RICHARD OF YORK, CLAIMANT TO THE ENGLISH THRONE
AND ONE OF THE MAIN LEADERS OF THE WAR OF THE ROSES
TO BEGIN WITH:
ARMS OF THE ROYAL HOUSE OF PLANTAGENET
DESCENDANTS OF THE PLANTAGENETS, AS
THE HOUSES OF LANCASTER AND YORK, AND OF COURSE
THE PLANTAGENET KINGS, WEAR THOSE ARMS.
FROM THE REIGN OF KING EDWARD III, FRENCH LILIES
[BLUE BLACKGROUND] WERE ADDED TO THE ARMS, SINCE EDWARD III
CLAIMED THE FRENCH CROWN [BEING THE MATERNAL GRANDSON
OF THE DECEASED FRENCH KING PHILIP IV], WHICH WAS THE BEGINNING
OF THE HUNDRED YEAR’S WAR WITH FRANCE
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_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg)
ARMS OF EDWARD III, THE FIRST
PLANTAGENET KING TO ADD THE FRENCH
LILIES [FLEURS DE LYS] BECAUSE OF
HIS CLAIM TO THE FRENCH THRONE
.svg)
ARMS OF RICHARD, DUKE OF YORK
EXPLANATIONS OF THE ARMS OF RICHARD, DUKE OF YORK
QUARTERLY 1ST [LEFT ABOVE] OF THE ARMS
OF THE DUKE OF YORK:
ROYAL ARMS OF HIS PATERNAL GRANDFATHER,
EDMUND OF LANGLEY,FIRST DUKE
OF YORK SON OF KING EDWARD III
HERE HE HAD A CLAIM TO THE THRONE, BUT LESS
VALID THAN FROM HIS MOTHER’S SIDE, SINCE LANGLEY
WAS THE FOURTH SON OF KING EDWARD III
[LANGLEY HAD THOSE ROYAL ARMS, BEING THE SON
OF A KING]
.svg)
SECOND QUATERLY [ABOVE RIGHT]
OF THE ARMS
OF THE DUKE OF YORK
THE ARMS OF CASTILE AND LEON.
THOSE WERE THE ARMS OF THE
THE PATERNAL GRANDMOTHER OF
RICHARD, DUKE OF YORK,
ISABELLA OF CASTILE, DUCHESS OF
YORK
3RD QUATERLY [BELOW LEFT]
OF THE ARMS OF THE DUKE OF YORK
THE ARMS OF THE MORTIMERS
HIS MATERNAL GREAT GRANDMOTHER,
PHILIPPA PLANTAGENET, DAUGHTER
OF LIONEL OF ANTWERP [WHO WAS THE SECOND
SON OF KING EDWARD III], MARRIED EDMUND
MORTIMER, 3RD EARL OF MARCH, WHO THUS
WAS THE GREAT GRANDFATHER OF RICHARD,
DUKE OF YORK.
3RD QUATERLY [BELOW LEFT]
OF THE ARMS OF THE DUKE OF YORK
THE ARMS OF THE EARLS OF ULSTER
ELIZABETH DE BURGH, DAUGHTER OF
WILLIAM DON DE BURGH, AND THE 4TH
COUNTESS OF ULSTER, WAS THE MATERNAL
GREAT GREAT GRANDMOTHER OF THE
DUKE OF YORK, BEING MARRIED WITH
HIS ANCESTOR, LIONEL OF ANTWERP
[SECOND SON OF KING EDWARD III]
4TH QUARTERLY [BELOW RIGHT]
OF THE ARMS OF THE DUKE OF YORK
ROYAL ARMS OF THE MATERNAL GREAT
GREAT GRANDFATHER OF THE DUKE OF YORK,
LIONEL OF ANTWERP, 1ST DUKE OF CLARENCE, AND
SECOND SON OF KING EDWARD III.
THIS WAS THE SUPERIOR CLAIM TO THE THRONE,
THE DUKE OF YORK HELD OVER THE LANCASTERS
[ALSO OVER KING HENRY VI, WHO WAS OF
THE LANCASTER HOUSE], SINCE THE LANCASTERS
DESCENDED FROM JOHN OF GAUNT, THE
THIRD SON OF KING EDWARD III.
THE IMAGE IS A LITTLE DIFFERENT FROM THE
ABOVE IMAGE OF THE ROYAL ARMS OF THE DUKE
OF YORK, BUT THESE ARE THE ROYAL ARMS,
AS CARRIED BY ALL SONS OF KING EDWARD III,
THOUGH THERE ARE SOME VARIETIES.
SEE BELOW
SEE THE ARMS OF THE OTHER SONS
THE WARS OF THE ROSES/RICHARD OF YORK’S CLAIM TO
THE THRONE/LETTER TO MICHAEL
HISTORY BLOG ABOUT HIS ARTICLE ”THE DUKE OF YORK VS. THE DUKE
OF SOMERSET: THE INITIAL CAUSE OF THE WAR OF THE ROSES”
Dear Readers
Recently I discovered an interesting historical site ”MICHEALSHISTORYBLOG”,
from a history student, Michael Mendez.
And to my pleasant surprise, I read an interesting article ”The Duke
ENMITY BETWEEN THE DUKE OF YORK AND THE DUKE
OF SOMERSET
ENGLISH LOSSES IN FRANCE
ROYAL FAVOURITISM
WAR AND PEACE PARTY
However, the article on Michael History Blog is very interesting, the
way it describes some origins and development of the rivalry
between Richard, Duke of York and Edmund Beaufort, the Duke
of Somerset, stemming from the losses of English territories
Not mentioned in the article are the different sides, the Dukes of York and
Somerset took regarding the Hundred Year’s War with France.
While the Duke of York [being Lieutenant in France] belonged to
the war party, which promoted die hard fighting in France, Somerset
[together with Lord Suffolk , another kings favourite], belonged
to the peace party, who wanted negociations with France.
Mendez also shares my views, that it is highly probably, that the
Duke of York was not after the throne from the beginning, but ”radicalized”
by the favouritism, showed to Somerset.
I add to that the fact, that York was never
included in the Kings Council, his appointment as Lieutenant
of Ireland in 1445 [after being Lieutenant of France], which could
Add to this, that Somerset was appointed as Lieutenant in France
in his place, following Somerset’s military failures in France.
This must have fed York’s enmity towards Somerset,
as the feeling to be overlooked by the King.
THE DUKE OF YORK
AFTER THE THRONE, FROM THE BEGINNING?
With Mendez I believe, that York had his own ambitions of
course [after all he was one of the leading nobles in the realm],
but had only the intention to plea with the King, ”to
get rid of bad councillors”, like Somerset.
That was a problem, after all, since Queen Margaret of Anjou
favourited Somerset highly and had a great influence on the King.
So the Queen and the Duke of York, no great
friends from the beginning [to put it mildly], were taking opposite sides,
one of the causes of the escalating of the conflict.
He claimed the throne only in 1460, after the conflict
was turned into an open war, to begin with
the First Battle of St Albans in 1455 and continuing
fighting thereafter.
Point of no return for the Duke was, when he and
his allies, his brother in law, the Earl of Salisbury and
Richard Neville, the Earl of Warwick [”the Kingmaker, son of the
Earl of Salisbury] were attainted in 1459, actually meaning
condemnation to traitor without a trial, by which lands and
lives are forfeited and the heirs can’t inherit.
After then unsucessfully claiming the throne, a compromise
with the Parliament was reached, the Act of Accord,
meaning that the King would rule during his life, but after his death York
and his heirs would be king, thus disinheriting the Kings own
son, Edward of Westminster, which infuriated Queen
Margaret and the bitter fighting continued.
BACK TO THE ARTICLE
THE CLAIMS OF YORK TO THE THRONE
FROM FATHER’S SIDE OR MOTHER’S SIDE?
So far I agree with Mendez.
However, in his description of the claim to the throne
of the Duke of York, he is referring at his right from
his father’s side
I quote Mendez
”The house of Yorkdescended from the line of King Edward IIIof England. Edward’s fifth son, Edmund, was created Duke of York in 1385[1] and started the royal family of York. Upon his death in 1402[2], his title passed on to his son Richard. Richard soon plotted to dethrone King Henry V but the plot was discovered and he was executed for treason. His title was then passed to his son Richard who would soon lead the house of York to heights it had never dreamed. Richard would not follow in his father’s footsteps but rather work to regain his family’s lost honor. Upon the death of Henry V, his young son Henry VI would ascend to the throne of England”
Although the Duke of York had a right to the throne by his father”
s side it was not superior to the Lancasters, since York’s paternal
grandfather, Edmund of Langley [first Duke of York] , was the fourth
son of King Edward III, but the :Lancasters descended from the third
son of King Edward III, John of Gaunt.
No, the superior c;laim of the Duke of York came from his
MATERNAL LINE, NOT HIS PATERNAL, since his mother, Anne Mortimer,
descended from Lionel of Antwerp, SECOND son of King Edward III
And the plot of Richard of Conisburgh, father of the Duke
of York against King Henry V, the Southampton Plot,
was not to become King himself, but in favour of his brother in
law, Edmund Mortimer, brother of his wife Anne Mortimer.
To point him on these facts, I wrote Michael Mendez underlying
letter, commenting his article.
See below
Thanks very much for travelling to the past with me again.
Astrid Essed
ARTICLE
MY COMMENTS:
RICHARD, DUKE OF YORK AND HIS CLAIM TO THE THRONE
THROUGH HIS MOTHER’S SIDE
Dear Michael Mendez
I share your points of view that the Duke of York [untill 1460, when
attainted on instigation of Queen Margaret of Anjou and he had no
other choice] did not intend to go for the throne, but indeed wanted
King Henry to get rid of desastrous and corruptive councillors like the Duke
of Somerset and the Duke of Suffolk [favourites to the Queen]
However, I take the liberty to show you some point.
Richard, Duke of York, had indeed a claim to the throne from
his fathers side [who was the son of Edmund of Langley,1st Duke of
York and son of King Edward III, but that was not his strongest claim,
since Langley was the fourth son [and John of Gaunt, ancestor to
the Lancasters, was the third son]
His superior claim came from his mother’s side, since she was the great
granddaughter of Lionel of Antwerp, who was the second son of
King Edward III. The Duke’s maternal grandfather, Roger Mortimer,
had been appointed by King Richard II as his heir presumptive, which
claim had passed to his son, Edmund Mortimer [maternal uncle
of Richard, Duke of York], but since Henry IV [from the House of
Lancaster] had usurped the throne from his cousin King Richard II
and Edmund Mortimer was a child then, he was overlooked.
But the claim was passed to Richard, Duke of York, who
was heir presumptive of King Henry VI, untill Queen Margaret
delivered a son.
See also my article
”THE WARS OF THE ROSES/RICHARD, DUKE OF YORK/
THE CLAIMS TO THE THRONE OF LANCASTER AND
YORK”
Much succes with your studies and historical research
Kind greetings
Astrid Essed
Amsterdam
The Netherlands