Edward IV of England ruled as king from 1461 to 1470 CE and again from 1471 to 1483 CE. The Hundred Years' War (1337-1453 CE) had been lost by Edward's predecessor, Henry VI of England (1422-1461 CE & 1470-1471 CE), leaving Calais as the only English territory in France. Henry's incompetence and episodes of insanity were important factors in the rivalry between the ruling house of Lancaster and the ambitious York family that developed into the conflict known today as the Wars of the Roses (1455-1487 CE). Richard, Duke of York (1411-1460 CE) had been ambitious to become king, and his son Edward took up the mantle from 1460 CE. Following his victories on the battlefield, Edward was crowned Edward IV the next year. There would be a brief interruption when his old ally the Earl of Warwick reinstated Henry VI in 1470 CE, but Edward would win back his throne, again on the battlefield, the next year. The king's second spell saw much more stability and a booming economy thanks to a peace treaty with France and the encouragement of cross-Channel trade. Edward died, perhaps of a stroke, aged 40 in 1483 CE and was succeeded by his young son Edward V of England (r. Apr-Jun 1483 CE) who was shortly after imprisoned and murdered, probably by his uncle the Duke of Gloucester who became Richard III of England (r. 1483-1485 CE).
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Definition
Timeline
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28 Apr 1442Birth of Edward of York, Earl of March, son of Richard, Duke of York and future Edward IV of England.
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1455 - 1487Wars of the Roses in England.
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10 Jul 1460A Yorkist army led by Richard Neville, the Earl of Warwick and Edward, Earl of March defeats Queen Margaret’s army at Northampton. Henry VI of England is captured.
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24 Oct 1460The Act of Accord identifies Richard, Duke of York as the official heir of Henry VI of England.
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30 Dec 1460Richard, Duke of York is killed at the Battle of Wakefield.
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1461 - 1470First reign of Edward IV of England.
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17 Feb 1461A Yorkist army, led by the Earl of Warwick, is defeated at St. Albans. Henry VI of England is released from captivity.
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29 Mar 1461Edward of York wins the bloody Battle of Towton. Henry VI of England is deposed.
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28 Jun 1461Edward of York is crowned Edward IV of England at Westminster Abbey.
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1464A Lancastrian army is defeated at Hexam by Edward IV of England.
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1 May 1464Edward IV of England marries Elizabeth Woodville.
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Jul 1465The fugitive ex-king Henry VI of England is captured in Lancashire and imprisoned in the Tower of London.
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26 Jul 1469The Earl of Warwick and Queen Margaret defeat King Edward IV’s army at Northampton in the Battle of Edgecote Moor.
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1470 - 1471Second reign of Henry VI of England.
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1470Birth of Prince Edward (eldest son of Edward IV of England), the future Edward V of England.
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11 Apr 1470Henry VI of England is reinstated as king (the ‘Readeption’).
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Oct 1470Second (English) coronation of Henry VI of England, this time in Saint Paul's Cathedral.
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1471 - 1483Second reign of Edward IV of England.
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1471Richard, Duke of Gloucester, is made Constable and Lord High Admiral by Edward IV of England.
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14 Apr 1471Edward IV of England wins the Battle of Barnet where the Earl of Warwick is killed.
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4 May 1471Henry VI of England’s only son Edward is killed at the Battle of Tewkesbury. Henry VI is imprisoned in the Tower of London by Edward IV of England.
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21 May 1471Henry VI of England is murdered in the Tower of London.
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1472Edward IV of England makes his younger brother Richard the Duke of Gloucester.
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1473Birth of Prince Richard, second son of Edward IV of England.
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1474James III of Scotland arranges for his son James to marry Cecily, the daughter of Edward IV of England.
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1474York Minster is completed.
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1475The stone vaulted ceiling of Saint George's Chapel at Windsor Castle is built.
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Mar 1475Edward IV of England and Louis XI of France sign a peace treaty.
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1476Queen Margaret, wife of the late Henry VI of England, is released from confinement and returns to France.
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1477William Caxton opens England's first printing press.
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18 Feb 1478George, Duke of Clarence, the brother of Edward IV of England, is murdered in the Tower of London.n
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1482Richard, Duke of Gloucester, future Richard III of England, leads a successful campaign in Scotland which recaptures Berwick.
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1483 - 1485Reign of Richard III of England.
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Apr 1483 - Jun 1483Reign of Edward V of England.
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9 Apr 1483Edward IV of England dies of a stroke at Westminster.
