Which battlefield victory in 1485 made Henry Tudor king?

The Battle of Bosworth Field was the 1485 victory that made Henry Tudor king. Fought on 22 August 1485 in Leicestershire, it ended Richard III’s rule and brought the Tudor dynasty to the English throne.

Henry landed in Wales with a relatively small force and marched inland to confront Richard. The Yorkist army initially outnumbered Henry’s troops, but the intervention of Sir William Stanley and his men proved decisive. Richard led a direct attack aimed at killing Henry, but Richard was surrounded and killed during the fighting.

Henry was crowned Henry VII after the battle, though he strengthened his legitimacy by dating his reign from the day before Bosworth. This allowed him to treat supporters who had fought for Richard as traitors. The battle is often called the last significant engagement of the Wars of the Roses.

Bosworth did not end every Yorkist challenge: Henry defeated a final major rebellion at Stoke Field in 1487. Nevertheless, Bosworth became the defining transition from Plantagenet and Yorkist rule to Tudor rule.