1464-71] YORK AND LANCASTER
107
Woodville, a widow of no great rank, and bestowed
vast estates and titles upon her numerous relatives.
Not only Warwick, but the other great Yorkist
nobles were very angry at seeing members of this
family receiving greater honours than the first lords of
the country. Other actions of Edward followed which
Warwick regarded as insulting to him personally. He
was so incensed that before long he met Margaret in
France, and with her planned to invade England.
Edward was rudely aroused from his indolence when
Warwick landed in England in 1470. He had only
time to slip away with a few followers to the coast,
and board a ship bound for Flanders. Warwick now
brought King Henry out of the Tower, and recrowned
him with a great deal of ceremony. ‚The ease with which
Warwick made and unmade kings has gained for him the
name of the “ King-maker.”
But Edward had not been idle. He soon landed in
England with an army raised in France, and defeated
Warwick at the battle of Barnet. The “King-maker”
met his death on the field. Margaret, who landed
later with another army, was in turn defeated at the battle
of Tewkesbury. The young Prince Kdward was put to
death, Margaret was made prisoner, and Henry VI was
again confined in the Tower, where he was shortly after-
wards murdered.
104. Edward’s government.— Edward was again on the
throne, and he seemed to feel that he was now entitled
to enjoy himself. As he did not wish to call a Parliament,
he originated a plan for obtaining funds in such a way that
no one would dare to object. This was to invite wealthy
men to make him a present, or benevolence, as he called it.
By means of the confiseation of estates and forced loans,
Edward was enabled to rule without calling a Parliament,
and to make himself very powerful.
Edward’s dissolute life made him old before his time,
He knew that the nobles hated him, and that he had dis-
appointed the hopes of the people. He became weary of
life, and died, worn out, after a reign of twenty-two years,
