WEBVTT

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As far as we know,

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Medieval England was never invaded
by ice zombies,

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or terrorized by dragons,

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but it was shaken by a power struggle
between two noble families

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spanning generations

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and involving a massive 
cast of characters

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with complex motives 
and shifting loyalties.

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If that sounds familiar,

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it's because the historical conflicts
known as the Wars of the Roses

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served as the basis for much 
of the drama in Game of Thrones.

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The real-life seeds of war were sewn 
by the death of King Edward III in 1377.

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Edward's oldest son 
had died before his father,

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but his ten-year-old son, Richard II,

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succeeded to the throne 
ahead of Edward's three surviving sons.

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This skipping of an entire generation

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left lingering claims to the throne
among their various offspring,

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particularly the Lancasters,
descended from Edward's third son,

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and the Yorks, descended 
from his fourth son.

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The name of the ensuing wars

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comes from the symbols 
associated with the two families,

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the white rose of York
and the red rose of Lancaster.

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The Lancasters first gained the throne

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when Richard II was deposed 
by his cousin Henry IV in 1399.

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Despite sporadic unrest,

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their reign remained secure until 1422,

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when Henry V's death 
in a military campaign

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left an infant Henry VI as king.

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Weak-willed and dominated by advisors,

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Henry was eventually convinced to marry
Margaret of Anjou to gain French support.

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Margaret was beautiful, ambitious,

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and ruthless in persecuting 
any threat to her power,

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and she distrusted 
Richard of York, most of all.

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York had been the King's close advisor
and loyal General,

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but was increasingly 
sidelined by the Queen,

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who promoted her favorite supporters,
like the Earls of Suffolk and Somerset.

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York's criticism of their inept handling
of the war against France

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led to his exclusion from court
and transfer to Ireland.

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Meanwhile, mounting military failures,

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and corrupt rule by Margaret 
and her allies

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caused widespread discontent,

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and in the midst of this chaos,

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Richard of York returned with an army
to arrest Somerset and reform the court.

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Initially unsuccessful, 
he soon got his chance

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when he was appointed 
Protector of the Realm

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after Henry suffered a mental breakdown.

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However, less than a year later,

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Henry suddendly recovered

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and the Queen convinced him 
to reverse York's reforms.

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York fled and raised an army once more.

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Though he was unable 
to directly seize the throne,

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he managed to be reinstated as Protector

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and have himself and his heirs designated
to succeed Henry.

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But instead of a crown,

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York's head acquired a pike

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after he was killed in battle
with the Queen's loyalists.

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His young son took up the claim
and was crowned Edward IV.

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Edward enjoyed great military success
against the Lancasters.

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Henry was captured,

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while Margaret fled into exile

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with their reportedly cruel son, 
Edward of Westminster.

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But the newly crowned King
made a tragic political mistake

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by backing out of his arranged marriage
with a French Princess

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to secretly marry the widow
of a minor Noble.

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This alienated his most powerful ally,
the Earl of Warwick.

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Warwick allied with the Lancasters,

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turned Edward's jealous 
younger brother, George, against him,

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and even briefly managed 
to restore Henry as King,

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but it didn't last.

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Edward recaptured the throne,

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the Lancaster Prince was killed in battle,

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and Henry himself died 
in captivity not long after.

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The rest of Edward IV's reign 
was peaceful,

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but upon his death in 1483, 
the bloodshed resumed.

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Though his twelve-year-old son
was due to succeed him,

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Edward's younger brother Richard III
declared his nephews illegitimate

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due to their father's secret marriage.

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He assumed the regency himself
and threw the boys in prison.

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Though no one knows what ultimately
became of them,

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after a while, the Princes disappeared

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and Richard's power seemed secure.

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But his downfall would come
only two years later

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from across the narrow sea
of the English Channel.

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Henry Tudor was a direct descendant
of the first Duke of Lancaster,

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raised in exile after his father's 
death in a previous rebellion.

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With Richard III's power grab
causing a split in the York faction,

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Henry won support for his royal claim.

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Raising an army in France,
he crossed the Channel in 1485

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and quickly defeated Richard's forces.

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And by marrying Elizabeth of York,
elder sister of the disappeared Princes,

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the newly crowned Henry VII
joined the two roses,

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finally ending nearly a century of war.

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We often think of historical wars
as decisive conflicts

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with clearly defined winners and losers.

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But the Wars of the Roses,
like the fiction they inspired,

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show us that victories
can be uncertain,

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alliances unstable,

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and even the power of Kings
as fleeting as the seasons.