As I have researched the Tudors as part of the background work to the composing of my new piece of music Woking Palace, you may be interested in this item.

Henry VII was the first Tudor king who came to reign following the Battle of Bosworth in 1485. At this battle, Richard III was killed at the age of 32 and was the last king of the House of York, the last of the Plantagenet dynasty (founded in 1216). Richard’s defeat was the last decisive battle of the Wars of the Roses and marked the end of the Middle Ages in England. Relative stability was achieved following the marriage of Henry VII, a Lancastrian to Elizabeth of York making for the English Renaissance and the birth of early modern Britain
A Welsh rebellion against Richard II’s heir, Henry IV, first king of the House of Lancaster (this dynasty lasted from 1399 to 1461, whilst the House of York survived until 1485)), resulted in Owen Tudor leaving Wales to seek a better life in England. He became a chamber servant at the widowed Catherine of Valoise’s court in 1427, mother of Henry VI of England. Catherine (27 October 1401 – 3 January 1437) daughter of Charles VI of France was the widow of Henry V and the Queen consort of England from 1420 until 1422. It is said that her liaison (and possible secret marriage) with Owen Tudor started at a court party. Owen’s physique was striking, and this attraction to Catherine, proved the springboard for his family’s fortunes, eventually leading to their grandson’s elevation as Henry VII of England. The relationship between Catherine and Owen was convenient as there was an act of Parliament forbidding Catherine to remarry. If she did remarry, the land of her new husband would be confiscated. Owen had no land and so the relationship was no threat to Catherine’s son, Henry VI. The couple had two children, Edmund (1430) and Jasper (1431). Following the death of Catherine in 1437, Owen became nervous of his position as a commoner who had married the Queen of England, punishable by imprisonment or worse. As Henry VI’s step-father, he was imprisoned but eventually escaped. Meanwhile, his sons, Edmund became Earl of Richmond, and Jasper the Earl of Pembroke. Edmund married his cousin, Margaret Beaufort, who although illegitimate was of royal stock, related to John of Gaunt 1340-1399, third son of Edward III. She was later legitimised following her mother’s marriage, who was Katherine Swynford, mistress of John of Gaunt for 25 years. John of Gaunt, father of Henry IV, eventually married Kathryn Swynford, she becoming his third wife and part of the House of Lancaster.
Owen Tudor and Jasper led the Tudor’s Lancastrian army in the battle of Mortimer’s Cross in 1461against Edward of York. Edward won and although Jasper escaped, Owen was captured and executed in Hereford along with eight other officers.
Following on from Henry VII came:
Henry VIII   (1509 to 1547)
Edward VI    (1547 to 1553 – son of Henry VIII and third wife, Jayne Seymour))
Lady Jane Grey  (1553 – Edward’s sister, ousted by Queen Mary 1 after only 9 days reign and later executed – for being a Protestant))
Mary1    (1553 to 1558 – known as bloody Mary, who, as a Catholic, fought against the established Protestant community)
Elizabeth 1   (1558 to 1603 – a Protestant)

The Tudor period was marked by much religious turmoil but can be considered an important progressive age in which the seeds of industrial development and international trade were germinating.

The Tudor Period gave way to the rule of the Stuarts.