Tudor myth

The Tudor myth is the tradition in English history, historiography and literature that presents the 15th century, including the Wars of the Roses, in England as a dark age of anarchy and bloodshed. The narrative that the Tudor myth perpetrated was curated with the political purpose of promoting the Tudor period of the 16th century as a golden age of peace, law, order, and prosperity.[1] The hope was to elevate King Henry VII's rulership compared to his predecessors.[2]

The Tudor myth was made to elevate King Henry VII (a Lancastrian by relation), by ruining King Richard II and King Richard III.[3] Throughout the 16th century, Richard II would be vilified and portrayed as a terrible leader and traitor to the English monarchy. Richard III (and by extension, Yorkist loyalties) is portrayed as an irredeemable tyrant to legitimize Tudor rule.[4] The most popular rendition gained notoriety due to Shakespeare’s play, Richard III, in which King Richard III's moral character is berated.[5]

  1. ^ [1] Tillyard, E. M. W. Shakespeare’s History Plays. Chatto & Windus (1944) ISBN 978-0701111571
  2. ^ Breverton, Terry (15 May 2016). Henry VII: The Maligned Tudor King. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN 978-1-4456-4606-0.
  3. ^ Egan, Gabriel (2007). Shakespeare. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 978-0-7486-2371-6. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
  4. ^ Cooper, John. "The Tudor Monarchy" (PDF). Cengage Learning EMEA. State Papers Online. Retrieved 3 April 2023.
  5. ^ Wilson, Jeffrey (29 November 2020). Shakespeare and Game of Thrones. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-000-22868-7. Retrieved 5 April 2023.