For the next year, Richard was
merely a puppet king, controlled by the Lords Appellant. John of
Gaunt's return to England, however, began to swing the balance of
power back to Richard (as Gaunt and his brother Gloucester were
rivals and the Lord Appellants' overreaching had alienated many
who originally supported them).
Richard's
Policies. Richard's policies were frequently unpopular
with his nobles and subjects. In 1394, he led an expedition into
Ireland, where he tried to address the Irish grievances against
absentee English landlords. He might have had a chance to establish
more stable English rule in Ireland if he had not been recalled
to England the following year. Unlike his warlike grandfather, who
spent much of his reign in wars with France and Scotland, and his
father, the hero of Crécy, Richard was not a great military
leader. His 1395 campaign in Scotland was indecisive. The following
year, he signed a 28-year truce with France that was deeply unpopular
in England, even though it brought peace. Despite this, taxes did
not decrease for Richard's subjects. Instead, the expansion of his
court and the refinements Richard insisted upon increased the financial
burdens.
Further, Richard became increasingly
wedded to the idea that he was divinely appointed to be king. He
insisted on being addressed as "majesty" or "highness,"
and subjects were directed to keep their eyes lowered to the ground
when talking to him. This authoritarianism alienated his subjects.
For example, in 1392, Richard revoked the liberties of London when
the city refused him a loan.
Gloucester's
Death. Although Richard did recover the authority
taken by the Lords Appellant, he did not forget the indignities
heaped upon him by them. Gloucester, Arundel, and Warwick--again
frozen out of the government--again conspired against him. The plot
was betrayed, and all three arrested (1397). Gloucester was removed
from the country and held in Calais, possibly to forestall any attempt
to rescue him, and was in the custody of Thomas Mowbray, a former
Lord Appellant, now Captain of Calais. Arundel was executed and
Warwick exiled. Gloucester died while in captivity, probably on
Richard's order and with Mowbray's complicity.
 |
Wars
of the Roses |
 |
Shakespeare's
history plays are primarily focused on the root causes and tragedy
of the "Wars
of the Roses"a dynastic battle between descendants of Edward
III. Although many children was usually seen as a blessing--increasing
the likelihood that the king would be succeeded by his son--Edward
III's large brood ended up as the source of dynastic instability
that affected England for the next 85 years. Although the dynastic
conflict between the Lancastrians and Yorkists first surfaced 50
years after Henry IV's accession to the throne, it was the method
of that accession that set the stage for the later conflict.
Henry IV's deposition and assassination
of Richard II set a disturbing precedent for those who felt that
the current king was weak. Although Henry V did succeed his father,
his early death left his infant son and namesake king at nine months.
Although Henry VI reigned longer than Richard II, his reign ended
just as badly. He was deposed by Edward IV, restored to the throne
nine years later, and removed again and killed when Edward IV returned
to England a year later.
Edward IV, like
Henry VI, was a descendant of Edward III. On his father's side,
he was descended from Edward III's fourth son; on his mother's side,
he was the great-grandson of John of Gaunt. When Edward IV died,
his minor son, Edward V, succeeded him. Before his death, Edward
IV named his brother, Richard, Duke of Gloucester (Richard III),
as Protector of the Realm. When Edward V and his brother were declared
illegitimate, Richard, Gloucester became Richard III. Two years
later, Henry Tudor, descended from Edward III on his mother's side,
deposed Richard III and became Henry VII.
http://www.warsoftheroses.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kings_of_England_family_tree
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