Elizabeth of York

Elizabeth of York
Queen consort of England
Tenure	18 January 1486 – 11 February 1503
Coronation	25 November 1487
Born	11 February 1466 Westminster Palace, Middlesex, England
Died	11 February 1503(1503-02-11) (aged 37) Tower of London, London, England
Burial	24 February 1503 Westminster Abbey
Spouse	Henry VII of England ​ ​ (m. 1486)​
Issue more...	Arthur, Prince of Wales Margaret, Queen of Scots Henry VIII Elizabeth Tudor Mary, Queen of France Edmund, Duke of Somerset
House	York
Father	Edward IV of England
Mother	Elizabeth Woodville
Signature

Elizabeth of York (11 February 1466-11 February 1503) was Queen of England through her marriage to King Henry VII, which took place on 18 January 1486. She was the daughter of Edward IV of England and Elizabeth Woodville. Her marriage to Henry VII of England came after his victory at the Battle of Bosworth Field, ending the Wars of the Roses, a civil war between two royal families: the Lancasters and the Yorks.

Elizabeth's younger brothers, known as the Princes in the Tower, disappeared under mysterious circumstances after their uncle, Richard III, took the throne in 1483. During this time, a law called Titulus Regius declared that Elizabeth's parents’ marriage was invalid, making her and her siblings illegitimate. Despite this, Elizabeth and her sisters returned to court after spending ten months hiding in Westminster Abbey. There were rumors that Richard III wanted to marry Elizabeth himself.

When Henry Tudor (later Henry VII) defeated Richard III, he knew that marrying Elizabeth would help him gain support from Yorkist followers. He promised to marry her before his invasion of England, which may have weakened Richard’s support. After becoming king, Henry VII had the law that declared Elizabeth illegitimate repealed, making her his queen.

Ancestry

Ancestors of Elizabeth of York
8. Richard of Conisburgh 4. Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York 9. Anne de Mortimer 2. Edward IV 10. Ralph Neville 5. Cecily Neville, Duchess of York 11. Joan Beaufort 1. Elizabeth of York 12. Richard Wydeville 6. Richard Woodville 13. Joan Bittlesgate 3. Elizabeth Woodville 14. Peter I, Count of Saint-Pol 7. Jacquetta of Luxembourg 15. Margaret of Baux

Further reading

• Licence, Amy (15 February 2013). Elizabeth of York: The Forgotten Tudor Queen. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN 978-1-4456-1810-4.
• Weir, Alison (7 November 2013). Elizabeth of York: The First Tudor Queen. Random House. ISBN 978-1-4481-9138-3.
• Okerlund, A. (28 September 2009). Elizabeth of York. Springer. ISBN 978-0-230-10065-7.