EDWARD IV (r. 1461-1470 and 1471-1483)Edward IV was able to restore
order, despite the temporary return to the throne of Henry VI (reigned 1470-71,
during which time Edward fled to the Continent in exile) supported by the Earl
of Warwick, 'the Kingmaker', who had previously supported Edward and who was killed
at the Battle of Barnet in 1471. Edward also made peace with France; by a shrewd
display of force to exert pressure, Edward reached a profitable agreement with
Louis XI at Picquigny in 1475.
At home, Edward relied heavily on his own personal
control in government, reviving the ancient custom of sitting in person 'on the
bench' (i.e. in judgement) to enforce justice. He sacked Lancastrian office-holders
and used his financial acumen to introduce tight management of royal revenues
to reduce the Crown's debt. Building closer relations with the merchant community,
he encouraged commercial treaties; he successfully traded in wool on his own account
to restore his family's fortunes and enable the King to 'live of his own', paying
the costs of the country's administration from the Crown Estates profits and freeing
him from dependence on subsidies from Parliament.
Edward rebuilt St George's
Chapel at Windsor (possibly seeing it as a mausoleum for the Yorkists, as he was
buried there) and a new great hall at Eltham Palace. Edward collected illuminated
manuscripts - his is the only intact medieval royal collection to survive (in
the British Library) - and patronised the new invention of printing. Edward died
in 1483, leaving by his marriage to Elizabeth Woodville a 12-year-old son, Edward,
to succeed him.