Was King Henry

VII a gangster?

L/O:
All: To understand how the first Tudor King dealt with the
problems of England and Wales
Most: To identify the tactics Henry VII used to become more
powerful
Some: To reach a judgement as to whether he should be called a
‘gangster’
Language objective: To write a letter using the words ‘problem’
‘solved’ and one key term we learnt last lesson.
 Quick think!
5 things we gained from the crusades
4 key terms for this topic
3 people who battled for the crown in 1066
2 symptoms of the plague
1 tudor
What is meant
by the term
gangster? Rich

Takes money off people

Force people to follow

their rules or risk being
punished

Spends lots of money to let

people know they are in charge!
 Background
• For 30 years, in the fifteenth century, the York family and the
Lancaster family had fought for control of the country.
• By 1485 it was the Yorks who ruled the land.
• The most senior Yorkist, Richard, had been crowned King
Richard III of England in 1483.
• In August 1485, a member of the Lancaster family, Henry
Tudor, decided to try and win the crown back for his family.
• On the 22nd August, in a field near Bosworth, Leicestershire,
the two armies fought each other.
• Henry won and became the first Tudor monarch.
• However, despite winning the battle he had a lot to do to
make sure his son and grandchildren would rule the country
for the next 100 or so years.
 Henry VII
Sooo lets meet Henry VII:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8D4CET
T2tvshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8D
4CETT2tvs
 Task 1: What were Henry’s
problems?

• Read Henry’s letter which has been

written after the Battle of Bosworth Field.
• What problems does Henry have now that
he is King of England?
 Task 2: What would your advice
to Henry be?
Problem My advice to Henry Reason for
advice
The York family are
angry at the death of
Richard III and may be
looking for revenge
Some of the country’s
land-owning barons are
very powerful and
wealthy. They also
keep private armies.
There is not much
money for weapons,
armies, houses and
palaces.
Task 3: What
did Henry do?
• In pairs place
each card
under the
three
problems.
 Task 4
• Imagine you are Henry VII.You have
been on the throne for a number of
years.
• Write a letter to a friend explaining
how you have solved the 3 main
problems you faced:
– Have you made friends with the York
family? If so how?
– Do you feel secure from your enemies, Dear Uncle Jasper
both inside England and abroad? After being on the
– Are you rich? If so, how did you make throne for many years I
your money? What sort of lifestyle do you have dealt with many of
lead? the problems I faced.

– Write a short paragraph explaining how Firstly ...

you dealt with each of the problems.
 Finished?
• How might Henry VII be treated after his
father died?
Use page 186/187 to try and answer this
question.
 Plenary
• Look back at the definition for a ‘gangster’.
• Was Henry VII like a gangster?
• Turn to the person next to you now. Take
it in turns- say yes or no- you must
explain...