Well I guess I learned my lesson about attempting to skip forward by huge leaps using Shakespeare. So here’s some follow-up to the confusion that was class today:

First of all, where England is concerned, you should know that between 1337 and 1485 the English nobility is engaged in two massive wars for control of the thrones of England and France, one external (known as the Hundred Years’ War) and one internal (known as the War of the Roses). These are good examples of just how strained the feudal bonds had become by the 14th century; by 1500, individual ties of lordship and vassalage were no longer sufficient in the much-changed world of Western Europe. Prolonged warfare in particular, fundamentally altered the nature of government and finance, and by the end of the Wars of the Roses in 1485 we begin to see something rather new and distinct appear especially in England. Of course by the time Henry VII assumes the throne (i.e. 1485), the Renaissance is well under way in Italy which is where our attention will shift presently.

• Richard III, House of York (r.1483-85)
• Henry VII TUDOR (r.1485-1509) – marries Elizabeth of York (daughter of Edward IV, Richard’s elder brother – and therefore Richard III’s niece)

Henry VII Tudor