The Sweetbriar's Thorns: Wars Of The Roses Part III

We've gone from the medieval match of Charles V of England to the final moments of Richard III's disputed reign.  Now, to the resolution of the struggle! 

Elizabeth of York, who ended the bloodshed by uniting the two warring factions, is the featured heroine of several novels.  Daughter of Edward IV, she wed Henry Tudor, exiled knight who defeated Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field to become Henry VII.

TUDOR ROSE:  THE STORY OF THE QUEEN WHO UNITED A KINGDOM AND BIRTHED A DYNASTY by Margaret Campbell Barnes  England seethes with turmoil as Richard III seeks to legitimize his rule and defeat opponents who claim he seized the throne illegally.  Elizabeth, only remaining legitimate descendant of Edward IV, has the most indisputable claim to the kingdom.  Both her uncle Richard and the Lancastrian Henry Tudor seek to use her to further their cause; the man who wins her will control the destiny of England.

Historical fiction veteran Jean Plaidy weighs in with another account of the struggle in TO HOLD THE CROWN: THE STORY OF KING HENRY VII AND ELIZABETH OF YORK. After fourteen years of exile in Brittany, Henry Tudor returns to defeat Richard III in battle.  But his claim to the throne was still tenuous; only his marriage to the legitimate Plantagenet heiress, Elizabeth of York, could solidify it.  From a union born of political necessity, Plaidy creates a tale of a loving marriage whose long duration and seven children began the Tudor age.

Sandra Worth offers another account in THE KING'S DAUGHTER: A NOVEL OF THE FIRST TUDOR QUEEN.  Surprisingly little is known about "Elizabeth the Good," mother of the notorious Henry VIII, a woman torn between the rival claims of two dynasties.  Woven into Worth's story about Elizabeth of York are the machinations of her mother, Edward IV's queen Elizabeth Neville Gray (THE WHITE QUEEN and others,) her grandmother Jacquetta (LADY OF THE RIVERS) and Henry Tudor's mother Margaret Beaufort (THE RED QUEEN).

But even the marriage of Elizabeth and Henry didn't completely end the saga:  there was still the question of what happened to Edward IV's missing sons. 

One view of this intrigue is presented in THE KING'S GRACE by Anne Easter Smith, narrated by another unusual heroine, Grace Plantagenet.  Illegitimate daughter of Edward IV and family confident, Grace was close to her half-brothers, the princes in the Tower, and distraught when they disappeared.  Years later, with Richard dead and Henry VII on the throne, a man named Perkin Warbeck appears at court, claiming to be her missing half-brother, Prince Richard—the legitimate heir to the throne.  Torn between affection for her half-sister Elizabeth of York, who is now Henry VII's queen, and love for her lost nephews, Grace determines to uncover the truth of Warbeck's claim.

Sandra Worth ends her Rose of England series with her version of the controversy, PALE ROSE OF ENGLAND.  Was Perkin Warbeck the missing Prince Richard of the Tower?  His wife, Lady Catherine Gordon of Scotland, has no doubt.  With royal courts abuzz with intrigue and the support of Scotland's King James IV, she sets off with her husband to establish his claim.  But her dazzling beauty draws the unwelcome attention of the Tudor king, even as her husband's threat to his reign sends Richard to the Tower.

The final entry in the Warbeck saga is THE COURTS OF ILLUSION by Rosemary Hawley Jarman.  Told by Nicholas Archer, estranged from his family who supported Richard III after the Battle of Bosworth Field, he becomes one of Richard of York's most trusted aides.  Jarman paints a vivid picture of fifteenth century life as Richard and his loyal supporter journey across Europe, seeking support for Richard's cause.

Had enough of the Wars of the Roses?  Next time, we'll venture further back, into the schemes and intrigues of late medieval England.  Until then, here's to history that refreshes!

Previous War of the Roses

Julia Justiss is the author of several historical romances including her latest, SOCIETY'S MOST DISREPUTABLE GENTLEMAN