Challenges to Henry VII's Crown: Lambert Simnel, 1486-87

Challenges to Henry VII’s Crown

As a usurper himself, Henry was well aware that he was likely to face challenges to his crown. What he had done to Richard III in 1485 others might do to him. The two most serious challengers to his Crown were the Pretenders, Lambert Simnel and Perkin Warbeck.

The careers of Simnel and Warbeck were of great significance to Henry VII. They presented a dangerous challenge to his hold on the Crown because:

• they gained the support of some powerful English nobles such as the Earl of Lincoln;

• they were entangled with other European states, particularly Burgundy and Scotland;

• their claims to the throne lasted a long time - 12 years.

Lambert Simnel, 1486-87

Simnel was the 10-year-old son of an organ maker who was taken as a pupil by an Oxford priest, Richard Symonds. Symonds passed Simnel off as one of the princes in the Tower, Richard of York. However, in the light of rumours about the fate of the Earl of Warwick, he seems to have changed his mind and to have decided that Simnel would now impersonate Warwick. After moving to Ireland, Simnel received the support of the Lord Deputy, the Earl of Kildare. Kildare was one of the most powerful nobles in Ireland and his influence enabled Simnel to be crowned King Edward VI in Dublin. Backed by an Irish army, Simnel landed in England where he was supported by the Yorkist nobleman John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln.

Diplomatic problems

Simnel’s claim to the throne caused various diplomatic problems because he received support from Ireland and Burgundy. Throughout the Hundred Years’ War against France, Burgundy had been England’s main ally. It was also the main outlet for the sale of English cloth. However, Margaret, the Dowager Duchess of Burgundy, sister of Edward VI and Richard III, had supported the Yorkists in the recent civil war and was only to willing to provide 2,000 mercenaries for Simnel’s cause. Fortunately for Henry, English support for Simnel was very limited, which enabled him to defeat the rebels at the battle of Stoke in 1487.

Henry VII deals with the rebels

As a deterrent to others in the future, those nobles who had fought at Stoke were dealt with swiftly in Henry’s second parliament, which met from November to December 1487. Henry attainted 28 of them and their lands were confiscated. Henry never again faced an army composed of his own subjects on English soil, although further rebellions did follow. The episode acted as a warning to Henry as it showed how vulnerable his kingship was, that the country was still unsettled and that his hold on the throne was fragile.