History glossary
Wars of the Roses
the fifteenth-century dynastic conflicts between rival claimants from the houses of Lancaster and York.
- Category
- Dynastic conflict
- Region
- England
- Date range
- 1450s-1480s
What it means
The Wars of the Roses were a series of fifteenth-century conflicts over the English crown, fought by rival factions associated with the houses of Lancaster and York. They destabilised royal authority before Henry Tudor's victory at Bosworth in 1485 helped establish the Tudor dynasty.
Related terms
Stories using this term
The Hundred Years War
From Edward III's claim to Joan of Arc, Agincourt and Castillon, the Hundred Years War reshaped England, France and medieval warfare.
The Tudor Dynasty
The Tudors strengthened royal power, drove religious change, and shaped early modern England.
The Wars of the Roses
From Henry VI’s failing government to Yorkist victories, the missing princes and Henry Tudor’s contested settlement, England’s crown changed hands through war and shifting loyalty.
The Plantagenets
From Henry II’s cross-Channel inheritance to Bosworth, the Plantagenets shaped England through royal justice, conquest, rebellion and a struggle over who could control the crown.
