Elizabeth of York

Elizabeth of York was the eldest daughter of King Edward IV and his wife Elizabeth Woodville. She was born on February 11, 1466, at Westminster Palace, and was christened at Westminster Abbey. She had nine siblings, including two brothers who were known as the Princes in the Tower and who disappeared under mysterious circumstances during the reign of their uncle Richard III. Elizabeth was briefly betrothed to George Neville, Duke of Bedford, and later to Charles, Dauphin of France, but both engagements were broken off. After the death of her father in 1483, she and her sisters were declared illegitimate by an act of Parliament that also declared Richard III as the rightful king. However, Henry Tudor, a distant cousin and claimant to the throne from the House of Lancaster, promised to marry Elizabeth as a way to unite the warring factions of York and Lancaster and end the Wars of the Roses. He defeated Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485 and became King Henry VII. Elizabeth married him on January 18, 1486, at Westminster Abbey, and was crowned as queen consort on November 25, 1487. She gave birth to eight children, four of whom survived to adulthood: Arthur, Prince of Wales; Margaret, Queen of Scots; Henry VIII, King of England; and Mary, Queen of France. She also had four miscarriages and two stillbirths. Elizabeth was a popular and respected queen who was known for her beauty, piety, and kindness. She had a good relationship with her husband and was devoted to her children. She also patronized several artists and scholars, such as John Skelton and William Caxton. She died on February 11, 1503, on her 37th birthday, at the Tower of London, from a postpartum infection after giving birth to a short-lived daughter. She was buried beside her husband at Westminster Abbey in a tomb commissioned by their son Henry VIII. She is regarded as the first Tudor queen and the mother of the Tudor dynasty that ruled England for over a century.