Warwick the Kingmaker

This book illuminates Warwick's character and motivation, showing that he was an emotional, charming, and popular man with a strong sense of family loyalty. It is the first full study of this compelling figure within the context of political life in late medieval England.

Plates vii Genealogical Tables ix Preface x Abbreviations xiii 1 The Legend of Warwick the Kingmaker 1 2 The Formative Years 7 2.1 Pedigree and Patrimony 7 2.2 Northern Roots 17 2.3 Shaping the Future 22 3 Earl of Warwick 31 3.1 Warwick Inheritance Update 31 3.2 Gathering the Spoils 36 3.3 Effectively Earl 48 3.4 The Warwick Traditions 53 4 The Polarization of Politics 1449–54 64 4.1 The Ascendancy of the Opposition 64 4.2 The Royalist Reaction 1451–3 75 4.3 Time for Decision 85 5 Partisan Politics 1454–6 94 5.1 York’s First Protectorate 1454–5 94 5.2 The First Battle of St Albans 1455 112 5.3 York’s Second Protectorate 1455–6 119 6 Countdown to Civil War 1456–9 126 6.1 Towards Reconciliation 126 6.2 Captain of Calais and Keeper of the Seas 138 6.3 The Opportunity Missed 148 6.4 Rout 159 7 Fortune’s First Wheel 1459–61 168 7.1 Reculer pour mieux sauter 168 7.2 Warwick’s Triumph 177 7.3 The Ideology of Reform 191 7.4 From Abyss to Victory 210 8 The Rule of the Nevilles 1461–7 220 8.1 The First Family 220 8.2 The Pacification of the North 234 8.3 Changing Priorities 248 9 Dropping the Pilot 1467–9 255 9.1 Growing Apart 255 9.2 Rising Tensions 1467–9 263 9.3 Warwick’s First Coup 1469 271 10 Fortune’s Second Wheel 1470–1 279 10.1 Warwick’s Second Coup 1470 279 10.2 Warwick as Kingmaker 286 10.3 From Triumph to Disaster 1470–1 296 11 Terminus 311 Select Bibliography 314 Index 326