Originally published in Great Britain by Penguin Books Ltd., 2011.

New in paperback - Explore a fascinating look at the three pretenders to the Tudor throne - Simnel, Warbeck, and Warwick.

Founder of the Tudor dynasty, Henry VII was a crucial figure in English history. In this acclaimed study of the king's life and reign, the distinguished historian S. B. Chrimes explores the circumstances surrounding Henry's acquisition of the throne, examines the personnel and machinery of government, and surveys the king's social, political, and economic policies, law enforcement, and foreign strategy. This edition of the book includes a new critical introduction and bibliographical updating by George Bernard.

"Henry ruled over a splendid court never stinting expense. His greatest sorrow was the premature death of his son Prince Arthur and after his wife Elizabeth's death (1503) Henry's character deteriorated. He became mean and niggardly. Succeeding to an impoverished kingdom, his ambition was to make England important in the Europe of the time and in that he succeeded, leaving a prosperous kingdom to Henry VIII."--BOOK JACKET.

Annotation This volume reconstructs the lives of Henry VII's new men - low-born ministers with legal, financial, political, and military skills who enforced the king's will as he sought to strengthen government after the Wars of the Roses, examining how they exercised power, gained wealth, and spent it to sustain their new-found status.

This biography illuminates the life of Henry VII himself, how he ran his government, how his authority was maintained, and the nature of the country over which he ruled since he first claimed the throne in 1485. Sean Cunningham explores how Henry's reign was vitally important in stabilizing the English monarchy and providing the sound financial and institutional basis for later developments in government, and tackles key questions in the debate: Was Henry VII a conventional late medieval nobleman? How did his upbringing affect his later kingship? What was the nature of Henry's marriage to Elizabeth of York? How and why did he become the main rival to Richard III following the disappearance of Edward V and his brother in July 1483? Up until now the details of Henry as a person and as a king, his court and household, his subjects, and his country have remained little known. This book fills that gap, bringing to the forefront the life and times of the very first Tudor king.