The Probert Encyclopaedia of People

EDWARD IV

Edward IV was King of England from 1461 to 1483. He was born in 1442 and died in 1483. Edward IV was very probably the illegitimate son of the his mother, the Queen, and an archer in the royal garrison - his 'father', Richard, duke of York, the king, being away at battle in France at the time when Edward IV was conceived. As an illegitimate child, Edward IV had no claim to the throne, and as such the English entire royal line since has been flawed.

When Edward IV became the first Yorkist king he was able to restore order, despite the temporary return to the throne of Henry VI from 1470 to 1471, during which time Edward fled to the Continent in exile, supported by the Earl of Warwick, 'the Kingmaker', who had previously supported Edward and who was killed at the Battle of Barnet in 1471. Edward also made peace with France; by a shrewd display of force to exert pressure, Edward reached a profitable agreement with Louis XI at Picquigny in 1475. At home, Edward relied heavily on his own personal control in government, reviving the ancient custom of sitting in person 'on the bench' (i.e. in judgement) to enforce justice. He sacked Lancastrian office-holders and used his financial acumen to introduce tight management of royal revenues to reduce the Crown's debt.

Building closer relations with the merchant community, Edward IV encouraged commercial treaties; he successfully traded in wool on his own account to restore his family's fortunes and enable the King to ' live of his own', paying the costs of the country's administration from the Crown Estates profits and freeing him from dependence on subsidies from Parliament. Edward rebuilt St George's Chapel at Windsor (possibly seeing it as a mausoleum for the Yorkists, as he was later buried there) and a new great hall at Eltham Palace. Edward collected illuminated manuscripts - his is the only intact medieval royal collection to survive - and patronised the new invention of printing. Edward died in 1483, leaving by his marriage to Elizabeth Woodville a 12-year-old son Edward to succeed him.
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