Roses

Roses, Wars of the, traditional name given to the intermittent struggle (1455-85) for the throne of England between the noble houses of York (whose badge was a white rose) and Lancaster (later associated with the red rose).

About the middle of the 15th cent. Richard, duke of York, came to the fore as leader of the opposition to the faction (William de la Pole, duke of Suffolk; Edmund Beaufort, duke of Somerset; and the queen, Margaret of Anjou) that controlled the weak Lancastrian king Henry VI. The Yorkists gained popular support as a result of discontent over the failure of English arms in the Hundred Years War and over the corruption of the court, discontent reflected in the rebellion of Jack Cade in 1450. Also in that year Suffolk was murdered, and the duke of York forced the king to recognize his claim as heir to the throne. In 1453 the king became insane, and the birth of a son to Margaret of Anjou displaced York as heir. The duke was appointed protector, but when the king recovered in 1454, York was excluded from the royal council. He resorted to arms.

The opposing factions met (1455) at St. Albans—usually taken as the first battle of the Wars of the Roses. Somerset was killed, leaving Queen Margaret at the head of the defeated royal party, and York again served as protector for a short period (1455-56). By 1459 both parties were once more in arms. The following year the Yorkists defeated and captured the king at the battle of Northampton. The duke of York hurried to London to assert his claims to the throne, which were, by laws of strict inheritance, perhaps better than those of the king himself. A compromise was effected by which Henry remained king and York and his heirs were declared successors.

Queen Margaret, whose son was thus disinherited, raised an army and defeated (1460) the Yorkists at Wakefield. York was killed in this battle, and his claims devolved upon his son Edward, but Richard Neville, earl of Warwick, became the real leader of the Yorkist party. Margaret's army rescued the king from captivity in the second battle of St. Albans (Feb., 1461), but Edward meanwhile secured a Yorkist victory at Mortimer's Cross, marched into London unopposed, and assumed the throne as Edward IV.

The Lancastrians, after their defeat at Towton (Mar., 1461), continued (with Scottish aid) to raise resistance in the north until 1464. The deposed Henry was captured (1465) and put into the Tower of London. Although the Lancastrian cause now seemed hopeless, a quarrel broke out between Warwick and Edward IV after the latter's marriage to Elizabeth Woodville in 1464. Warwick and the king's brother George, duke of Clarence, allied against Edward, fled to France (1470), and there became reconciled with Margaret of Anjou. Supported by Louis XI of France, they crossed to England and restored Henry VI to the throne.

Edward fled, but with the aid of Charles the Bold, duke of Burgundy, returned to England in 1471, regained London, and recaptured Henry. In the ensuing battles of Barnet and Tewkesbury (1471), Warwick and Henry's son, Edward, were killed. Margaret was imprisoned. Soon thereafter Henry VI died, probably slain at the orders of Edward IV. After 12 relatively peaceful years, Edward IV was succeeded (1483) by his young son Edward V, but soon the boy's uncle Richard, duke of Gloucester, usurped the throne as Richard III. Opposition to Richard advanced the fortunes of Henry Tudor, earl of Richmond, now the Lancastrian claimant. In 1485, Henry landed from France, defeated and killed Richard at Bosworth Field, and ascended the throne as Henry VII.

Henry VII's marriage to Edward IV's daughter, Elizabeth, united the houses of Lancaster and York. Except for various efforts during Henry's reign to place Yorkist pretenders on the throne, the Wars of the Roses were ended. It is generally said that with them ended the era of feudalism in England, since the nobles who participated suffered heavy loss of life and property and were too weak, as a class, to contest the strong monarchy of the Tudors. The middle and lower classes were largely indifferent to the struggle and relatively untouched by it.

(1455–85) Series of dynastic civil wars between the houses of Lancaster and York for the English throne. The wars were named for the emblems of the two houses, the white rose of York and the red of Lancaster. Both claimed the throne through descent from Edward III. Lancastrians held the throne from 1399, but the country fell into a state of near anarchy during the reign of Henry VI, and during one of Henry's bouts with madness in 1453 the duke of York was declared protector of the realm. Henry reestablished his authority in 1455, and the battle was joined. The Yorkists succeeded in putting Edward IV on the throne in 1461, but the wars continued, and in 1471 they murdered Henry VI in the Tower of London. In 1483 Richard III overrode the claims of his nephew Edward V to seize the throne, alienating many Yorkists. The Lancastrian Henry Tudor (Henry VII) defeated and killed Richard at the Battle of Bosworth Field, ending the wars. He united the houses by marriage and defeated a Yorkist rising in 1487. Seealso earl of Warwick.

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(1455–85) Series of dynastic civil wars between the houses of Lancaster and York for the English throne. The wars were named for the emblems of the two houses, the white rose of York and the red of Lancaster. Both claimed the throne through descent from Edward III. Lancastrians held the throne from 1399, but the country fell into a state of near anarchy during the reign of Henry VI, and during one of Henry's bouts with madness in 1453 the duke of York was declared protector of the realm. Henry reestablished his authority in 1455, and the battle was joined. The Yorkists succeeded in putting Edward IV on the throne in 1461, but the wars continued, and in 1471 they murdered Henry VI in the Tower of London. In 1483 Richard III overrode the claims of his nephew Edward V to seize the throne, alienating many Yorkists. The Lancastrian Henry Tudor (Henry VII) defeated and killed Richard at the Battle of Bosworth Field, ending the wars. He united the houses by marriage and defeated a Yorkist rising in 1487. Seealso earl of Warwick.

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Roses is a municipality in the comarca of the Alt Empordà in Catalonia, Spain. It is situated on the coast at the northern end of the Gulf of Roses, and is an important fishing port and tourist centre. The C-260 road links the town with Figueres.

Early history

The origins of Roses ammata hukapang (Greek: Rhode) are disputed. A popular theory holds it was founded in the 8th century BC by Greek colonists from Rhodes. It seems more probable, however, that it was founded in the 5th century BC by Greeks from Massalia (Marseilles), perhaps with an admixture of colonists from neighbouring Empúries. Remains of the Greek settlement can still be seen. Remains from the Roman period go back to the 2nd century BC and continue well into Christian times with a paleochristian church and necropolis. After the collapse of Roman power the town seems to have been abandoned, but a fortified settlement from the Visigothic period has been excavated on the nearby Puig Rom.

The monastery of Santa Maria de Roses is mentioned for the first time in a document of the year 944. Around this monastery grew the mediaeval town of Roses, which fell under the shared jurisdiction of the abbots of Santa Maria de Roses and the counts of Empúries. In 1402 the county of Empúries was incorporated in the Crown of Aragon and Roses acquired the right to organize its own municipal government.

Fortification

In the first decades of the 16th century Roses suffered repeatedly from attacks by privateers from North Africa. To counter this threat, Charles V ordered in 1543 the construction of extensive fortifications. In spite of these precautions a squadron of the Turkish admiral Barbarossa attacked and plundered the town some months later. After substantial revisions, the fortifications were completed in 1553, under Charles's son Philip II. The entire mediaeval town was now enclosed by a bastioned pentagonal wall (illustration, below). The defensive system was supplemented by the Castell de la Trinitat, some 2.5 km to the east. The town received a permanent military garrison, which changed its character profoundly. To minimise friction between the citizenry and the soldiers, barracks were constructed, but this did not prevent a gradual movement of part of the population outside the walls, where the modern town of Roses now is.

In the following centuries the fortifications were severely tested. In 1645, during the Catalan Revolt, Roses was besieged and taken by French troops. Only after the Peace of the Pyrenees (1659) was the town restored to Spain.

In 1693, during the War of the Grand Alliance the French besieged the town again. This time the French occupation lasted until 1697, when the Peace of Ryswick was concluded.

In 1712, during the War of the Spanish Succession, Austrian troops tried to take the city, but they were beaten off. In 1719 another failed attempt was made, now by the French, during the War of the Quadruple Alliance.

After a long period of relative calm the French revolution ushered in a new round of hostilities. In 1793 the French revolutionary government declared war on Spain. Roses suffered a long siege that lasted from 28 November 1794 till 3 February 1795. The town was surrendered to France, but peace between France and Spain was restored that same year, and the French withdrew.

In 1808 Napoleon forced the king of Spain to abdicate, French armies invaded the country again, and Roses was besieged for the fourth and last time. In 1814, when the French left Spain, they blew up the town's fortifications along with the Castell de la Trinitat. The ancient town, the Ciutadella, was now completely ruined, while to the east the modern town slowly continued to grow.

New times

In 1879 Roses suffered a devastating economic crisis through phylloxera, a pest of the grapevines, which destroyed the town's wine growing industry. Part of the population moved to Barcelona or emigrated to the United States.

In the 20th century, notably in the period after World War II, Roses has profited enormously from the growth of tourism.

Over the last decades important excavations have been carried out inside the walls of the Ciutadella. This concerns not only the Greek and Roman remains, but also part of the mediaeval city and its walls. In the 1990s extensive restoration work was carried out on the walls of the Ciutadella, and in 2004 a museum was opened inside it. A somewhat controversial restoration of the Castell de Trinitat is currently nearing completion.

Demography

References

• Lluís Buscató i Somoza. La colònia grega de Rhode. Figueres, 1999. ISBN 84-88589-64-6.
• Narciso Díaz i Romañach. Roses: Una vila amb história. Roses, [1991]. ISBN 84-606-0033-5.
• Carlos Díaz, Hug Palou, Anna Ma. Puig. La Ciutadella de Roses. Girona, 1998. ISBN 84-86812-79-8.
• Pablo de la Fuente. Les fortificacions reials del golf de Roses en l'época moderna. Figueres, 1998. ISBN 84-88589-54-9.
• Pere de Palol. El Castrum del Puig de les Muralles de Puig Rom (Roses, Alt Empordà). Girona, 2004. ISBN 84-393-6654-X.
• Marcel Pujol i Hamelink. La vila de Roses (segles XIV-XVI). Figueres, 1997. ISBN 84-88589-42-5.

External links

• Official site of Roses
• Information - Generalitat de Catalunya
• Statistical information - Institut d'Estadística de Catalunya
• Interactive Guide - Map of Roses
• Museum of the Ciutadella