Edward IV
Edward IV won the throne in battle twice and died at forty in his bed. Born at Rouen in 1442, he was the eldest surviving son of Richard, Duke of York, whose claim to the crown was arguably better than the reigning Lancastrian line's. He was very tall, around six foot four, and reputedly the handsomest man of his age. His father and brother were killed at Wakefield in December 1460. Edward, aged eighteen, won at Mortimer's Cross weeks later, entered London, was proclaimed king in March 1461, and then destroyed the Lancastrian army at Towton in a snowstorm — probably the bloodiest battle ever fought on English soil. He was an exceptional field commander who never lost an engagement. He then damaged himself politically by marrying Elizabeth Woodville in secret in 1464, a widow of modest rank with a large family, while the Earl of Warwick was negotiating a French match. Warwick, who had made him king, turned against him, allied with the exiled Margaret of Anjou, and drove him out of the country in 1470. He returned in 1471 with a small force, won at Barnet, where Warwick was killed, and at Tewkesbury, where the Lancastrian heir died. Henry VI was murdered in the Tower days later. His second reign was stable and prosperous. He restored the crown's finances by trading on his own account, managing the customs and taking a French pension, and left the treasury solvent — unusual for a medieval English king. He grew fat and self-indulgent, and died suddenly in April 1483, leaving a twelve-year-old heir.
- Lived: 1442 CE – 1483 CE
- Nationality: English
- Roles: king, head_of_state
