ELIZABETH WOODVILLE, the White Queen of England | Wife of Edward IV | Women of the Wars of the Roses

ELIZABETH WOODVILLE was the wife of EDWARD IV, the mother of the PRINCES IN THE TOWER and has become known as the white Queen of England in reference to the white rose which was one of the symbols of her husband’s royal House of York. In this documentary from History Calling, we look at her early life and queenship. Elizabeth is a particularly fascinating subject because she was one of the women who fought the Wars of the Roses (also known as the Cousins’ War), a dynastic conflict between the houses of York and Lancaster which occurred over the course of several decades in the 15th century and which is so named because of the aforementioned white rose of York and the red rose symbolised by the House of Lancaster. This conflict cost her more than perhaps any other woman involved in it and was largely responsible for her having one of the most dramatic lives of any Queen of England. Join me to hear about her birth to the most scandalous couple of the day, Sir Richard Woodville and Jacquetta of Luxembourg, dowager Duchess of Bedford; her marriage as a teenager to Sir John Grey; how she came to be the York Queen despite her Lancastrian background; why her union with Edward was one of the most unpopular royal marriages of the era; her time as Queen and the threats to her and her children’s lives which led them to flee into sanctuary in Westminster Abbey and which mean that Elizabeth is one of the few women in history to be Queen of England twice.

This video is part of a larger series on the women of the Wars of the Roses which has/will also look at Cecily Neville, Duchess of York; Margaret of Anjou, Queen of England; Lady Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII; Anne Neville, Queen of England and Elizabeth of York, Queen of England. Come back for the next video to learn about Elizabeth Woodville’s possible involvement in the execution of her brother-in-law, George, Duke of Clarence, her reaction to the death of her husband, her relationship with her other brother-in-law, Richard, Duke of Gloucester (Richard III), her life after the throne and reaction to the mysterious disappearance of her young sons from the Tower of London and how she conspired with Margaret Beaufort to become the mother of the Queen instead of the king.

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[HistoryCalling]

What do you make of Elizabeth and Edward's scandalous marriage? Let me know below.

[kazoolibra]

She is one of my favorite historical people....with all of her losses SHE and Margaret Beaufort SOLVED the Wars by marrying their daughter and son. Very admirable ladies

[packard]

She is my 16th Great-grandmother, and her son Thomas Grey 1st Marquess of Dorset is my 15th Great Grandfather his father was Sir John Grey my 16th Great Grandfather. I have been doing my family history for a while now and have been surprised at my family's amazing history. What I have learned is how connected all the nobility was to each other and how many royals and nobility I have in my own family. It sometimes very unreal and hard to wrap my head around but we all have to be related to someone and it is a part of who we are.

[sweettater]

I thank you for using the family tree graphic to show the familial relationships as well as the colors to explain the intricacies of the York/Lancastrian dynasties. A point that has previously confused me with all the Edwards, johns, Henry's etc. Thank you!!

[FandersonUfo]

"Women of the Wars of the Roses" - thank you for excellent content as per usual - no wonder Elizabeth chose religious retreat as an option in the end - she did not seek any of the excitement that happened around her - to survive the climax of the Wars of the Roses as she did must have felt miraculous - I'd take a vow after all that - ty HC - 🛸

[jamesmackey]

Brilliant. Thanks for discussing Elizabeth Woodville. She is one of my favourite characters of the time. Such a strong and powerful woman but she suffered much too.

[theskincareskinny]

Thank you for doing this series! I love watching period dramas, and watched all of The White Queen/The White Princess/The Spanish Queen/The Tudors etc. Its nice to hear someone speak on the facts versus the fiction. This kind of history really interests me, and you do such a beautiful job bringing it to life! ❤❤❤

[SeanMcGuire]

Elizabeth Woodville and Edward IV are my 14th great-grandparents! So I loved this look at her life and the wonderful explanation of the Yorkist vs. Lancastrian families at the beginning.

[amymahers]

Whew! That family tree is a migraine waiting to happen! You did a great job in giving the particulars. Thank you for your hard work and brain busting effort. As always, you’re the best!

[leticiagarcia]

She’s my favorite of all the ladies of the War of the Roses. Excellent content. Yes, it was scandalous. When Edward IV married Elizabeth Woodville he lost his friendship the Earl of Warwick. I think she had to adapt to being queen consort quickly, especially when her husband’s crown was still in dispute. It must’ve been difficult for her giving birth to her son Edward V while she was in refuge at Westminster Abby. She was intelligent and gutsy.

Thank you. Your work is brilliant as always. Have a great weekend. 🌞

[ns-wzmx]

so good! i never get tired of hearing her story. plus your excellent research always has new info for me. can’t wait for part 2! 🙌🏻

[jamellfoster]

I love Elizabeth Woodville. She was a strong, intelligent lady but also a very loving Mom to her 12 kids... Her kids cherished her & she passed on her loving parenting style to her daughter, Elizabeth of York who was also known to be a loving, hands on, nurturing Mom to her kids (including Henry VIII)... I often wonder had Elizabeth Woodville & Elizabeth of York lived to see Henry VIII become an adult how might history have differed... Henry loved his Mom & would listen to her before listening to anyone else... But she died shortly before he turned 12...

[CassiBlack]

Your use of the family trees helped immensely! The War of the Roses was not something we learned about in school in the US, so my previous knowledge came from shows/books like The White Queen. Now I have a much better understanding of what happened during this crazy era!

[rickjensen]

That family tree sums up the complicated family relationships very well: no wonder I could never remember who was who!

[jeffreymontgomery]

Wow, the absolute BEST EXPLANATION of how things came to be! I have never heard a better chronological/hierarchical discourse of the family tree down from Edward III! Thank you much for such wonderful content. To take the complexity of a topic such as this and to break down the immensity of a topic into more digestible/palatable portions or understandings that lay people such as I can begin to get a better grasp upon; that which has taken decades, perhaps centuries to reconstruct and display in such a way as to form a cohesive whole, is a standard and testament to your scholarly mastery of this subject. I wish there were more teachers and scholars of your caliber in our school systems. But maybe thats where YouTube and Internet research come into their own.. For those who seek, shall be those who find....

[isaacfowler]

The history of the Lancastrians is very interesting, not only because there were so many participants involved, but the crown seemed to change often. The heir and spares proved difficult. My favorite person during the Lancaster era was John of Gaunt’s third wife (first his mistress) Katherine Swynford. If I can remember correctly, her sister was Phillipa who married Geoffrey Chaucer, the author of the Canterberry Tales. I was so enthralled by Katherine’s life I named our daughter after her. I would love to know more.

[thomashavard-morgan]

Elizabeth Woodville is too widely unknown, for the brilliance, ambition and drama that was her life. She was intelligent, astute and cunning and ranks up there with the best of England's queens. She also lost a lot and suffered, due to her ambition and the times in which she lived, but was ultimately victorious in her aims and lived to see the end of the wars of the roses. I hope you do a video on her rival and one time ally Margaret Beaufort.

[okiejammer]

" ... Try to keep up." Ha! Indeed. Fantastic research and content, your voice and reading of the material is very pleasing and clear. Very well done!

[Bus_Driver_Jay]

As always, perfection has been met, Dr Ms History! ❤️

It always amuses me just now huge the medieval family trees are. I guess because now in the UK you’d have one or two children, three tops, in the ‘normal’ family, while back then you’d have to have an heir, and a few spares just because of how dangerous it was just living in some time periods!

[SaucyMuffins]

“Hard pushed to dream it up.”
Phillippa Gregory: watch me.
Historians: please don’t.