The name given by later historians to the series of civil wars fought between the families of Lancaster and York (both descended from Edward III) for control of the English throne from 1455 to 1485.
The war was precipitated originally by the total inability of Henry VI (Lancaster, r. 1422-61, 1470-1) to rule and the genuine concerns of different parties for the welfare of the country. It ended up with his overthrow (twice) and, eventually, the establishment of the Tudor dynasty by Henry VII on the throne of England, with the reigns of Edward IV (1461-70, 1471-83), Edward V (1483), and Richard III (1483-85)—all of the house of York—in between.
The label arose, supposedly, from the emblems of the two warring families, the red rose of Lancaster and the white rose of York. The Wars of the Roses played a very important part in William Shakespeare's repertoire of plays, and his use of the two family emblems did not small part in the eventual label given to the wars.
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