He raised an army and marched on London declaring fealty to Henry while also compelling him to remove Somerset from his post.īut Somerset held on until Henry succumbed to his first bout of madness in 1454, leaving him virtually catatonic and unable to reign.ĭuring Henry’s illness, Richard became Lord Protector of England and imprisoned Somerset in the Tower of London. The Madness of King Henry VIīy 1452, Richard of York had returned to England and decided his mission in life was to rid Henry of his corrupt advisors, particularly Edmund Beaufort, Duke of Somerset. This rivalry set the stage for 30 years of battles for power involving three generations of Yorks and Lancasters. Henry believed Richard of York was behind Cade’s rebellion (though there’s scant evidence that the Duke of York was involved). Richard of York-as great-grandson of King Edward III-had a strong competing claim on the English throne.Īfter a series of skirmishes, Henry squashed Cade’s rebellion and pardoned the rebels-except for Jack Cade himself, who would later die from a mortal wound during his arrest. Henry never officially agreed to Cade’s demands, one of which was to recall Richard, Duke of York, from Ireland back to England. Led by Jack Cade, they marched on London and presented Henry with a list of demands known as the “Complaint of the Poor Commons of Kent.”

This and the corruption and mismanagement of power in England, not to mention heavy taxation, caused frustrated property owners and peasants from Kent to revolt in 1450. Henry’s lack of leadership led him to lose almost all his holdings in France.

This incited rampant lawlessness throughout his realm and opened the door for power-hungry nobles and kingmakers to plot behind his back. He had little interest in politics and was a weak ruler. In 1445, Henry VI married Margaret of Anjou, a noble and strong-willed Frenchwoman whose ambition and political savvy overshadowed her husband’s.Īll was not well in King Henry’s court. Thanks to his father’s military conquests, Henry VI also became the disputed King of France. In 1422, Henry VI succeeded his father Henry V and became King of England-at just nine months old.

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