Category Archives: The Tudor Dynasty

The Tudor Dynasty was born from the blood of the War of the Roses which ravaged England from 1455 to 1485. It was a conflict for the throne between two conflicting families, the Lancasters and the Yorks. The final victor was Henry Tudor, a minor member of the Lancasters. Henry founded a dynasty that ruled England for the next 117 years.
The Tudors paralleled the French Valois Dynasty and equaled them in scheming, bloodshed, religious turmoil, ambition, arrogance and sexual naughtiness. However, none of the Valois compared to the drama, chaos and brutality of Henry VIII’s reign and the infamous treatment of his six wives.
The struggle of the Tudor monarchs to produce male heirs resulted in a fragile dynasty and ended with the childless Elizabeth I.
In the end, the Tudors left England a larger( Wales and Ireland) country that was poised to expand into a vast empire. The standard of living rose, optimism was on the rise and the protestant reformation shifted the country to a more secular place. The arts flowered under the Tudors producing greats like Shakespeare, Nicholas Hilliard and Thomas Tallis.