Queen Margaret of Anjou

  France and  England were pretty much enemies from their conception until the 20th century.  In 1444, both side were ready for a truce, so it was agreed that Margaret of Anjou, at the age of 15, would marry King Henry VI.

  Margaret had learned several lessons about politics by watching what happened to her father, the duke of Anjou, as she grew up.  He was king of several kingdoms, but in name only, and he fought for most of his life trying to turn those titles into real power.  Thus, while he was away, Margaret was raised by her mother and her grandmother, both powerful, politically inclined women in their own right.  This would be the example that Margaret followed the rest of her life.  The message to Margaret was that real power had to be fought for and a woman should be allowed to rule if the husband was away.

 

  Henry, age 23, apparently had a sweet, gentle, and amiable nature.  Margaret was probably relieved to know this, but, unfortunately, though those traits made him a good husband, they made him a weak, naïve king.  Henry's reign had, technically, started when he was 9 months old, but a council of nobles had ruled for him until he was old enough.  However, Henry was still rather incapable as a ruler.

 

  Seven years after their marriage, in 1753, Margaret gave birth to their first child, named Edward.  Unfortunately, several months into the pregnancy, Henry's mind decayed and disintegrated, leaving him near catatonic.  Margaret, new heir to the throne in her arms, quickly discovered that she now had power to directly affect the political games going on around her.  Three months after Edward was born, Margaret made it clear that she wanted to act as the ruler of the country while the king was incapacitated.

 

  Since England had gone so long without a good and proper king, the nobles had split into two separate factions, each backing a different prospective ruler of the country.  This conflict would later become known as the beginning of the War of the Roses.  One side backed the Duke of York, the cousin of the king, and the other side backed the Duke of Somerset, who was acting on the behalf of the House of Lancaster, which Henry was a part of.  To Margaret, she was the obvious choice to nurture the kingdom while her husband was down for the count, just as her mother and grandmother had done for her father in France.  However, Henry was still physically in the country and, to the nobles it seemed as though Margaret was overstepping her bounds as queen.  This caused the nobles to turn from her and support for the Duke of York grew.  Shortly after, the Duke of Somerset was thrown into the Tower of London.

 

  On Christmas Day, 1454, Henry, after being non compos mentis for over a year, regained control of his mental faculties.  This caused the supporters of the Duke of York to leave him and his campaign fell apart.  However, now that the king was awake and aware, the rivalry between Somerset and York was no longer about ruling in the king's absence, but about having control over the king himself.  The nobles began choosing sides and in 1455, the two sides converged on a small town called St. Albans, and the first battle of the War of the Roses began.  Henry did not fight at all.  Instead, he sat in the square under a banner, waiting to find out the winner while the battle raged on around him.

 

  The Duke of Somerset died in the battle, and the Duke of York emerged victorious.  This was where the game changed for Margaret.  Since York now had control of the king and since he was Henry's first cousin and was therefore close to the royal line, he was a direct threat to Margaret's son and the line of succession.  Margaret decided to take some time to plan her next move and left London for one of her castles on the country, Tutbury, which she then enlarged, reinforced, and transformed into a formidable fortress.

 

  The country was divided on itself once again and Margaret raised an army on behalf of Henry and Edward.  After considerable fighting, Margaret's army defeated York's, scattering the leaders and winning the day.  Margaret declared her enemies guilty of treason, but it wasn't long before York's son and nephew returned and defeated her army at Northampton, and Henry was taken prisoner.  York then claimed the throne, arguing that the royal line of descent meant that he was the rightful king.  The nobles then compromised that Henry was the rightful king, but when he died, the crown would go to the Duke of York.

 

  Margaret was, rightfully, upset.  She set about raising an army with support from Scotland and, shortly, the Duke of York was ambushed and killed by her men in 1460.  Margaret then had his head put on a spike and had a paper crown put on it to mock him.  It was for actions like this that Shakespeare would later call her "the she-wolf of France", just as Isabella before her.  However, the war was not yet won.  York's son Edward and his nephew, the Earl of Warwick were still powerful enemies and the two sides once again clashed at St. Albans.  In the end, Margaret's men won the battle and Henry VI was released and reunited with his wife and son.

 

  Edward, York's son, was not so easily defeated, though, and cut a much more appealing figure than King Henry.  He was just 18, but was charismatic, intelligent, tall, and handsome.  Much more kingly than anyone had seen since before Henry was on the throne.  He, like his father, claimed to be the true king of England going by the line of succession and, this time, London fully backed his claim, declaring him Edward IV.  Nine days later, his troops set out to defeat Margaret for the last time.

 

  He defeated her army near York, and Margaret, Henry, and their son fled to the north, no longer the royal family.  Margaret would again attempt to raise armies from the Scots and the French, but was not successful in changing the hearts of the English people.  In 1465, Henry was captured once more and imprisoned in the Tower of London.  Margaret and Edward then fled to France where the French king allowed them to set up a small court near the English Channel.  Margaret's son, Edward was ten years old when this happened and Margaret never stopped fighting for his future as the King of England.  Luckily for her, the House of York was to strong a mixture to stand for long.  The Earl of Warwick was dismayed to discover that he could no longer control Edward now that he was king.  They had fallen out of friendship and Warwick now looked for another kingly candidate to bring down his cousin.

 

  The House of Lancaster was just such a contender.  Unfortunately for Margaret, this meant becoming allies with the man who had almost singlehandedly dethroned her family.  In the summer of 1470, the deal was sealed and Margaret's son married Warwick's daughter.  Warwick went back to England, and took Edward by surprise, defeating his and causing him to flee the country.  King Henry VI was then freed from the Tower and put back on the throne.  Margaret and Edward finally returned to England, but, surprisingly, so had Edward IV.  Warwick was defeated and killed in battle with Edward's troops and Margaret found herself in the middle of enemy territory.

 

  Their armies met at Tewkesbury and Margaret's son, Edward, was killed at the age of 17, becoming the only heir apparent to die in battle.  She was taken captive at the end of the battle and was imprisoned in the Tower of London from the age of 41 until the age of 45 when she was ransomed to the King of France and allowed to return to Anjou.  Henry VI died in the Tower in 1471, supposedly from grief, but more likely from murder.  Margaret died quietly at the age of 51.