orig. Henry Tudor, earl of Richmond
(b. Jan. 28, 1457, Pembroke Castle, Pembrokeshire, Wales
d. April 21, 1509, Richmond, Surrey, Eng.) King of England (14851509) and founder of the Tudor dynasty.
As earl of Richmond and a kinsman in the House of Lancaster , he fled to Brittany after the triumph of the Yorkist forces in 1471. He later returned to England, rallied the opponents of Richard III , and defeated him at the Battle of Bosworth Field (1485). He married Elizabeth of York and ended the Wars of the Roses , though Yorkist plots continued. He made peace with France (1492), the Netherlands (1496), and Scotland (1499) and used his children's marriages to build European alliances. His commercial treaties and promotion of trade made England wealthy and powerful. He was succeeded by his son Henry VIII .