The Yorks were involved in The Wars of the Roses.
The Wars of the Roses were a series of wars for control of the throne of England fought between supporters of two rival branches of the royal House of Plantagenet : the House of Lancaster ( associated with a red rose ) , and the House of York ( whose symbol was a white rose ) . With the Duke of York 's death , the claim transferred to his heir , Edward , who later became the first Yorkist king of England , as Edward IV . The final victory went to a claimant of the Lancastrian party , Henry Tudor , Earl of Richmond , who defeated the last Yorkist king , Richard III , at the Battle of Bosworth Field . The House of Tudor ruled the Kingdom of England until 1603 , with the death of Elizabeth I , granddaughter of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York .