Le Morte d

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Le Morte dArthur

• Thursday, Feb. 28

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Background Info

• Written by Sir Thomas Malory
• Published in 1485
• About a fictional, but legendary King of England
  roughly based on historical events of this time
• Historical information at this time
• The Wars of the Roses
• The House of Lancaster vs. the House of York
• The Red Rose vs. The White Rose

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The Wars of the Roses

• Causes
• 1.) The rivalry between the house of York and the
  House of Lancaster started when King Richard II
  was overthrown by his cousin, Henry Bolingbroke,
  Duke of Lancaster, in 1399.
• 2.) Civil unrest of much of the population at
  this time
• 3.) The availability of many powerful lords with
  their own private armies
• 4.) A struggle for power among distant relatives

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The Results

• The battle was fought between the armies of
  Richard III and Henry VII.
• Richards army was larger but was nonetheless
  beaten
• Henry was crowned King after winning the battle
• His name was Henry Tudor and thus he was the
  first Tudor King
• He bought peace to England after 85 years of
  civil war
• http//www.warsoftheroses.com/index.htm

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Le Morte DArthur

• The Story of King Arthur and the Knights of the
  Round Table
• Begins with Arthurs conception and birth, and
  concluding with his death.
• Throughout the story we meet handsome knights,
  beautiful ladies, and become immersed in the land
  of Camelot.
• The name and characters of Arthur was already
  known at this time.
• In the sixth-century a Roman-British General
  named Arthur battled against invading Saxons.

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Arthurian Legend

• Excalibur
• Avalon
• Merlin
• Lady of the Lake
• Lady of Shallot
• Camelot
• The Round Table