Episode 250 was all about the woman Shakespeare called a She-Wolf: Margaret of Anjou. A powerful leader trying to keep her family together, she is actually a really tragic figure. Let’s discuss.
Below the episode you’ll find a transcript for easy reading.
Hello, friend, and welcome to the Renaissance English History Podcast, a part of the Agora Podcast Network and the original Tudor History Podcast telling stories of Tudor England since 2009. Two thousand and flippin nine, you guys. It’s crazy. Um, anyway, I am your host, Heather, and I’m a storyteller who makes history accessible because I believe it’s a pathway to understanding who we are, our place in the universe.
And being much more deeply in touch with our own humanity. I’m pretty sure this is episode 250. I’ve kind of, so there’s, I have my template set up for cover art, right? You see cover art for these podcast episodes. And every week, or every time I do an episode, I do a new piece of cover art. And I think there’s a disconnect between my template that I use for the cover art and what I say in the podcast.
So I think the cover art is right. I’m not sure. So, it’s either 249 or 250. Either way, it’s a lot, and it’s on Margaret of Anjou, uh, this week. I’ve been thinking about her a bit lately. I know she’s a little bit outside our time. Uh, but, you know, we can’t, we can’t really be super strict with this whole, like, 1485 to 1603 kind of thing, because obviously stuff happens outside of that.
I think about this a lot because I am Gen X, but I’m right on the cusp with like Millennial and am a couple of years, I’m, I’m late Gen X. I think about this a lot because I have Gen X friends who are older than me. And you know, there’s like a lot that we share in common. And then I also have Millennial friends who are younger than me.
And there’s also a lot that we share in common. And then I realized there was this term, exennial, for people in my age group who were in that late 70s period. This is getting really off topic, you guys. I’ve, I, I don’t know. But it’s kind of related because it, it relates to the whole strict 1485 to 1603 thing.
Um, so I discovered this term, exennials, uh, for people like me who are Gen X. But also had the internet. There’s something about that, like, when you got the internet in college or, um, late high school, um, it kind of changed your, your mind a little bit, your brain. Uh, so, you know, I have Gen X friends who are just a little older than me who got through their whole college careers and never used the internet.
I used the internet for a paper the first time when I was a freshman. in college. And I remember it was a, a big discussion over how we cite it. How do you cite the World Wide Web? And it was like this whole conversation we had. It was in a women’s history class. And I remember we were having this whole discussion about like citing the World Wide Web and how do you do that?
And what, what’s the AP style manual say? And it doesn’t say anything. And it was, it was like this whole thing. So my friends who are like three, four years older than me. They got through their whole college careers without having used the internet to write a paper or anything like that. And there’s just like something about that when you, when you got that, that sort of seems to be a switch for people.
Anyway, I totally got off topic there. I am an exenial. And so today we are doing Plantagetudor? Like, can we do that? Can we make that a thing? Like, exennial’s a thing. Can we make plant, Plantudor? Can that be a thing? Instead of Plantagenet, can we say Plantagetudor? Plantudor? Guys, I did not rehearse this before.
This is all just straight off the cuff magic going on right here. Seriously, I have too much fun. Anyway, so we are talking about something related to the Plantagenets and the Wars of the Roses. It’s before the Tudor period. Don’t leave a bunch of comments for me saying, Oh, Heather’s podcast the Tudor period.
I get it. Like, but it’s related. It’s all related. It’s all woven together because obviously this had an impact. Just like, you know, if somebody podcast on the 1990s, since I’m like in Gen X mode right now, let’s talk about the 1990s. And they didn’t talk about Watergate, or they didn’t talk about the 60s, or something like that.
Like, that would be something, because obviously it informed what was going on in the 90s, right? And I have clearly had a lot of coffee, so let’s get right into it. Oh, wait, before we do, before we do, really quick. I owe a shout out to my newest patrons. Hey, patrons. Hi, Rebecca. Actually, there’s two Rebeccas.
There’s a Rebecca S. Hi, Rebecca S. And there’s a Rebecca L. Hi, Rebecca L. And also, Emily has come on since I’ve said anything or said a shout out, so hi, Emily. And I believe Dee also, and Oona. Let’s just do a couple of these more because I forget the last time I did a shout out. So Oona, hi, Oona. And Janet, Dee, and Sarah M., and Roberta R. Hello, hello to all of you. And I’m so glad you’re here. I am delighted. You can check in Patreon. You should get notifications when I post new things. I just posted a new course platform and August’s mini course on Tudor choral music. I just posted that recently, depending on when I release this.
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Again, I am so glad that you are here. Thank you, thank you, thank you for being here. Welcome, welcome. I do post all of the stuff that patrons get, I post it in YouTube as well. It shows up as a post for you for members, depending on what level you’re at. So you can join as well and get extra podcast episodes, extra goodies.
Actually, I’m going to do a drawing today of a 25 gift card to tudorfair.com, which is my merch shop. I’m going to start doing that once a month because it’s fun and I can. Uh, and all kinds of extra stuff. So you can join either on YouTube. If you’re listening to this on YouTube, just click join this channel, or you can go to patreon.com/Englandcast. So, you guys, we’re already 12 minutes into this. I’m going to have to edit this a lot because that’s a lot of chit chat in the beginning. So anyway, hopefully by the time you listen to this, it’s not 12 minutes in, uh, it’s less than that.
Thank you for your patience and for letting me talk. It’s what I do best. Let me pull up my notes and let’s get started on Margaret of Anjou. Margaret of Anjou is one of the most formidable figures in English history, often overshadowed by the male rulers and warriors of her time. She was born in 1430 into the powerful House of Anjou, where she was the daughter of Rene, Duke of Anjou.
It’s a lot of fun to say the word Anjou, isn’t it? Let’s just pause for a moment and I’ll say Margaret of Anjou together. Let’s just, just pause and I’ll wait or yeah, I’ll, I’ll do it for me and you just do it yourself and then we’ll join back together. Okay, so one, two, three. Margaret of Anjou. Isn’t it fun to say?
That was really satisfying, wasn’t it? Alright, so she was the daughter of Rene and Isabella, who was the Duchess of Lorraine, which isn’t quite as much fun to say no hate towards Lorraine. Margaret was married to Henry VI of England at the young age of 15. This of course would have been a diplomatic union intended to bring peace between England and France.
We are at the ending stages of the Hundred Years War here. But this marriage instead would push her into the heart of one of England’s most turbulent periods, the Wars of the Roses. Now the Wars of the Roses was a series of dynastic conflicts between the houses of Lancaster and York. They were ignited by deep seated rivalries and a power vacuum created by Henry VI’s weak and ineffective rule.
Henry had bouts of mental illness. And that left the throne vulnerable, and that forced Margaret to step into the political arena more than a normal queen would have during that time. Her determination to protect her husband’s crown and secure the future of her son, Edward, Prince of Wales, led her to become a key player in this brutal war.
Margaret’s story is not just one of a queen consort, but a woman who defied the expectations of her gender and time. She raised armies, she forged alliances, and she fought tenaciously for her family’s survival. But history has often portrayed her as the she wolf of France, a reflection of the challenges that she faced as a foreign queen in a divided England.
So in this episode, we are going to delve into Margaret’s life, talk about her rise to power, her role in the Wars of the Roses, and the legacy that she left behind. Margaret of Anjou’s journey to becoming the Queen of England began with her marriage to Henry VI in 1445. This was a union that came from political necessity rather than love.
At just 15 years old, she left her home in France to marry a king she had never met, stepping into a foreign court that was rife with tension and uncertainty. The marriage was part of a peace settlement between England and France following years of conflict during the Hundred Years War. However, it was a fragile peace.
And the dowry arrangements, which left Margaret with little financial support, were a source of resentment among the English nobility. As queen, Margaret faced immense challenges from the outset. The English court was hostile towards her, not only because of her French origins, but also due to the precarious state of the English crown.
So we have Henry VI. He was not his father, who would have been, of course, the heroic Henry V. Henry V had been a warrior king. Henry IV had conquered France. Henry VI was pious, was gentle, and was largely ineffective in the affairs of state. His inability to assert his authority left a power vacuum at court, and Margaret found herself surrounded by powerful nobles who viewed her with suspicion.
Compounding these difficulties was the issue of succession. So it took Margaret and Henry eight years to produce an heir, Prince Edward, which only added to the court’s anxiety about the future of the Lancastrian line. During this period, Margaret’s role was largely symbolic, expected to embody the virtues of queenship, of piety, fertility, and grace while navigating the waters of court politics.
Despite these early struggles, her intelligence and her determination began to shine through. She quickly learned to maneuver within the court’s complex power dynamics. She formed alliances with key figures like the Duke of Suffolk and the Duke of Somerset, but these alliances also placed her in opposition to the Duke of York, a man with a strong claim to the throne and a growing power base.
As tensions escalated, Margaret’s position became increasingly precarious, setting the stage for her deeper involvement in the political and military conflicts that would soon engulf England. So the fragility of Henry the sixth Reign reached a critical point in 1453 when the King suffered a severe mental breakdown leaving him basically catatonic for 18 months.
This incapacitation thrust Margaret Vanjue into a position of unprecedented responsibility and danger. With her husband unable to rule, Margaret had to act swiftly to protect the interests of her baby son, Edward. He was only like less than a year, a year old at the time, and the situation was dire.
England was on the brink of civil war. And powerful nobles sensing weakness at the heart of the monarchy began to circle like vultures. Margaret’s primary goal was to secure the regency and protect her son’s inheritance. So she said she wanted to be the person who was the regent who would rule in her son’s stead.
But she faced immense opposition from within the English court. The most formidable of these opponents was Richard, Duke of York. A man who had royal blood and a legitimate claim to the throne. He was also descended from Edward III. York had been a loyal servant to Henry VI, but as the king’s mental state deteriorated, his ambitions grew.
He saw himself as the natural leader of the realm in Henry’s absence, and his growing power posed a direct threat to Margaret’s plans. During Henry’s incapacity, Margaret attempted to assert her authority. She rallied support from local Lancastrian nobles, like the Dukes of Somerset and Suffolk. She advocated for her own appointment as regent, arguing that she should govern in Henry’s name until her son came of age.
However, this was, of course, met with resistance. English law and custom had consort assuming such power. Especially a foreign born queen who was already viewed with suspicion. The struggle for control of the kingdom intensified as the Duke of York sought to consolidate his power. In 1454, the situation reached a boiling point when York was appointed protector of the realm by the English Parliament.
Effectively sidelining Margaret. This was a devastating blow to her ambitions and a clear signal that many in the nobility preferred York’s leadership over her own. Margaret’s response was determined and resolute. Refusing to accept defeat, she continued to build her own power base. Leverage her royal connections and the loyalty of key Lancastrian supporters.
She understood that York’s growing influence was not just a challenge to her husband’s authority, but a direct threat to her son’s future. The conflict between Margaret and York set the stage for the Wars of the Roses, a brutal civil war that would see Margaret emerge as one of the most relentless and determined leaders.
As Henry remained incapacitated, Margaret’s political struggles only deepened. She had to navigate a treacherous landscape where loyalty, we couldn’t count on it, betrayal was commonplace, and her resolve to protect her son’s inheritance, coupled with her willingness to engage in the ruthless politics of the time, solidified her reputation as a formidable force in England.
However, this also made her a target, not just for her enemies, but also for the court of public opinion. Where she was often vilified as a foreign interloper and a manipulative power behind the throne. So the Wars of the Roses then erupted from this power vacuum created by Henry VI’s ineffectiveness and Margaret’s attempt to secure her son’s inheritance.
The conflict was rooted in the deep seated rivalries among England’s most powerful nobles, but it was Margaret’s determination to protect the Lancastrian line that really helped to ignite the full scale war. As Henry VI’s mental health deteriorated, Richard, Duke of York, capitalized on the king’s weakness to assert his own claim to power.
York’s claim to the throne was strong, rooted in his dissent from Edward III, and his growing influence threatened to displace the Lancastrian dynasty. Margaret was acutely aware of the dangers this posed to her son’s future and sought to counter York’s rise by forming strategic alliances with key Lancastrian supporters, as we talked about.
We’ve got the Dukes of Somerset and Suffolk are the main ones. But these alliances only deepened the division within the English nobility, and the country began to split into factions loyal to either Lancaster or York. The tensions finally erupted into open conflict in 1455 at the First Battle of St. Albans.
So we had Henry becoming incapacitated in 1453, the Duke of York being named the protector in 1454, and now in 1455 we’ve got the First Battle of St. Albans. which is often cited as the beginning of the Wars of the Roses. York’s forces decisively defeated the Lancastrians, and the Duke of Somerset, one of Margaret’s closest allies, was killed.
This battle marked a significant shift in power. York emerged as the dominant force in the kingdom. Margaret, of course, wouldn’t have taken part in the battle itself, but the defeat was a devastating blow to her plans. York’s victory allowed him to reassert his claim to the throne and effectively sidelined Margaret and her son from the center of power.
Despite this setback, Margaret refused to give up. She began to take an increasingly active role in the conflict. She worked tirelessly to gather support for the Lancastrian cause. As a French born queen, she faced significant challenges in rallying English nobles to her side. Anti French sentiment was strong, fueled by decades of warfare with France, of course, the Hundred Years War just is finishing up, and many viewed her with suspicion and hostility.
Her gender also played a role in the opposition she faced. The idea of a woman wielding such influence was deeply unsettling to many in the male dominated society. Nevertheless, Margaret’s resilience and determination were undeniable. She continued to marshal forces and resources, preparing for the inevitable clashes to come.
Her leadership in these efforts earned her both admiration and scorn. To her supporters, she was courageous and a determined protector of her family’s legacy. To her enemies, she was a foreign interloper meddling in English affairs. The escalating conflict was not just a struggle for the throne, but also a personal battle for Margaret.
The loss at St. Albans, the death of her allies, and the growing power of York only steeled her resolve to fight for her son’s birthright. As the Wars of the Roses unfolded, Margaret’s role as a central figure in the conflict became increasingly clear, and her involvement in the ensuing battles would come to define her legacy.
Margaret’s transition from a queen consort to a military leader showed her determination to protect her son’s claim to the throne. Her leadership during this period was marked by both significant victories and devastating losses and it further solidified her controversial reputation as the She Wolf of France.
Her first major test of leadership came after the defeat of the First Battle of St. Albans. With her husband incapacitated and the Duke of York in a dominant position, Margaret knew she had to take drastic action to preserve the Lancastrian dynasty. She began to forge alliances with powerful northern lords who were loyal to the Lancastrian cause.
And she worked tirelessly to gather resources needed to challenge York’s growing power. Her ability to mobilize support in the North was crucial in maintaining the Lancastrian resistance during the early years of the war. One of her most significant military efforts was the Battle of Wakefield, about five years later in December 1460.
Determined to eliminate the threat posed by Richard, Duke of York, Margaret led an army south to confront him. The battle ended in a decisive Lancastrian victory with York himself being killed on the battlefield. This victory was a major triumph for Margaret. She would have been about 30 years old at this point.
It not only removed one of her most formidable opponents, but Yorkist cause. However, it also, of course, intensified the animosity towards her, as the brutal aftermath of the battle, including the display of York’s severed head on the gates of York, fueled the negative image of Margaret as a vengeful and ruthless leader.
The Second Battle of St. Albans, a couple of months later, February 1461, was another significant moment in her military leadership. Once again, she led Lancastrian forces to victory, freeing her husband from Yorkist captivity. However, despite these successes, Margaret’s position remained precarious. The Yorkists quickly regrouped, and just a month later, they achieved a decisive victory at the Battle of Towton, forcing Margaret and her son into exile in Scotland.
Throughout these campaigns, Margaret’s leadership was both praised and vilified to her enemies. She was the she Wolf of France, a derogatory term, popularized by Shakespeare that painted her as a foreign aggressor, meddling in English affairs with a ruthless and vindictive nature. The portrayal of Margaret as the she Wolf, has had a lasting implication for her legacy.
It reinforced the idea that she was an unnatural woman stepping beyond the traditional roles of Queenship. into the male dominated world of warfare and politics. This characterization has often overshadowed her genuine achievements as a leader, reducing her to a caricature of ambition and cruelty. Yet her leadership during the Wars of the Roses was significant.
She demonstrated a remarkable capacity to navigate the complexities of civil war. She made strategic decisions that had profound impact on the course of the conflict. The Battle of Townton, fought on March 29th, 1461, was a turning point in the Wars of the Roses and marked the beginning of the decline of the Lancastrian cause.
Fought in a snowstorm, Townton was the bloodiest battle ever fought on English soil, with contemporary estimates of the dead reaching as high as 28, 000 people. The Yorkist forces, led by the newly proclaimed King Edward IV, decisively defeated the Lancastrians, effectively ending any immediate hope of a Lancastrian resurgence.
The aftermath of the battle was devastating for Margaret and her supporters. The Lancastrian forces were shattered. Edward IV was securely established on the throne. In the wake of Townton, Margaret, along with her young son Edward, was forced into exile in Scotland. Despite this crushing defeat, Margaret was not ready to give up the fight.
She sought refuge with her remaining supporters and began to rebuild her forces, determined to reclaim the throne for her son. During this period, she tirelessly worked to secure alliances and gather support from foreign powers, including the Scottish court and her family in France. However, her resources were limited and the Lancastrian cause was increasingly seen as a lost one.
Margaret’s most ambitious attempt to regain power came nine years later, 1470. So, you know, it’s been eight, nine years now since she has been involved in anything, but then she formed a surprising alliance with Richard Neville, the Earl of Warwick, who had once been a staunch supporter of the Yorkists and had been a key architect of Edward IV’s rise to power.
He was known as the Kingmaker because of that. He had become disillusioned with Edward’s rule and sought to restore the Lancastrians to the throne. The alliance between Margaret and Warwick was uneasy, driven more by mutual necessity than trust or shared goals. But it did briefly revive the Lancastrian cause, leading to the temporary restoration of Henry VI to the throne in October 1470.
However, of course, this was short lived. Edward IV quickly regrouped, returned to England in 1471, determined to reclaim his crown. The Lancastrians and Warwick faced him at the Battle of Barnet on April 14, 1471. This ended in disaster for Margaret’s cause, with Warwick killed and the Lancastrian forces scattered.
Margaret, who had delayed her return to England, she was in France at this point, until she was sure of Warwick’s success, Landed in England just hours after the battle, only to find her situation more desperate than ever. Honestly, she should have just stayed in the boat and turned back around. But, anyway, undeterred, she continued her efforts to rally support, but her final gamble came to a tragic end at the Battle of Tewkesbury in May of 1471.
She was outnumbered and outmaneuvered by Edward’s forces, and the Lancastrians suffered a crushing defeat. Her son Edward, Prince of Wales, was killed either during or after the battle, extinguishing the last hope for the Lancastrian line. With his death, Margaret’s lifelong struggle to secure the throne for her son was over.
There was no point to it anymore. Following the defeat at Tewkesbury, Margaret was captured and taken prisoner. Her husband, Henry VI, was murdered at the Tower of London shortly thereafter, effectively bringing an end to the Lancastrian cause. Margaret was actually eventually ransomed to Louis XI of France and spent the remainder of her life living in relative obscurity in France, far from the power and influence she had once wielded.
The alliance with Warwick, once seen as a potential turning point, had instead hastened the final downfall of the Lancastrians. Her exile, the tragic loss of her son, marked the final chapter in her long and tumultuous political career. Despite her relentless efforts, this woman, she just kept going. She was the picture of determination.
The Lancastrian cause was ultimately doomed, and the Wars of the Roses ended with the complete dominance of the Yorkist faction. I mean, at least for then, until a decade later. She was held in custody for several years in England before she was ransomed to King Louis XI in 1475. This allowed her to return to her homeland, and she died in 1482.
In history and literature, she has often been portrayed as ruthless and ambitious, but And this image of her as a vengeful and manipulative person has endured for centuries. But modern historians have begun to reassess her legacy, viewing her not as a villain, but as a woman who was forced to take extraordinary measures in extraordinary circumstances.
As a queen consort, she was thrust into a brutal civil war and had to navigate a treacherous political landscape to protect her son’s inheritance. Her actions, often seen as driven by ambition, can also be understood as the desperate efforts of a mother fighting to secure her child’s future. Today, most people see Margaret of Anjou not just as a formidable political figure, but also a woman who defied the limitations of her time and left an indelible mark on English history.
So there we have it. Margaret of Anjou, she died in 1482, so she would not have been alive to see Edward IV die. Um, she died thinking that the Yorkists had won forever. Thank you so much for listening. We will leave it there. I hope you had fun with this episode. I had fun doing this episode, clearly. Um, I appreciate you listening.
I appreciate your listenership. I appreciate you being here. Thank you to the patrons. Ah, Tudorcon! Remember, Tudorcon is coming up in less than, like, just a couple of weeks. Englandcast. com slash Tudorcon online to grab your online tickets. And thank you to Armor and Castings. You are my sponsor for Tudorcon and for this podcast right now.
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Heather Teysko is the creator, writer, and producer of The Renaissance English History Podcast,  the original Tudor history podcast, started in 2009. She's been writing about history online for over 25 years, since her first site on Colonial American history became number one in history on Yahoo in 1998. In 2019 she created Tudorcon, which is now a yearly event, in addition to writing books, and running TudorFair.com - a whimsical Tudor Merch shop. She has been passionate about Tudor England since she first read Alison Weir's The Six Wives of Henry VIII 20 years ago, and subsequently moved to London after college to spend her time immersed in Tudor history.