BRAND #150 · ENGLISH DYNASTY · $1,000,000
House of York
The White Rose · The Counter-Dynasty
“Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this sun of York.”
RICHARD III · ACT 1 · SHAKESPEARE
SPONSORED
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The History
The white rose against the red.
Richard, 3rd Duke of York, believed the Lancastrian Henry VI had stolen what was rightfully his. He pressed his claim but died at the Battle of Wakefield in 1460, his head placed on the gates of York wearing a paper crown. His son Edward crushed the Lancastrians at the Battle of Towton in 1461 — the bloodiest battle ever fought on English soil — and became Edward IV.
The dynasty was defined by three brothers: Edward IV (the king), George, Duke of Clarence (the traitor, drowned in wine), and Richard III (the last Yorkist king, killed at Bosworth in 1485). Richard Neville, the Earl of Warwick — the Kingmaker — put the Yorkists on the throne, then switched sides, then died trying to switch back.
The house ended at Bosworth. But it survived through Elizabeth of York, who married the Lancastrian Henry VII. Red rose married white rose. The Tudor dynasty was born. The war ended not with a sword but with a wedding.
Richard of York
3RD DUKE · THE CLAIMANT · DIED 1460
Edward IV
KING · TOWTON · THE SUN OF YORK
Richard III
LAST YORKIST · BOSWORTH · 1485
George of Clarence
THE TRAITOR · DROWNED IN WINE
Warwick the Kingmaker
RICHARD NEVILLE · MADE AND UNMADE KINGS
Cecily Neville
MOTHER OF KINGS · PROUD CIS
Elizabeth of York
DAUGHTER · MARRIED HENRY VII · PEACE
The Princes
EDWARD V + RICHARD · THE TOWER
The Products
Seven products for the claimant.
The White Rose
Preserved white rose in glass dome. The York emblem. Displayed against Lancaster’s red. Buy both. Put them side by side. That’s the war.
$75
Towton
Snow globe. Not cute. It’s a battlefield in a snowstorm. 28,000 died that day in 1461. The bloodiest day in English history. Shake it. Remember.
$48
The Paper Crown
Brass desk crown. Miniature. Richard of York’s enemies placed a paper crown on his severed head. This one is metal. It doesn’t come off.
$55
The Kingmaker
Networking journal. 200 pages. For the person who puts other people on thrones. Warwick made kings. Then unmade them. Document who owes you what.
$42
Clarence
Wine decanter. Because George, Duke of Clarence, was allegedly drowned in a butt of Malmsey wine by his own brother. Pour carefully.
$95
Bosworth
Leather-bound copy of Shakespeare’s Richard III. Richard died at Bosworth saying ‘A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse.’ The play is the legacy.
$65
The Wedding
Dual rose brooch. White and red intertwined. Elizabeth of York married Henry VII. The war ended with a marriage. Sometimes the best strategy is love.
$58
SPONSORED
Advertising space · $500/month
Learning Game
Test your knowledge.