The Children of Adam and Eve

Also duke of York, who established the house of York on the English
throne.

He inherited the title earl of March. During the Wars of the Roses, and
following defeat in the Battle of Ludlow in 1459, Edward was driven from
England by the Lancastrian king Henry VI. After his return to England and
the Death of his father in the Battle of WakeField in 1460, Edward became
head of the house of York. He defeated the Lancastrians in the Battle of
Mortimer's Cross in 1461 and was acclaimed king by Parliament, which also
declared Henry VI a usurper and traitor. Edward was crowned in June 1461.
In giving thanks in person to the House of Commons, he set a historic
precedent. Despite the civil war that continued intermittently until 1471,
when all Lancastrian resistance was crushed and Henry VI was taken
prisoner, Edward Fostered the commerce of his realm. During his reign,
printing and silk manufacturing were introduced in England.

Edward's marriage to Elizabeth Woodville, a commoner, and his efforts to
create a new nobility More amenable to his interests, angered the older
nobles and alienated Richard Neville, earl of Warwick, who had been a
power behind his throne. Warwick made an alliance with the Lancastrians
and, in 1470, drove Edward from the throne and into exile in Holland.
Henry VI again became king of England. Supplied with funds by his
Brother-in-law, Charles the Bold, duke of Burgundy, Edward returned to
England in 1471, raised a large army, and won decisive victories over his
enemies at Barnet and Tewkesbury. Thereafter the crown was securely in his
possession. The later years of his reign were, for the most part,
uneventful. The most notable incident of this period was a short war with
France in 1475, which was terminated by an arrangement whereby King Louis
XI agReed to pay Edward an annual subsidy. Edward was succeeded by his son
Edward V.