Richard, Duke of York

**Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York** (21 September 1411 – 30 December 1460) was one of the most powerful nobles in England during the mid-15th century. He is best known for his long struggle to control the government of King Henry VI, and for his claim that he — not Henry — had the right to be king. His fight for power helped start the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars fought between two branches of the royal family.

Richard never became king himself, but two of his sons did: Edward IV and Richard III. He also appears in several of Shakespeare's plays, and his name is used in a well-known memory trick for the colours of the rainbow: ***R**ichard **O**f **Y**ork **G**ave **B**attle **I**n **V**ain* (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet).

## Early life
Richard was born on 21 September 1411. His early life was very difficult. His mother, Anne Mortimer, died shortly after he was born. His father, Richard, Earl of Cambridge, was beheaded in 1415 for plotting against King Henry V. Within months of that, Richard's childless uncle Edward, Duke of York, was killed at the Battle of Agincourt, leaving Richard to inherit his uncle's title and lands at just four years old.

Because he was an orphan and a child, the government took control of his property and Richard became a **ward of the crown** — meaning the king was responsible for looking after him. In 1423, his wardship was sold to Ralph Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland, and Richard grew up in the Neville household. There he was betrothed (promised in marriage) at age 13 to 9-year-old Cecily Neville, the earl's daughter. They eventually married by October 1429, and the marriage connected Richard to a huge web of powerful noble families across England.

In 1425, Richard also inherited the vast lands and title of the Mortimer family through his mother's side, making him the richest and most powerful nobleman in England after the king.

## His claim to the throne
Richard's claim to the throne was complicated, but important. Both he and King Henry VI were descended from King Edward III, but through different lines:

* Richard's mother's family (the Mortimers) came from Lionel of Antwerp, Edward III's **second** son.
* The ruling House of Lancaster — King Henry's family — came from John of Gaunt, Edward III's **third** son.

This meant that, if you counted descent through women as well as men, Richard could argue that his family's claim was actually **stronger** than the king's. This claim made him a threat in the eyes of the Lancastrian government, even though for most of his life he was loyal to Henry VI.

## Service in France
In 1436, Richard was appointed commander of the English forces in France, where England was fighting the long Hundred Years' War. He had some success, recovering parts of Normandy, but found the job frustrating. The government back in England did not pay him properly and gave him less authority than he wanted.

He served two terms in France (1436–1437 and 1440–1445). During his second term, his wife Cecily Neville came with him, and three of their children — including the future Edward IV — were born in Rouen, France.

A key source of bitterness during this time was the Duke of Somerset, who was sent to France in 1443 with a large army that took men and resources away from Richard. Somerset's campaign achieved nothing and caused diplomatic damage. Richard blamed Somerset for weakening England's position in France — a grudge that would fester for the rest of his life.

## Pushed out of power
When Richard returned to England for good in 1445, he expected to remain an important figure in the king's government. Instead, he found himself increasingly shut out. King Henry VI was a weak ruler who relied heavily on his favourites, and those favourites — especially Somerset — saw Richard as a rival to be sidelined.

In 1447, Richard was sent to Ireland as its governor. This was partly a sensible appointment (he owned lands there), but it was also a convenient way to keep him far from the centre of power in England for ten years.

Back home, things were getting worse. England was losing the war in France. Riots and rebellions broke out, including Jack Cade's Revolt in 1450. Key royal ministers were murdered by mobs. Richard returned to England in September 1450 without permission, marching south with an army and demanding reform of the government.

## Struggle for power (1450–1455)
For the next few years, Richard tried repeatedly to force himself into the king's government. He presented himself as a reformer who wanted good government, while also trying to destroy his personal enemy, the Duke of Somerset.

In 1452, Richard marched an army to Dartford in Kent to try to force the king to dismiss Somerset. He was outnumbered and outmanoeuvred, and ended up being humiliated — forced to swear a public oath of loyalty at St Paul's Cathedral.

His fortunes changed dramatically in August 1453, when King Henry suffered a total mental breakdown. Henry became completely unresponsive — unable to speak, feed himself, or recognise anyone around him. With the king unable to rule, Parliament appointed Richard as **Lord Protector** in March 1454, giving him control of the country. He used this power to imprison Somerset in the Tower of London and appoint his allies, including his brother-in-law the Earl of Salisbury, to important posts.

However, Henry recovered in January 1455. He immediately reversed Richard's actions — Somerset was freed, Richard lost his role as Protector, and his allies were removed from power.

## The Battle of St Albans (1455)
Feeling threatened, Richard raised an army and marched south. In May 1455, his forces intercepted the king's small and poorly prepared army at St Albans. The fighting was brief, but decisive. Three of Richard's main enemies — Somerset, the Earl of Northumberland, and Lord Clifford — were all killed. Because these men were specifically targeted, some historians have said the battle was more like a series of planned assassinations than a real battle.

Richard escorted King Henry back to London, symbolically wearing the crown. Richard was once again made Protector and placed his allies in key positions.

This battle is usually considered the start of the Wars of the Roses.

## Growing conflict (1455–1459)
Richard held power for a time after St Albans, but he never secured a lasting position. The sons of the men killed at St Albans — especially the new Duke of Somerset and the new Earl of Northumberland — wanted revenge. Queen Margaret of Anjou, who was devoted to protecting her son's right to the throne, increasingly took charge of the Lancastrian cause.

In 1458, King Henry tried to make peace between the two sides with a public ceremony known as the Loveday, where enemies were made to walk hand-in-hand through London. Richard was paired with Queen Margaret. The peace did not last.

By 1459, the situation had broken down completely. Richard, the Nevilles, and their allies refused to attend a royal council, fearing arrest. At the Battle of Ludford Bridge, their army collapsed — Warwick's troops refused to fight — and Richard fled to Ireland. His wife Cecily and two young sons, George and the future Richard III, were captured.

## The claim to the throne (1460)
In 1460, the tide turned again. Richard's allies — the Earl of Warwick and the Earl of Salisbury — invaded England from Calais and defeated the royal army at the Battle of Northampton, capturing King Henry.

Richard returned from Ireland in September 1460, marching to London under the royal coat of arms as if he were already king. In Parliament, he walked up to the empty throne and placed his hand on it — clearly expecting to be acclaimed king. Instead, there was silence. The assembled lords were not ready to simply hand him the crown.

After weeks of negotiation, a compromise was reached: the **Act of Accord**. This agreement said that Henry VI would remain king for the rest of his life, but that Richard and his heirs would inherit the throne after Henry's death — disinheriting Henry's own son, the young Prince of Wales. Richard was also made Lord Protector once again.

## Death at the Battle of Wakefield
The agreement came too late. Lancastrian forces were gathering in the north of England, loyal to Queen Margaret and the prince. Richard marched north with a smaller force to face them, arriving at Sandal Castle near Wakefield just before Christmas 1460.

On 30 December 1460, Richard led his troops out of the castle — for reasons that are not fully clear — and was caught in the open by a much larger Lancastrian army. The Battle of Wakefield that followed was a complete disaster for the Yorkists. Richard was killed in the fighting. His son Edmund, Earl of Rutland, who was 17 years old, was also killed as he tried to flee.

Richard's head was cut off and displayed on a spike above Micklegate Bar, the main gate of the city of York, wearing a paper crown — a cruel mockery of his ambition to be king.

He was 49 years old.

## Legacy
Richard of York was never king, but his influence shaped English history for generations. Within weeks of his death, his eldest son was proclaimed King Edward IV. After Edward's reign, his younger brother became Richard III. When Richard III was defeated and killed at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485, the Tudor dynasty came to power — but even the Tudors were connected to Richard of York, because Henry VII married Richard's granddaughter Elizabeth of York. All later English monarchs descend from this marriage, and therefore from Richard of York himself.

## Children
Richard and Cecily Neville had twelve children. Those who survived to adulthood were:

* Anne (1439–1476)
* Edward IV (1442–1483) — became King of England
* Edmund (1443–1460) — killed at the Battle of Wakefield
* Elizabeth (1444–after 1503)
* Margaret (1446–1503) — married the Duke of Burgundy
* George (1449–1478) — Duke of Clarence
* Richard III (1452–1485) — became King of England

## In popular culture
Richard of York appears as a character in three of Shakespeare's history plays: *Henry VI, Part 1*, *Henry VI, Part 2*, and *Henry VI, Part 3*.

His name is also used in a common way of remembering the order of the colours of the rainbow: ***R**ichard **O**f **Y**ork **G**ave **B**attle **I**n **V**ain* — standing for Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet.

## Related pages
* Wars of the Roses
* Henry VI of England
* Edward IV of England
* Richard III of England
* Cecily Neville
* House of York
* House of Lancaster
* First Battle of St Albans
* Battle of Wakefield
* Act of Accord
* Loveday (1458)

## References