Richard and the Battle of Bosworth Essay Example
Why did Richard III lose the Battle of Bosworth?
On 22nd August 1485, King Richard III lost the Battle of Bosworth to Henry Tudor. One of the main reasons for him losing was due to his unpopularity with the people and his nobles. Richard was disliked by many of his nobles because he gave power to nobles from the north, which he knew, annoying the nobility in the south of England. This meant that in the battle he had little support, and some of his nobles, such as the Stanley’s fought for Henry. Richard was also disliked by the people of England. He seized the crown in 1483, and rumours spread that he killed his two nephews. This made him disliked, and few people supported him.
Another reason Richard lost the Battle of Bosworth was because of the Stanley’s changing sides. The Stanley’s controlled around 6000 of Richards troops, around half of his overall army. Although the Stanley’s began the battle on the side of Richard, they changed during the battle. This meant that Richard has far fewer troops than he may have anticipated, and had the Stanley’s not changed sides, it is possible that Richard would have won. Many of Richards other nobles were also unreliable, such as Northumberland. He did not help Richard when he needed it, refusing to bring in Richards reserves, and eventually surrendering, giving Henry an advantage over Richard, helping him to win.
Another reason Richard lost was because of the support Henry had from the King of France. In 1485, the King of France wanted to distract Richard from invading France, so he gave Henry an army to invade England. When Henry landed in Wales with these extra men, many people joined him on his march through Wales to Bosworth, increasing the size of his army greatly.
Another factor leading to the defeat of Richard at the Battle of Bosworth was Richards’s hesitance on the battlefield. Richard did not take advantage by attacking Oxford whilst he was deploying his troops. This allowed Oxford to launch an attack
On 22nd August 1485, King Richard III lost the Battle of Bosworth to Henry Tudor. One of the main reasons for him losing was due to his unpopularity with the people and his nobles. Richard was disliked by many of his nobles because he gave power to nobles from the north, which he knew, annoying the nobility in the south of England. This meant that in the battle he had little support, and some of his nobles, such as the Stanley’s fought for Henry. Richard was also disliked by the people of England. He seized the crown in 1483, and rumours spread that he killed his two nephews. This made him disliked, and few people supported him.
Another reason Richard lost the Battle of Bosworth was because of the Stanley’s changing sides. The Stanley’s controlled around 6000 of Richards troops, around half of his overall army. Although the Stanley’s began the battle on the side of Richard, they changed during the battle. This meant that Richard has far fewer troops than he may have anticipated, and had the Stanley’s not changed sides, it is possible that Richard would have won. Many of Richards other nobles were also unreliable, such as Northumberland. He did not help Richard when he needed it, refusing to bring in Richards reserves, and eventually surrendering, giving Henry an advantage over Richard, helping him to win.
Another reason Richard lost was because of the support Henry had from the King of France. In 1485, the King of France wanted to distract Richard from invading France, so he gave Henry an army to invade England. When Henry landed in Wales with these extra men, many people joined him on his march through Wales to Bosworth, increasing the size of his army greatly.
Another factor leading to the defeat of Richard at the Battle of Bosworth was Richards’s hesitance on the battlefield. Richard did not take advantage by attacking Oxford whilst he was deploying his troops. This allowed Oxford to launch an attack