Winter is coming.
Arguably, one of the best shows to be ever made, Game of Thrones followed the stories of various rulers vying for power over the fictional continent of Westeros. The complex world of GOT was first discovered by our world in the series of novels named A Song of Ice and Fire, written by George R. R. Martin. The show reached every pinnacle of success and fame but very few people know about the fact that GRRM's exquisite world is based on the War of the Roses, a series of civil wars fought for the throne of England.
Fought in the 15th century, the conflict was initiated by the death of the ruler King Edward III and the instant succession of his grandson, Richard II, as the ruler. Edward's eldest son had already died before the death of his father. Passing of the throne directly to the grandson enraged the four other sons of Edward. This complex kerfuffle of inheritance guaranteed a tussle within the family and various generations began claiming the right to the throne. Richard was merely 10 years old when he ascended to the throne and he was not admired in the peasantry as well as the nobility. Being a weak-willed ruler, his reign was termed childish, exactly like it was. A coalition was formed between the fifth son of Edward III, Thomas of Gloucester, and Henry IV, son of Lancaster Duke, John of Gaunt, which rose in rebellion against the king. The king's power was severely crippled though he managed to grab hold of Thomas and incarcerate him. Thomas was later killed by Thomas de Mauwbry in his cell which led to further indignation of Richard amongst the nobles. Henry IV wasn't imprisoned but was exiled instead. In 1399 John of Gaunt passed away and Richard didn't let Henry inherit his rightful territories. Next thing you know, Richard II died in battle and Henry was on the throne. The game had begun and you could only win or die.
Henry IV managed to prolong the Lancaster rule for a while as he was succeeded by his son Henry V. He continued the rule until 1422 when he died of battlefield dysentery and a 10-year-old boy was left to rule. Henry VI was literally brought up on the throne instead of a crib and was surrounded by cunning advisors. As he came of age, he was married to the manipulative French Margaret of Anjou. Skeptic of everyone, she made sure his king remained comfortably seated on the soft padded throne. She had a strong feeling of distrust for the King's main advisor and confidant, Richard of York, and instead backed the not-so-skilled Duke of Somerset. When Henry slipped into a state of mental instability, Richard ascended to the throne and confined Somerset to a cell. Upon his recovery, Henry became the king yet once again at Margaret's behest. Richard was humiliated and amassed an army and launched an attack against the Lancasters. Richard's main ally was the Earl of Warwick, Richard Neville. They won the battle of St. Albans and imprisoned Henry and demanded Richard's former title of Lord Protector be bestowed upon him once again for Henry to be released. Lancaster Duke of Somerset died in this battle and the white rose of Yorks enjoyed victory over the red rose of Lancasters.
Henry had again gone into a period of mental dysfunction. He recuperated this time and at Margaret's order removed Richard from his post. Fearing for their lives Warwick and York went their separate ways; the former went to defend his castle at Calais while the latter went into hiding. Sagacious Warwick rose in rebellion against the Lancasters and invaded London and Kent. The battle of Northampton came next where Henry was captured by Warwick. With Warwick doing all of the hard-work, Richard returned to England, out of the blue, to claim the regency but was promised ascension to the throne after Henry's death. Margaret was furious as this promise meant that her son Edward would never become king Edward and beseeched the King of Scotland for an army and he complied. She raised her Scots and managed to kill Richard and his second son at the Battle of Wakefield. Margaret continued her campaign southwards and vanquished Warwick at the second Battle of St. Albans. She found her captive husband sitting under a tree like a monk.
Edward, Richard's first son, and Warwick joined hands and vowed to win the throne. The bloodiest battle in English history was the Battle of Towton of 1461 as 28000 men lost their lives. With a raging blizzard and a specter of revenge dramatizing the war, Edward emerged as the victor. To further consolidate his reign, Warwick found a French princess as a bride for the English groom. But Edward had been infatuated by a widow and they secretly swore their vows. It seemed that Edward didn't care a farthing for politics. Warwick deemed it right to swear fealty to the Lancasters in an interesting turn of events. A conspiracy was formed between George (Edward's envious brother), Warwick, and Margaret. They plotted to usurp the throne. Warwick met Edward and upon seeing his former ally against him (no, he didn't say Et Tu, Warwick), he instead fled with the Duke of Gloucester. Henry (the king who frequently went mad) was reinstated as the king and George was forgotten.
Then, Warwick who had allied with the French King went into battle against the King of Burgundy. Meanwhile, Edward and Burgundy negotiated and made it their mission to win the throne for Edward. Edward fought for Burgundy and finally killed Warwick. Margaret tried to escape but Edward outmaneuvered her and both of their forces clashed. Margaret's forces were thrashed, her son bashed dead and she was captured. Henry was murdered in the Tower of London. Edward's throne was secure for the rest of his life. The game had ended.
Problems of succession arose once again when Edward died in 1483 ( seems like Edward's death always causes problems). The son's claim was dismissed by Richard III, Edward's brother as it was professed that due to Edward's secret marriage all his children were illegitimate. Richard III became the king and it appeared as if the coast was clear for him but it wasn't. Another Henry emerged from the shores of France and boasted of a direct descended from Edward III ( whose death started it all). He crossed the English Channel and killed Richard himself. And to unite the 2 houses, he married the daughter of Edward IV( the one who died in 1483). The white rose of Yorks and red rose of Lancaster had been united and the House of Tudor had been established with most probably a pink rose but who knows?
Written by Vaibhav and Veertej
Thank you.
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