On this date in 1485, the last militarily successful invasion of  

England ( = the monarch changed as the result of direct 

military action undertaken as part of, or in response to, the 

invasion) came to an end as Henry Tudor, the Lancastrian

claimant to the Earldom of Richmond and the Crown itself, 

defeated Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth Field. 

Richard, who died in the battle, was the third and last king of

the House of York, and has stood accused of the murder of 

his nephews, the so-called "Princes in the Tower," for over 

500 years.

Henry Tudor, meanwhile, took the throne as Henry VII and

founded one of the most-celebrated (or, at least, most-

discussed) of all English royal dynasties: the Tudors.

Today in History

On this date in 1485, Henry Tudor landed near Milford Haven and Pembroke in SW Wales, at the start of the last militarily successful invasion of England.

Fifteen days later, at the close of the Battle of Bosworth Field, Tudor was King Henry VII, and the previous king, Richard III, was dead.

(One could argue that the 1688 expedition that brought William and Mary to the British throne as joint sovereigns was the last militarily successful invasion, but the main reason that one succeeded was the flight of James II -- which is why, in addition to being known as the "Glorious Revolution," 1688 is also known as the "Bloodless Revolution." In 1485, by contrast, Richard III actively opposed Henry Tudor in battle, and lost both his crown and his life.)