Henry VII

4 x 6 inches, watercolor, gouache and gold ink, 2008

Henry Tudor was born in 1457, the son of Edmund Tudor and Margaret Beaufort. His claim to the throne was on his mother's side as she was a great-granddaughter of John of Gaunt, third son of Edward III. When the Yorkist King Edward VI came to the throne in 1471 he had gone abroad to Brittany and had stayed there for several years, until in 1485 he returned with an army and defeated Richard the Third at the Battle of Bosworth Field. He married the daughter of Edward VI, Elizabeth of York, so uniting the two houses of York and Lancaster that had fought so bitterly throughout the previous century. His children included Henry VIII, Margaret, who became Queen of Scotland and Mary Rose who was briefly Queen Of France. He set about reducing the powers of the nobility and collecting taxes. His policy was to maintain peace, which he did through various treaties and marriages, and to gain wealth - he had £1.5 million at the time of his death. His first son and heir Arthur died in 1502 after marrying Katharine of Aragon and then Elizabeth died in 1503. Henry died in 1509, aged 52. He had ruled for 24 years and left his son a rich, peaceful and stable kingdom.