Jimmy White, age 14, of Santa Rosa, Calif., for his question:

WHAT WAS THE WARS OF THE ROSES?

The Wars of the Roses brought civil strife to England in the late 1400s as two branches of the royal house fought for the English throne. The symbols adopted by each side gave the struggle its name. The House of York had long used a white rose as its emblem and the House of Lancaster became identified with a red rose.

The wars started in 1455 with the Battle of Saint Albans and ended  30 years later in 1485 with the Battle of Bosworth Field.

King Henry VI of the House of Lancaster held the throne when the Wars of the Roses began. Richard, Duke of York, claimed that Henry VI had no right to be king. And the wars started.

Richard was killed in a battle and his son Edward led York forces which crushed the Lancastrians. Edward then became king in 1461 as Edward IV.

In 1470, the forces of Lancaster drove Edward from England and brought back Henry VI. Seven months later Edward returned and defeated the Lancaster forces, regaining the throne.

The House of York ruled until Richard III lost his throne to the Lancaster descendant, Henry Tudor, who became King Henry VII in 1485. Henry VII married Elizabeth, daughter of Edward IV, uniting the houses of Lancaster and York, and founding the Tudor dynasty.

And the wars ended.