpretation can sometimes seem slanted, its exposition would be hard to over-praise. His bouts of grave illness brought the question repeatedly to the fore. [20] He amassed an army of about 5,0006,000 soldiers. As we know, Henry VII was true to his word, married Elizabeth and they founded the Tudor dynasty between them. This is why he named the book the "Winter King". [10] A contemporary writer and Henry's biographer, Bernard Andr, also made much of Henry's Welsh descent. The marriage between Arthur, Prince of Wales, and Catherine of Aragon would be the culmination of everything that Henry VII had fought for at the Battle of Bosworth, so in 1501 there was a fortnight of marriage celebrations and London was in a carnival mood. Henry Tudors claim to the throne was, therefore, weak and of no importance until the deaths in 1471 of Henry VIs only son, Edward, of his own two remaining kinsmen of the Beaufort line, and of Henry VI himself, which suddenly made Henry Tudor the sole surviving male with any ancestral claim to the house of Lancaster. [47], Henry VII's policy was to maintain peace and to create economic prosperity. The King was heavily guarded. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Royal Collection Trust At the summit, even dinnerware testified to its owner's status. Having secured financial backing from Florentine bankers in London, Cabot was granted carefully phrased letters patent from Henry in March 1496, permitting him to embark on an exploratory voyage westerly. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. However, with the help of the forces of his step-father, Lord Stanley, he defeated Richard and Richard was killed on the battlefield. Sometimes, Penn explained, charges against people were fabricated so that they would have to pay a fine, for example, a man who was charged with murdering a child and who was found guilty because the jury was rigged. Henry IV had confirmed Richard IIs legitimation (1397) of the children of this union but had specifically excluded the Beauforts from any claim to the throne (1407). Both parties realised they were mutually disadvantaged by the reduction in commerce. The money so extracted added to the King's personal fortune rather than being used for the stated purpose. She was Edward's heir since the presumed death of her brothers, the Princes in the Tower, King Edward V and Richard of Shrewsbury, Duke of York. Famed British author Thomas Penn takes an extraordinary journey into the dark and chilling world of the first Tudor King, Henry VII. In 1837 Henry VIII's tomb was eventually marked in the chapel with a commemorative marble slab. [62], Henry VII used justices of the peace on a large, nationwide scale. Some of them have more to say than Penn about the constructive sides of the reign, which developed the state-building methods of his Yorkist predecessors. He became paranoid and made the decision that if his people couldnt love him then they should fear him. Henry VIII was the first English king to be called "Your Majesty.". He was crowned on October 30 and secured parliamentary recognition of his title early in November. The devastated King became so ill that he was close to death, but then he recovered and Penn explains that when he took control once more, he was remorseless. Henry's mother, Margaret Beaufort, was a descendant of the Lancastrian branch of the House of Plantagenet. Alternate titles: Henry Tudor, earl of Richmond, Professor of Medieval History, University of Liverpool, 196780. Through this, he found that his Lord Chamberlain, Sir William Stanley, was involved in the plot. At Rennes Cathedral on Christmas Day 1483, Henry pledged to marry Elizabeth of York, the eldest daughter of Edward IV. [2] His father died three months before his birth. When Henry VII called his first parliament he used it as an opportunity to legitimise his reign. [70] Henry VII falls among the minority of British monarchs that never had any known mistresses, and for the times, it is very unusual that he did not remarry: his son Henry was the only male heir left after the death of his wife, thus the death of Arthur created a precarious political position for the House of Tudor. Loyalty was ensured, and the nobility was effectively neuteredand Henry became the richest monarch in Europe. Thomas Penn's Winter King is not really a biography of Henry VII, and more a study of what he was directing his government to do in his name. [17] Now supported by Francis II's prime minister, Pierre Landais, Richard III attempted to extradite Henry from Brittany, but Henry escaped to France. Well written and really interesting about an often ignored king. Henry was the only child of Edmund Tudor , Earl of Richmond , and Margaret Beaufort . Fittingly he dressed in expensive black. [16] With money and supplies borrowed from his host, Francis II of Brittany, Henry tried to land in England, but his conspiracy unravelled resulting in the execution of his primary co-conspirator, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham. [56] This trade made an expensive commodity cheaper, which raised opposition from Pope Julius II, since the Tolfa mine was a part of papal territory and had given the Pope monopoly control over alum. (1): (April 24, 1883. But, his enemies didnt agree. Henry's original head was cut out of the painting and replaced at some point after the work's creation. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Henry-VII-king-of-England, Spartacus Educational - Biography of Henry VII, English Monarchs - Biography of Henry VII, Henry VII - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11), Henry VII - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up). [citation needed] John Cabot, originally from Genoa and Venice, had heard that ships from Bristol had discovered uncharted new found territory far west of Ireland. The expressive and evocative power of his writing, and the union of scholarship with artistry, are rare in modern historical writing. Even if the king outfaced his enemies in his lifetime, would they not forestall a Tudor succession? He had unified the kingdom, accrued immense wealth and created the most notorious dynasty in English history: the Tudors. [30] Before departing for London, Henry sent Robert Willoughby to Sheriff Hutton in Yorkshire, to arrest Warwick and take him to the Tower of London. Henry VII (28 January 1457 21 April 1509) was King of England from his seizure of the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death in 1509. Here was a young man who enjoyed jousting, who enjoyed chatting with the other knights in the tiltyard and with people of low degree. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). His spies and informers were everywhere. Life at court was merry under Henry 8th, a fresh new beginning likened to springtime. Author of, Assistant Master and Professor of History, Selwyn College, University of Cambridge. Two themes of his book preside: the permanent vulnerability of Henry's regime, and his ruthless methods of rule. He invited artists, musicians and scholars to live at his court. There he claimed sanctuary until the envoys were forced to depart. Overblown prose trumpeting his reign seemed to be the order of the day. - and that was only about 50% of the book, it was only about 50% interesting to me. [25][80], Historians have always compared Henry VII with his continental contemporaries, especially Louis XI of France and Ferdinand II of Aragon. These bonds were enforced by the Council Learned in the Law, a council of legal advisers who were only answerable to the King. [citation needed], Henry began taking precautions against rebellion while still in Leicester after Bosworth Field. Henry VII ruled from 1485-1509 and had a dubious claim on the throne, spending most of his time before the famous Battle of Bosworth Field in exile and gaining credibility from his marriage to Elizabeth of York. I found this really interesting, but Im a history nut. (We certainly can, and do, decide what sort of king Henry was based on what he had his government get up to, however.). Together, they had seven children. For example, they could replace suspect jurors in accordance with the 1495 act preventing the corruption of juries. [37], For most of Henry VII's reign Edward Story was Bishop of Chichester. Henry VIII was spring and Henry VII was winter. [34], When the King's agents searched the property of William Stanley (Chamberlain of the Household, with direct access to Henry VII) they found a bag of coins amounting to around 10,000 and a collar of livery with Yorkist garnishings. No. [75], Henry VII died of tuberculosis at Richmond Palace on 21 April 1509 and was buried in the chapel he commissioned in Westminster Abbey next to his wife, Elizabeth. During his 23-year reign, Henry had only two Lord High Treasurers, and this continuity helped provide stability. There were too many powerful noblemen and, as a consequence of the system of so-called bastard feudalism, each had what amounted to private armies of indentured retainers (mercenaries masquerading as servants). 24th April 2023 - courses open for registrations. He is credited with many administrative, economic and diplomatic initiatives. The King, normally a reserved man who rarely showed much emotion in public unless angry, surprised his courtiers by his intense grief and sobbing at his son's death, while his concern for the Queen is evidence that the marriage was a happy one, as is his reaction to Queen Elizabeth's death the following year, when he shut himself away for several days, refusing to speak to anyone. [43] According to the contemporary historian Polydore Vergil, simple "greed" underscored the means by which royal control was over-asserted in Henry's final years. (ROYAL HISTORY) Directors Stuart Elliott Genres Documentary, International Subtitles English [CC] Audio languages English. I'm not giving this a star rating because I suspect it's me at fault not the book. Unfortunately, since all I really wanted to know about was learning about Henry the 7th and his family as people - the things that happened to them, what kind of people they were, etc. [35] In 1499, Henry had the Earl of Warwick executed. It is a sobering reflection for professional historians that the apparently unpromising territory of Henry's reign has recently produced two memorable books, both of them written outside their ranks: this one, and Ann Wroe's biography of the pretender, Perkin (2003), a longer work on a shorter subject. Annoyingly, much of the most interesting stuff concerns his son, and whenever Penn comments intelligently on how the events here affected the future Henry VIII's reign I found myself perking up such as the suggestion that Henry VII's marriage to Elizabeth was the kind of marriage that their second son, Prince Henry, would spend his whole life trying to find. Henry VII introduced stability to the financial administration of England by keeping the same financial advisors throughout his reign. [citation needed], All Acts of Parliament were overseen by the justices of the peace. His history plays depicted the dramatic conflicts of the wars of the roses, which Henry's accession after his victory at Bosworth in 1485 brought to an end. It was not until 1506, when he imprisoned Suffolk in the Tower of London, that Henry could at last feel safe. Gaunt's nephew Richard II legitimised Gaunt's children by Swynford by Letters Patent in 1397. Happy St Davids Day! Pembroke Castle, and later the Earldom of Pembroke, were granted to the Yorkist William Herbert, who also assumed the guardianship of Margaret Beaufort and the young Henry. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Henry VII shut himself away in Richmond Palace from January 1509 and at 11pm on Saturday 21st April 1509 he died. [66], Henry wanted to maintain the Spanish alliance. Here is a rundown of the programme for those who missed it. Rarely was a father's reign so widely disparaged and disowned on the accession of the son. Story's register still exists and, according to the 19th-century historian W.R.W. Henry Tudor, named after his father, Henry VII, was born by Elizabeth of York June 28, 1491 in Greenwich Palace. [72] Immediately afterwards, Henry became very sick and nearly died himself, allowing only his mother Margaret Beaufort near him: "privily departed to a solitary place, and would that no man should resort unto him. According to John M. Currin, the treaty redefined Anglo-Breton relations. He was the first monarch of the House of Tudor. Get help and learn more about the design. What old December's bareness every where! [13] When the Yorkist Edward IV regained the throne in 1471, Henry fled with other Lancastrians to Brittany. How like a winter hath my absence been From thee, the pleasure of the fleeting year! He created the Tudor dynasty. Elizabeth had died in childbirth, so Henry had the dispensation also permit him to marry Catherine himself. When he died, his only surviving son, Henry VIII, succeeded him without a breath of opposition. Serious disputes involving the use of personal power, or threats to royal authority, were thus dealt with. His biographer, Professor Chrimes, credits him even before he had become king with "a high degree of personal magnetism, ability to inspire confidence, and a growing reputation for shrewd decisiveness". Local gentry saw the office as one of local influence and prestige and were therefore willing to serve. Most often asked questions related to bitcoin. Detailed Information. One interesting thing about him is his early youth and the fourteen years he spent in exile in France Brittany to be precise and those, I believe, made him the man he was eventually to become. I couldn't even stay awake reading this. Catherine's mother Isabella I of Castile had died and Catherine's sister Joanna had succeeded her; Catherine was, therefore, daughter of only one reigning monarch and so less desirable as a spouse for Henry VII's heir-apparent. Lincoln was killed in battle and Henry was victorious. [36] However, he spared Warwick's elder sister Margaret, who survived until 1541 when she was executed by Henry VIII. When the Lancastrian cause crashed to disaster at the Battle of Tewkesbury (May 1471), Jasper took the boy out of the country and sought refuge in the duchy of Brittany. [57], In 1506, Henry extorted the Treaty of Windsor from Philip the Handsome, Duke of Burgundy. Thank you for subscribing. Henry VIII, (born June 28, 1491, Greenwich, near London, Englanddied January 28, 1547, London), king of England (1509-47) who presided over the beginnings of the English Renaissance and the English Reformation. By 1500, Henry felt safer and things were looking good. Why did the nobility accept the curtailment of the military power it had wielded in the wars of the roses and swallow the elevation of upstarts at Henry's court? [citation needed], In 1506, Grand Master of the Knights Hospitaller Emery d'Amboise asked Henry VII to become the protector and patron of the Order, as he had an interest in the crusade. He was probably baptised at St Mary's Church, Pembroke,[1] though no documentation of the event exists. Penn's picture of a reign of terror carries disturbing echoes of the Roman historian Tacitus's account of the emperor Tiberius, another ruler whose abridgements of liberty followed an era of civil strife. But he leaves us wondering how Henry got away with it. [14] In November 1476, Francis fell ill and his principal advisers were more amenable to negotiating with King Edward. Effectively an orphan, he had spent wretched years as a fugitive in Brittany. [59][60][61], He was content to allow the nobles their regional influence if they were loyal to him. [23] After his coronation Henry issued an edict that any gentleman who swore fealty to him would, notwithstanding any previous attainder, be secure in his property and person. Four different kinds of cryptocurrencies you should know. England had been ravaged for decades by conspiracy, violence, murders, coups and countercoups. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. From 1527 Henry pursued what became known as "the King's great matter": his divorce from Catherine. Henry spared Richard's nephew and designated heir, John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln, and made the Yorkist heiress Margaret Plantagenet Countess of Salisbury suo jure. [81], Henry VII and Elizabeth had seven children:[b]. By 1900 the "New Monarchy" interpretation stressed the common factors that in each country led to the revival of monarchical power. However, such a level of paranoia persisted that anyone (John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln, for example)[27] with blood ties to the Plantagenets was suspected of coveting the throne. On one side of the coin, instead of a profile of his face, there was a full length depiction of Henry sat on his throne with his crown and sceptre. At any rate, the Wars of the Roses had ended with a victory by which the winner took all, and regardless of his somewhat dubious Plantagenet ancestry. Today is Shrove Tuesday time for pancakes! His father was the son of Owen Tudor, a Welsh squire, and Catherine of France, the widow of King Henry V. His mother was the great-granddaughter of John of Gaunt, duke of Lancaster, whose children by Catherine Swynford were born before he married her. Elizabeth of York was Queen consort of England as spouse of King Henry VII from 1486 until her death on February 11th, 1503. Though this was not achieved during his reign, the marriage eventually led to the union of the English and Scottish crowns under Margaret's great-grandson, James VI and I, following the death of Henry's granddaughter Elizabeth I. Henry VII ruled as Machiavelli, just after his reign, was to advise usurpers to do through fear rather than love. Poor Henry VII. On 7th August 1485, he dropped anchor at Mill Bay, Milford Haven, and when he reached the beach he prayed Judge me, O Lord, and favour my cause. The odds were stacked against him in his quest to take the throne of England. [15], By 1483, Henry's mother was actively promoting him as an alternative to Richard III, despite her being married to Lord Stanley, a Yorkist. He entertained thoughts of remarriage to renew the alliance with Spain Joanna, Dowager Queen of Naples (a niece of Queen Isabella of Castile), Queen Joanna of Castile, and Margaret, Dowager Duchess of Savoy (sister-in-law of Joanna of Castile), were all considered. Henry, son of Edmund Tudor, earl of Richmond, and Margaret Beaufort, was born nearly three months after his fathers death. Only through the deaths of more obvious claimants, and after the accession of Richard III in 1483, when Henry was 26, did he become a leading candidate. I've never read much on the reign of Henry VII - mostly because to really get to grips with his policies, you first have to get to grips with his exhaustively complicated financial policies - but Penn provides a wonderful accessibility through his writing, which provides valuable context to the man who founded England's most famous dynasty. A fresh look at the endlessly fascinating Tudorsthe dramatic and overlooked story of Henry VII and his founding of the Tudor Dynastyfilled with spies, plots, counterplots, and an uneasy royal succession to Henry VIII. Claire is going live on YouTube on 11 February! Sometimes when reading nonfiction of this type, I never know if it is going to be dry and dull or not. Before Henry VIII, English kings were addressed as "Your Grace" or "Your Highness.". Penn pointed out that for over half a century no king had passed on the crown without turmoil and Henry knew that what had happened to Richard could happen to him. He had gone from a refugee landing on an isolated beach in Wales to being a great king. In 1485 Henry landed at Milford Haven in Wales and advanced toward London. He explained how Henry VII had achieved what he set out to do, he had passed on the crown successfully. [28], Henry had Parliament repeal Titulus Regius, the statute that declared Edward IV's marriage invalid and his children illegitimate, thus legitimising his wife. Edward, Earl of Warwick, the ten-year-old son of Edward IV's brother George, Duke of Clarence, was the senior surviving male of the House of York. There he found more English fugitives, willing to invade England in support of Henry, and bearing news that Richard III had serious plans to marry the princess Elizabeth himself. From his victory over Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth, to his secret death and the succession of his son Henry VIII, the film reveals the ruthless tactics . They overrode all the usual legal processed and acted with complete impunity. One of the councils prominent members was Edmund Dudley, a man who helped Henry by enforcing the Kings legal rights, finding old laws to use against people and stretching the law to its limits. With Elizabeth's death, the possibilities for such family indulgences greatly diminished. The Field of Cloth of Gold: Royal Revelry. Its goals, relentlessly pursued until Henry's death in 1509, were the establishment of a royal house, the elimination of opposition, and the steady accumulation of power and wealth. While there, he feigned stomach cramps and delayed his departure long enough to miss the tides. The portly Henry VIII, and the ill-fated destinies of most of his six wives, is one of the first historical figures primary-aged pupils are aware of.. However, as France was becoming more concerned with the Italian Wars, the French were happy to agree to the Treaty of Etaples. [58], Henry's principal problem was to restore royal authority in a realm recovering from the Wars of the Roses. Hidden under the floor in St George's Chapel in Windsor, England where thousands of people walk every day, a forgotten tomb lies. "King Henry VII" redirects here. Soon after his fathers burial on 10 May, Henry suddenly declared that he would indeed marry Catherine, leaving unresolved several issues concerning the papal dispensation and a missing part of the marriage portion. Iain Hollingshead reviews Henry VII: Winter King, a BBC Two documentary which examines how the first Tudor monarch came to power and went on to have a 23-year reign. [citation needed] Nonetheless, by 1483 Henry was the senior male Lancastrian claimant remaining after the deaths in battle, by murder or execution of Henry VI (son of Henry V and Catherine of Valois), his son Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales, and the other Beaufort line of descent through Lady Margaret's uncle, Edmund Beaufort, 2nd Duke of Somerset. Henry VII was the founder of the Tudor dynasty and father of Henry VIII and Ive been doing a bit of digging on this lesser known Tudor. Henry VII was also shown, but his black line just traced back to Owen Tudor, a chamber servant. The wedding was a triumph but in April 1502 a messenger brought the King the news that his eldest son had died of sweating sickness. He was the founder of the Tudor dynasty, and his marriage to Elizabeth Woodville brought together the too sides that were facing off during the Wars of the Roses (the Lancasters and the Yorks) basically uniting the two houses into a single family. [18] He was welcomed by the French, who readily supplied him with troops and equipment for a second invasion. This was accomplished through the targeted imposition of fines and bonds through extrajudicial councils. The reigns of his three predecessors were interrupted or foreshortened. Many influential Yorkists had been dispossessed and disappointed by the change of regime, and there had been so many reversals of fortune within living memory that the decision of Bosworth did not appear necessarily final. Having established his claim to be king in his own right, he married Elizabeth of York on January 18, 1486. He was, said Penn, a man who never knew a moments peace during his reign. Watch for $0.00 with Prime. This approach raised puzzling questions about similarities and differences in the development of national states. But now, sensitivity readers are pushing back . There's a (relatively) brief explanation of Henry's rather tumultuous childhood and his rise to the throne, before Penn really gets into the nitty gritty details during the second half of Henry's reign, focusing on his intricate foreign policy, his increasing use of finance as a means of control over his subjects and, most entertaining to me, the various plots and conspiracies of Henry's enemies. Yet in the hands of a narrator as accomplished as Penn, the reign acquires its own, troubling fascination. One of their sons was Edmund, Henry's father. Henry had only been accepted as King because the Princes in the Tower, the sons of Edward IV, were dead, so when Yorkist exiles groomed Perkin Warbeck to pose as one of the princes and raised an army it was a huge threat. After his victory at Bosworth Field, Henry married Edward IV's daughter Elizabeth of York. Wow, it was like being battered by facts without remission for good intentions. Stanleys betrayal led to a complete security overhaul and his privy chamber going into lockdown. But Henry had a crucial asset: his queen and their children, the living embodiment of his hoped-for dynasty. To strengthen his position, however, he subsidised shipbuilding, so strengthening the navy (he commissioned Europe's first ever and the world's oldest surviving dry dock at Portsmouth in 1495) and improving trading opportunities. His first chance came in 1483 when his aid was sought to rally Lancastrians in support of the rebellion of Henry Stafford, duke of Buckingham, but that revolt was defeated before Henry could land in England. Before taking the throne, he was known as Henry Tudor, earl of Richmond. Henry VII can look a dull king, so dull that Thomas Penn's title omits his name. He would learn better as the new reign unfolded. The future Henry VIII, in contrast,. [44] Following Henry VII's death, Henry VIII executed Richard Empson and Edmund Dudley, his two most hated tax collectors, on trumped-up charges of treason. In 1621 Francis Bacon's history of the reign called Henry "a dark prince, and infinitely suspicious". Henry responded to this threat by embedding spies into households. Stanley placed Richards circlet on Henrys head, he was now King. Thanks largely to the desertion of his stepfather, Lord Stanley, to him, he defeated and slew Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth on August 22, 1485. [39] Despite this, during his reign he became a fiscally prudent monarch who restored the fortunes of an effectively bankrupt exchequer. Having seen it pop up in a lot of papers' Books of the Year lists, I think I was expecting something altogether more gripping and dramatic, but in the end I thought the story of Henry VII and the Tudor succession was just not an especially thrilling tale. For inheriting an unstable throne, holding it for 25 year and leaving England relatively stable, Henry VII deserves his own biography and a lot more credit. There were some sections I had to skim because I didn't feel they were relevant to the storyline, but mostly I was hooked into this very complex King. In response to this threat within his own household, the King instituted more rigid security for access to his person. [24][17][25] He was 29 years old, she was 20. By the way, dont forget that Ian Mortimers Time Travellers Guide to Elizabethan England is on tonight on BBC2 at 9pm. His first son and heir apparent, Arthur, Prince of Wales, died suddenly at Ludlow Castle, very likely from a viral respiratory illness known at the time as the "English sweating sickness". So Henry was a valuable bargaining tool, whose fate always depended on what relations were between England and France, always tainted by the recent Hundred Years War, and how Brittany sought to ward off threats to its own independence. [citation needed], However, his principal weapon was the Court of Star Chamber. Indeed he was born in winter, on January 28th 1457, in Pembroke Castle, in Wales and that is one of the reasons why the Welsh dragon always formed part of his insignia.