Henry VI of England
Wars of the Roses
Wars of the Roses
-----------------

[thumb\|[Silver groat](/wiki/Groat_%28coin%29 "Groat (coin)") of Henry VI, York Museums Trust](/wiki/File:Silver_groat_of_Henry_VI_%28YORYM_1994_151_265%29_obverse.jpg "Silver groat of Henry VI (YORYM 1994 151 265) obverse.jpg")

Around Christmas Day 1454, King Henry regained his senses. Disaffected nobles who had grown in power during Henry's reign, most importantly the Earls of Warwick and [Salisbury](/wiki/Richard_Neville%2C_5th_Earl_of_Salisbury "Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury"), took matters into their own hands. They backed the claims of the rival [House of York](/wiki/House_of_York "House of York"), first to the control of government, and then to the throne itself (from 1460\), pointing to York's better descent from Edward III. It was agreed that York would become Henry's successor, despite York being older. In 1457, Henry created the [Council of Wales and the Marches](/wiki/Council_of_Wales_and_the_Marches "Council of Wales and the Marches") for his son [Prince Edward](/wiki/Edward_of_Westminster%2C_Prince_of_Wales "Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales"), and in 1458, he attempted to unite the warring factions by staging the [Loveday](/wiki/Loveday_%281458%29 "Loveday (1458)") in London.

Despite such attempts at reconciliation, tensions between the houses of [Lancaster](/wiki/House_of_Lancaster "House of Lancaster") and York eventually broke out in open war. Their forces engaged at the [Battle of Northampton](/wiki/Battle_of_Northampton_%281460%29 "Battle of Northampton (1460)"), 10 July 1460, where the king was captured and taken into captivity under the Yorkists. Queen Margaret, who also had been on the field, managed to escape with her son, the prince, fleeing through [Wales](/wiki/Wales "Wales") to [Scotland](/wiki/Kingdom_of_Scotland "Kingdom of Scotland") where she found refuge in the court of the queen regent, [Mary of Guelders](/wiki/Mary_of_Guelders "Mary of Guelders"), recent widow of [James II](/wiki/James_II_of_Scotland "James II of Scotland"). Here she set about eliciting support for her husband from that kingdom.

Re\-entering England at the end of the year, the English queen in force engaged with the Duke of York at the [Battle of Wakefield](/wiki/Battle_of_Wakefield "Battle of Wakefield"), 30 December 1460, where York fell. A few weeks later, at the [Second Battle of St Albans](/wiki/Second_Battle_of_St_Albans "Second Battle of St Albans"), 17 February 1461, her forces engaged with the [Earl of Warwick](/wiki/Richard_Neville%2C_16th_Earl_of_Warwick "Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick"), under whose custody her husband was being held. She defeated Warwick and liberated the king. Henry's mental state at the time was such that he had reputedly laughed and sung as the battle raged around him.

The victory however was short\-lived. Within six weeks, the king and queen's forces were once more defeated at the [Battle of Towton](/wiki/Battle_of_Towton "Battle of Towton"), 29 March 1461, by the Duke of York's son, Edward. Henry and Margaret together evaded capture by Edward and this time they both escaped into exile in Scotland. With Scottish aid, Margaret now travelled to the continent to elicit further support for her husband's cause.

Mainly under her leadership, Lancastrian resistance continued in the north of England during the first period of Edward IV's reign but met with little luck on the field. At the same time as Henry's cause was beginning to look increasingly desperate in military terms, an English embassy to Scotland, through the [Earl of Warwick](/wiki/Earl_of_Warwick "Earl of Warwick") on behalf of Edward, served to further weaken his interests at the Scottish Court in political terms. After the queen mother's death in November 1463, [Scotland](/wiki/Scotland "Scotland") now actively sued for peace with England and the exiled king passed back across the border to try his fortune with those nobles in the north of England and Wales who were still loyal.

Following defeat in the [Battle of Hexham](/wiki/Battle_of_Hexham "Battle of Hexham"), 15 May 1464, Henry, as a fugitive in his own land, continued to be afforded safety in various Lancastrian houses across the north of England. Sir John Pennington provided refuge to Henry VI of England in [Muncaster Castle](/wiki/Muncaster_Castle "Muncaster Castle") following the battle. Legend has it that Henry VI left behind a Venetian glass bowl as a token of gratitude, known as the "[Luck of Muncaster](/wiki/Luck_of_Muncaster "Luck of Muncaster")", ensuring the prosperity of the [Pennington](/wiki/Pennington_%28surname%29 "Pennington (surname)") family as long as it remained intact. Nonetheless, while he was in hiding at Waddington Hall, in [Waddington, Lancashire](/wiki/Waddington%2C_Lancashire "Waddington, Lancashire"), the home of Sir Richard Tempest, he was betrayed by "a black monk of Addington" and on 13 July 1464, a party of Yorkist men, including Sir Richard's brother John, entered the house for his arrest. Henry fled into nearby woods but was soon captured at Brungerley Hippings (stepping stones) over the [River Ribble](/wiki/River_Ribble "River Ribble"). He was subsequently held captive in the Tower of London.

The following poem has long been attributed to Henry, allegedly having been written during his imprisonment.[Harington, John](/wiki/John_Harington_%28writer%29 "John Harington (writer)"). ["Sir John Harington to Prince Henry, 1609"](https://www.exclassics.com/nugae/nugae0028.htm), *Nugæ Antiquæ*. However, a largely identical verse appears in [William Baldwin](/wiki/William_Baldwin_%28author%29 "William Baldwin (author)")'s 1559 work *[The Mirror for Magistrates](/wiki/The_Mirror_for_Magistrates "The Mirror for Magistrates")*, a collection of poems written from the perspective of historical figures.


Where was Henry VI hiding when he was betrayed?