Henry VI Biography

The only child of Henry V & Catherine of Valois is born at Windsor

Birth of Henry VI, son of Henry V & Catherine of Valois

Succeeds as King of England. His uncle the Duke of Bedford acts as protector of England & Regent in France

Coronation of Henry VI

Opens the 2nd Parliament of his reign

Sir John Mortimer is hanged, drawn & quartered by the Royal Council

Le Mans falls to the English

The Leicester Parliament is forbidden arms, MPs arrive with bats, "Parliament of Bats"

The Leicester Parliament is forbidden arms, MPs arrive with bats, "Parliament of Bats"

Henry VI is placed into the charge of Richard Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick

Parliament forbids anyone close to the sovereign marrying without his permission

Crowned King of England

Henry VI lands in Calais to claim the French throne

Crowned as Henry II of France, under the terms of the Treaty of Troyes

Crowned as Henry II of France, under the terms of the Treaty of Troyes

Returns from France to England never to set foot on French soil again

Crowned in Paris as King of France at Notre Dame

The English withdraw from the Congress. France wants Henry VI to renounce the French throne

Philipe receives the Somme towns and is exempted from homage to the French crown. Philipe deserts his English allies and recognizes Charles as king of France

Philipe the Good breaks his oath to Henry IV & returns to his French allegiance

The Duke of Burgundy makes a separate peace with the French

The French army enters Paris, without Burgundy the English cannot defend it

Agrees to marry Margaret of Anjou in return for a two year truce with France

Assumes full power as the King of England, declared to be of age

The English must stay in Calais, Aquitaine, Lower Normandy & Maine. The English must not act against Valois rule in France. The congress requests a 2 yr truce & the marriage of Henry VI to Margaret of Anjou

Promises to hand-over Maine to France in a personal letter to Charles VII

Marries Margaret of Anjou, daughter of Rene Duke of Anjou

Surrenders the English fief of Maine to Charles VII of France

The English surrender Rouen castle

The English surrender Rouen castle

The French recapture Harfleur, Henry Vs 1st conquest in France

The English garrisons are swept away from lower Normandy

England loses Normandy

Henry VI finds Suffolk guilty of non-capital crimes & banishes him for 5 yrs

Tries Suffolk with consulting Parliament. Henry VI finds Suffolk guilty of non-capital crimes & banishes him for 5 yrs

France regains control of Aquitaine

Makes a temporary peace with Richard 3rd Duke of York at Blackheath

Bordeaux is captured from the French

The last English army in France is defeated at Castillon

The capital of Aquitaine is surrendered to the French, England is left with Calais

The King summons his Army

Stays overnight 8 miles from St Albans on his way to a Council of War at Leicester

After negotiatios fail the King raises his standard at Goslawe, St Peters St

Holds a Council of War after hearing the Duke of York had arrived outside St Albans

Moves the Government to the West Midlands where loyalty to Henry is strongest

Lancastrian victory over the Yorkists

The Act of Attainder is passed charging the Yorkists with treason

The Act of Attainder is passed charging the Yorkists with treason

Warwick besieges London & forces the Lancastrians to retreat to the Tower of London

Captured at the Battle of Northampton & forced to acknowledge Richard as his heir

Henry VI will retain the crown for his lifetime but then York & his heirs will succeed

Escapes from the field of Battle & rejoins his wife & the Lancastrian forces

Against good advice decides not to take London & marches his Army north instead

Northumberland, Clifford, Roos, and Dacre, central figures in Lancastrian court power, died or fled, ending the house's domination of northern England.

On receiving news of the Lancastrian defeat, Henry fled into exile in Scotland with his wife and son.

The Battle of Towton severely reduced the House of Lancaster's power in England.

They were later joined by Somerset, Roos, Exeter, and the few Lancastrian nobles who escaped from the battlefield.

Imprisoned in the Tower, Louis XI of France comes to his aid, siding against Edward IV

Restored the throne by Richard Neville, "the King maker"

Abdicates for a 2nd time

Imprisoned for a 2nd time in the Tower of London, in the Wakefield Tower

Murdered in the Tower of London, found dead in the oratory

Murdered in the Tower of London, found dead in the oratory