History of the English line of succession Wars of the Roses, Henry VI was forcibly deposed by his third cousin twice removed, Edward, Duke of York, who became Edward IV. On the day of Edward IV's deposition, 3 October 1470, the line of succession following agnatic primogeniture was; However, Edward IV was deposed, and the throne was restored to Henry VI, the previous monarch, during the period known as the Readeption of Henry VI. On the day of Henry VI's second deposition, 11 April 1471, the line of succession following agnatic primogeniture was: However, the English nobility again became frustrated with Henry's inability to rule competently, and
Wars of the Roses again won complete victories at Barnet (14 April 1471), where Warwick was killed, and Tewkesbury (4 May 1471) where the Lancastrian heir, Edward of Westminster, Prince of Wales was killed, or perhaps executed after the battle. Queen Margaret was escorted to London as a prisoner and Henry was murdered in the Tower of London several days later, ending the direct Lancastrian line of succession. A period of comparative peace followed, ending with the unexpected death of King Edward in 1483. His surviving brother, Richard, Duke of Gloucester, first moved to prevent the unpopular Woodville family of Edward's widow from participating