Wars of the Roses

American  

noun

English History.

1. the civil struggle between the royal house of Lancaster, whose emblem was a red rose, and the royal house of York, whose emblem was a white rose, beginning in 1455 and ending with the accession of Henry VII in 1485 and the union of the two houses.

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Wars of the Roses British  

plural noun

1. the conflicts in England (1455–85) centred on the struggle for the throne between the house of York (symbolized by the white rose) and the house of Lancaster (of which one badge was the red rose)

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Wars of the Roses

The Tudor era begins with the conclusion of the Wars of the Roses, when the Lancastrian Henry Tudor marries Elizabeth of York and at last ends England’s decades-long civil war.

From New York Times ● Oct. 9, 2022

Shakespeare's dramatic rendering of the infamous Machiavellian-style politics during the Wars of the Roses in his series of history plays gave "Game of Thrones's" creator, George R.R.

From Salon ● Sep. 24, 2022

But some of us are still playing catchup with her best work: the BBC’s 10-part Wars of the Roses drama, The White Queen, from 2013, in which she is fiercely affecting as Elizabeth Woodville.

From The Guardian ● Jul. 19, 2018

I’m writing a war story, essentially — the Wars of the Roses.

From Time ● Jul. 13, 2017

Next we come to the cenotaph of Tiptoft, Earl of Worcester, who lived during the Wars of the Roses.

From Highways and Byways in Cambridge and Ely by Conybeare, Edward