England

Henry VI (1422-1471)

Henry was weak-willed, ineffectual as king, pious, and scholarly. He never was fit to rule, for from the time he was a young man he was prey to bouts of insanity. Henry gave everyone whatever they asked for, even if he had given it to someone else the day before.

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Henry VI

This is a terrible irony, as perhaps no medieval king was so poised to make an indelible mark upon the world. His father, through the Treaty of Troyes, which in turn was a direct result of his battlefield victories, had at last won the crown of France for England. The claim was not undisputed, so any king would have to fight hard for it, but two of the greatest crowns of Europe were within Henry's grasp.

Minority

He was less than one year old when made king. The child could not rule, of course, so England was placed into the hands of men chosen by his father. Humphrey, duke of Gloucester ruled England, while France was ruled by John, Duke of Bedford.

Meanwhile, England expected France to pay for itself, so Parliament voted no subsidies from 1422 to 1429. Gloucester neglected the business of government and quarreled endlessly with Bishop Beaufort (you will recall that the Beauforts were loyal Lancastrians). Then came the failure of the siege of Orleans in May 1429, followed by the coronation of Charles VII as king of France, at Reims in July of the same year. England panicked.

Henry VI was crowned king in November 1429, even though he was only nine years old, clearing the way for him to claim his other crown. He was crowned King of France in Paris, at Notre Dame the following year.

But Henry was in truth king of nothing, for he was ruled by his uncles and their friends. All through the 1430s, Henry was kept firmly in the background, and all the while England was losing ground to France. In 1435 Burgundy went over to France. On 13 November 1437, Henry VI officially assumed his powers as king, at age fifteen.

King Henry

He was weak-willed and weak-minded. The advisory council lapsed but Henry continued to be dominated by his household advisors, especially William de la Pole, duke of Suffolk. Henry was profligate in handing out favors but negligent in the business of government. He appeared to have no idea how to conduct a war, especially a defensive war. For example, he repeatedly ran out of money and rarely paid his officials or his troops. Important posts were filled by great men who had their own income, paid their underlings themselves, and consequently ran their offices as they saw fit.

The factions were so strong around him, and the stakes were so high, that they fought with one another rather than turning on the king, for he himself was a non-entity. The nobles carried on continual private wars and quite ignored Henry.