Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 26.djvu/70

Henry VI against Ludlow in the heart of the Mortimers' country, and broke up the Yorkist army by his timely offers of clemency. On 12 Oct. the three earls fled before the royal forces, not even risking an engagement. York fled to Ireland, and Warwick and Salisbury to Calais. All England now obeyed Henry.

On 20 Nov. 1459 Henry opened a packed parliament at Coventry, which attainted all the Yorkist leaders. But his new-found energy wasted away before poverty, disorder, and selfish faction. ‘The realm of England was out of all good governance, for the king was simple and led by covetous counsel and owed more than he was worth.’ ‘For these misgovernances the hearts of the people were turned away from them that had the land in governance.’ The papal legate, Francesco Coppini, bishop of Terni, sent by Pius II to urge on Henry to a crusade against the Turks, left England in disgust, and joined the Yorkists at Calais.

Henry kept Christmas at Leicester (, p. 771). At the end of January 1460 he went to London. In Lent he spent three days at Crowland, praying at the shrine of St. Guthlac (Cont. Croyland Chron. p. 530). He was at his favourite Coventry when he learnt that the lords at Calais had crossed into Kent on 26 June. They secured possession of London on 2 July. On 10 July they reached Northampton, where Henry and his army had now arrived on their march to the south. Thrice Warwick sought an interview with Henry, but Buckingham prevented Henry from making any compromise. In the afternoon a battle was fought, the Yorkists gaining the victory. Henry had left Margaret and the prince behind at Coventry (, p. 209). He was himself taken prisoner in his tent (Engl. Chron. p. 97; Three Fifteenth-century Chronicles, p. 74; {sc|Whethamstede}}, i. 374–5). The old protestations of loyalty were renewed, ‘whereat the king was greatly comforted.’ He was kept three days at Northampton and then taken to London, where he was lodged in the bishop's palace by St. Paul's (Engl. Chron. p. 98). He was not put in the Tower as a prisoner, as was believed abroad (, iii. 123, ed. Vallet de Viriville). He marched through London on 16 July ‘with much royalty,’ Warwick, bareheaded, carrying the sword of state before him (Cont. Croyland Chron. p. 549). Margaret had fled to Scotland.

Parliament was summoned by Henry's writ for October. Henry amused himself with hunting at Eltham and Greenwich, ‘biding the parliament’ (Paston Letters, i. 525). York now came back from Ireland to London, ‘breaking open the doors of the king's chamber,’ so that Henry, ‘hearing the great noise and rumour of the people, gave him place and took another chamber’ (Engl. Chron. p. 99; cf. Three Fifteenth-century Chronicles, p. 170, and, i. 377). On 16 Oct. York formally claimed the throne. The lords besought the king to find objections to his claim, ‘insomuch as your highness has seen and understood divers chronicles’ (Rot. Parl. v. 375–6). The judges shirked deciding so grave a matter. At last the lords plucked up courage to reject York's claim; but, as power was in his hands, a compromise was arranged, to which Henry, regardless of his son's rights, readily agreed, ‘for a man that hath little wit,’ said Gregory (Chron. p. 208), ‘will soon be feared of death.’ He was to keep his throne for life, and York was to be his successor.

Henry went in procession to St. Paul's with York as a sign of concord, and York gave up his quarters in the palace, where Henry again bore sway (Cont. Croyland Chron. p. 549). The Yorkists boasted that he was ‘excellently disposed’ (Cal. State Papers, Venet. 1202–1509, pp. 94, 96). He attached himself particularly to Warwick, whom he ‘kept all to himself’ (ib. p. 95). When York marched out against Margaret, who was now in arms in the north to maintain her son's rights, Henry remained in London with Warwick, keeping the Christmas feast with him at the bishop's palace near St. Paul's (, p. 775). On 29 Dec. Margaret defeated and slew York at Wakefield, and marched south to release her husband. But on 2 Feb. 1461 Edward, the new duke of York, won the battle of Mortimer's Cross. On 12 Feb. Henry was taken northwards to fight against his wife, and rested at St. Albans. On 17 Feb. the second battle of St. Albans resulted in a complete victory for the northerners. ‘The king took the field at Sandridge, and there he saw his people slain on both sides’ (Engl. Chron. pp. 107–8). On the Yorkists' retreat he was left to his fate, Lord Bonville and Sir Thomas Kyriel alone remaining with him, trusting to Henry's promise that they should receive no harm (Rot. Parl. v. 477; Engl. Chron. p. 108;, i. 393). Some northern lords led the king to Lord Clifford's tent, where Henry, who was very much affected, met Margaret and her son. He blessed Edward solemnly, and dubbed him knight (, p. 214;, i. 394). But neither his plighted word nor his entreaties could save Bonville and Kyriel from Margaret's vengeance (Cal. State Papers, Venet. p. 99). His personal action becomes less and less