Henry VII Marries Elizabeth of York

Henry VII Marries Elizabeth of York

Two years after he had vowed to marry her – and nearly 5 months after his victory at the Battle of Bosworth Field – Henry VII finally married Elizabeth of York at Westminster Abbey.

Henry was 29 years old, and Elizabeth was 20, their marriage would unite the two conflicting families of the Wars of the Roses – the Yorkists and the Lancastrians.

Henry recognized the importance of taking a Yorkist bride, in order to strengthen his claim to the throne, and to weaken any other Yorkist’s claim.

Elizabeth of York was beautiful, young, and descended from a very fertile family of women.

Her grandmother Jacquetta of Luxembourg had fourteen children, and her mother Elizabeth Woodville, had twelve children.

Elizabeth was one of the great beauties of her age, with classic English Rose looks – blonde hair, blue eyes, and fair skin – the quintessential English beauty of the time period.

Henry was reportedly tall, slim, dark haired, and handsome in the prime of his life.

At the time of their marriage, they were thought to be the perfect couple.
They were young, beautiful, and seemingly pure of heart….

Elizabeth immediately proved to be a successful Tudor wife.
Nine months later, the couple’s first child was born – Arthur Tudor, the Prince of Wales.

With her fertility proven with a Tudor heir in the cradle, on 25th November 1487, Elizabeth was crowned queen.

During the course of their marriage, Elizabeth would give birth to eight children – four of whom would live.

Arthur, Margaret, Henry, and Mary would be those lucky four, and would all make impressive marriages.

Sadly, their firstborn Arthur, would not live long enough to take over the impressive dynasty that his parents had created.

Instead, it would be their younger son Henry, who would become the next Tudor monarch – the notorious Henry VIII.