Over-Mighty Nobility Was The Main Causes Of The Roses

Using these three sources in their historical context, assess how far they support the view that the problem of an over-mighty nobility was the main cause of the outbreak of the wars of the roses

During the rule of Henry VI, certain nobles had increasing amounts of power, which angered some of the other nobles who felt they were being ignored. It is certain that they had too much power at the time, and that this was a contributing cause for the outbreak of the conflicts, however it was catalysed by things like bastard feudalism These sources show various views linked to the statement that “the problem of an over-mighty nobility was the main cause of the outbreak of the wars of the roses”. In this essay, I will put the sources in context using my own knowledge and see how far they support or disagree the statement, and to what extent it is true.
It states that the Duke of Somerset at the time “dominates and rules about the king’s person”, the Duke of Somerset was a favoured noble of Henry VI’s, especially liked by Margaret of Anjou. The source is suggesting that the Duke of Somerset controlled some of the decisions made by the king, referencing towards the loss of Normandy by his army. Henry VI was not very wise, certainly when it came to ruling the country, allowing himself to be ruled by the nobles around him, this could be one of the reasons for his lavish expenditure. Therefore, this source does support the claim that the over-mighty nobility was a big reason for the outbreak of the wars, but also gives evidence of Henry VI being a weak king, after all he had the power to put a stop to the problems Somerset was causing but he did little to stop