The Battle of Bosworth 1485 - The Wars of the Roses

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.

#thebattleofbosworth1485 #battleofbosworth #warsoftheroses

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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.

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.

[AndrewTheMandrew]

Watching here from America! Medieval English history is so fascinating.

[justinneill]

Well a well narrated and descriptive account. According to Polydor Virgil, whose on temporary account seems to be the primary source of everything we know about the battle, there is another fascinating incident that occurred during the climax; when Richard charged Henry and his guard, it was he himself who not only skewered William Brandon the Standard Bearer with his lance, but went on to knock Johnn Cheyne, Henry’s personal guard, off his horse with the broken end. This detail is all the more interesting for the fact that John Cheyne was a giant of a man (the thigh bone exhumed from his grave indicates a height of around 6’7”) whereas Richard was of moderate stature and relative slight build, in addition to his severe scoliosis, as evidenced from his skeleton. It also demonstrates how close Richard must have come to Henry, possibly seconds away from achieving his goal and slaying his rival, before he was overwhelmed. Despite his physical limitations, Richard was in fact a seasoned warrior, having previously fought alongside his brother and father, and would have been trained from an early age in military combat, as was customary for the sons of noblemen. The mounted knight, securely seated in a deep medieval saddle, formed a single unit with his charging horse to produce maximum impact directed through to the tip of his lance, and Richard would have perfected this art in the lists on the jousting field. Over recent years, research was done using a man I similar size and build, and with a similar spine curvature; he was taught to ride and joust by a modern expert, and with the same type of equipment that Richard would have had, the result proved that the feat was entirely feasible.

[tedgreen]

So glad that you've added the recent discovery of Richard's grave. Nice to see the photo of the regal tomb where he now lies. Terrific storytelling.

[MattVanPerry]

Love your passionate telling of these parts of British history mate!

[donnajohnson]

Brilliant storytelling. So fascinating. Thanks.

[nicknameunavailable]

Took the time to visit Bosworth on a business trip to the Midlands. Well worth the effort - extremely nice displays and helpful staff and volunteers.

[stephenbesley]

An interesting story of this period is that of Margaret Beaufort (Henry Tudors mother). She had her own claim to the throne but the prospect of a female monarch was not considered a safe bet at that time and so she stacked her hopes on her son. If you read about her influence in the background and machinations to secure her sons ascent you will understand why she was the real power behind Henrys reign.

[dsullivan]

You are amazing Sir, you paint a detailed picture with your words

[robg]

Thanks Chris, yet another cracking video.

[davidmacnab]

Would love to hear your take on the fate of the Princes in the Tower. Richard's reputation as a brave and seasoned campaigner is well deserved; but the disappearance of those children is a blot that can't be wished away.

[magnuslauglo]

@ The History Chap

I've been long awaiting your take on Bosworth! Thank you so much :)

As I've followed your Wars of Roses videos, I do have one question. We're used to being told that medieval warfare in general was a lot more raiding, pillaging, skirmishing, and sieges than large pitched battles. But over thirty years in the Wars of the Roses, there are a dozen or so major battles (and few large sieges I am aware of). Compare that to the 100 Years War or the Anarchy, which lasted much longer but had fewer big battles. To what do you attribute the Wars of the Roses being fought and decided by a comparatively high number of large and often decisive battles?

Were competing Kings of England reluctant to attack civilians and make themselves unpopular among the people they aspired to be kings of? Was there less of a need for armies to live off of the land because they weren't going on as many long marches? Or other reasons? And why didn't castles figure in more prominently?

[delskioffskinov]

Thoroughly enjoyed that video! hung on every word! Thank You!

[lloydpringle]

Brilliant presentation, I like how clearly and vividly you portray the details of events.

[bobsyeruncle]

Another great video! My knowledge of English history is growing nicely thanks to your excellent posts. Thank you!

[allanchurm]

back in the day family fought at bosworth part of the Stanley’s.... collis branch..we had a seal with the boars head on it ..( mother donated it to the derby museum )

[joebloggs]

Great narrative and as ever very well delivered

[roblennox]

Really do enjoy your videos. Very well put together. Can’t wait to see what you come up with next.

[davidbruce]

well done Chris. I appreciate the layout of the troops on the map!

[petergregory]

Another of your programs which I’ve both learned from and immensely enjoyed. Regards

[frankhood]

Very nicely done One small comment that would help out us yanks that or not really very familiar with the towns and places in England when you show the map of where everybody is at use a red arrow or white arrow to show the forces or the locations of the different families and or battles and deaths, I would like to see more of the map