As we enter the world of Shakespeare's history plays, we figured it was time for a backgrounder on the period of history being shown, as we understand it today. Starting with the dynastic feud that ran the course of almost all of Shakespeare's English history plays - the twin tetralogies with their numerous Henrys and penchant for big battles - the Wars of the Roses. 

Follow along as we give you a condensed version of the history, opine about the nature of kingship, and talk about the recursive impact of Shakespeare: the way he wrote about history, and subsequently helped shape the way that same history has been viewed ever since.

Notes:

(lineage chart from: https://thehistoryofengland.co.uk/resource/wars-of-the-roses-family-trees/)

• Crusader Kings II (Currently on sale for the Steam Summer Sale)
• Europa Universalis IV (Also on sale)
• The Wars of the Roses: England's First Civil War by Trevor Royle
• The Wars of the Roses: The Fall of the Plantagenets and the Rise of the Tudors
• Episode 1 of Britain's Bloody Crown (Aidan incorrectly titled it the Hollow Crown) the documentary that neatly summarizes the book Aidan read
• British History's Biggest Fibs with Lucy Worsley - Episode 1: The Wars of the Roses
• Britain's Real Monarch with Tony Robinson